Equipment Needed

You will need to purchase at least 50 pickleballs for your lesson along with some kind of carrier. A tube for picking up the balls will be a great investment. Have at least a few extra paddles on hand in case someone is traveling and did not bring their paddle. You may have first time players as well. Consider becoming a bag dealer for one of the major companies that produce paddles. This way you will have demo paddles on hand for clients to try. Use some kind of target system for your lessons. Cones will work and they give the clients the satisfaction of knocking something over, but it takes time away from the lesson when you have to continue to set them back up. When teaching children, consider placing pieces of candy on the court for them to target and receive when hit with parents' approval of course. The silicone circle targets are a great tool to utilize for adult lessons because they do not pose a safety concern for tripping. 

Teaching Children

Help them to find success depending on their age. Challenge them according to their skill level in trying to hit a certain number of shots within the court in a row. Use game format drills such as winner or king of the court style play. Consider asking parents for permission in providing treats as rewards for hitting target areas. You may consider using small squirt guns in a king of the court style play or when playing around the world. It is best to give the children something to do when they have missed a shot and are sitting out.

WINNER - This can be played as singles or doubles. I will explain using a doubles format. Winners are on one side of the court and the challengers are on the other side with the remaining kids waiting in line to challenge next. If a challenger misses any shot they go to the end of the line and the next kid in line becomes the new challenger. If you have many waiting in line it is best to form 2 lines and have them rotate out as a team when the challengers make a mistake. The challenging team attempts to win 3 points in a row in order to become the new winners. If at any time a challenger hits a Winner (defined as the ball bouncing twice without being touched by the current winning team) then they immediately run to the winner side and the instructor yells "WINNER!" while feeding the next ball up high in the air to the next challengers. This drill does require the instructor to be feeding balls constantly.

King of the Court - One person is the king and one challenger attempts to serve and score a point on each side of the court. If they are successful in winning 2 in a row, they become the new king of the court. They rotate out as soon as they lose a point. This drill allows the instructor to watch and not have to feed.

Around the World - 2 lines form on each side of the court as equal in number as possible. The rally is started by the line with more people if you have an odd number. After hitting the ball, the player runs around to the other side of the court to the end of that line to await their next shot. When a player makes a mistake, they receive a strike. 3 strikes and the player will sit out and cheer on their fellow athletes or you may employ the squirt gun technique. If kids do not wish to get a little wet, they can try to squirt the ball as it goes over the net instead. You can also have the players who are sitting say the name of the child currently hitting the ball each time in order to learn everyone's name.