Dead or Alive – Spooky Tennis Challenge 👻🎃 🎾

👦👧 Ages 7+ (Titans/Troopers) | Great for Halloween Theme

🧠 Objective:
To hit consistently under pressure and stay “alive” while dodging elimination. Fun, silly, and skill-based — perfect for small groups (3–6 per round).

🎭 Story Setup:

“Welcome to the Haunted Tennis Trials! The land is full of tennis ghosts and creepy curses! Only those who hit well will survive! Miss too many shots… and you’ll start to fall apart piece by piece. Will you survive… or become a ghost?!”

🛠 Setup:

• Choose one shot focus: Groundstrokes or Volleys

• Coach feeds 3 balls per turn (or parents if helping)

• Line kids up behind baseline or mini net

• Mark a “Ghost Zone” off to the side

• Mark a “Revive Zone” (where revived players re-enter)

🎮 How to Play:

1. One child at a time steps up and is fed 3 balls

2. If they hit 2 or 3 balls well ➤ they are Alive ✅ → go to back of queue

3. If they hit 0 or 1 ball ➤ they are Dead-ish ☠️ → they lose a body part and try again!

💀 Stages of Elimination:

1. Lose an arm: Hit with racket hand only, non-dominant arm behind back

2. Lose a leg: Hop on one leg while hitting

3. No limbs: Sit on the floor and hit from seated

4. Fully dead: Lie down and try to hit a shot while lying flat 😵

5. Ghost!: If still unsuccessful, you become a ghost 👻 – sit in the Ghost Zone

🧚‍♂️ Revivers:

• If a player hits all 3 shots perfectly, they earn 1 Revive Power

• They can choose one ghost to bring back to life (tap them on shoulder)

• That ghost returns to the back of the queue as Alive ✅

While the kids are waiting in line, spots are designated for them to stand. Kids must keep moving (bouncing on toes); otherwise, they turn into ghosts.

🪶 Feathers (Easier Version):

• Allow younger players to skip stages (go from one-arm to ghost)

• Let them use larger rackets or foam balls

• Use tees or drop feeds instead of live feeds

• Reduce number of shots (e.g. 2 shots total, only need 1 to survive)

⚡ Progressions (Harder Version):

• Increase required hits to 3/3 to stay alive

• Add movement before shots (e.g., crab steps to cone and back)

• Add “final ghost duel”: two ghosts must rally from seated position to re-enter

🎃 Halloween Twist:

• Play with spooky music in the background

• Use Halloween-themed markers (pumpkins, cauldrons, skeleton cones)

• Encourage kids to make spooky sounds during ghost stage 👻💀

🏆 Finishing Options:

• Last child alive becomes “The Final Survivor” 🧛‍♂️👑

Balloon Keepy-Uppy 🧺🎈

Objective 🎯

Keep the balloon in the air using any part of the body or racket. Don’t let it touch the ground – or it gets very upset! 😢

Note: some young children may not like balloons, please use your judgement; if a child is not happy with balloons please give them something else to do, scarf, ball, etc…

👟 Setup

• NB doesn’t work with any wind at all so it's better inside

• Children sat in a circle or group

• Balloons hidden inside a bag (e.g. drawstring sack)

• 1–2 balloons blown up in advance

🗣️ Coach Introduction Script

"I've brought something very special in this bag... can anyone guess what it is?"
(Play the guessing game for a minute)
"It's a balloon! But not just any balloon... these are full of air, and they absolutely love floating in the sky 🌤️. But if they touch the ground or stop moving... they get very upset!"
(Make funny sad/crying sounds)
"We have to keep them happy by keeping them in the air! You can use your hands, feet, head, shoulders… even rackets – just don’t let them drop!"

🎈 How to Play

Coach releases a balloon into the air.

1. Players must keep it in the air using any body part or a racket.

2. If the balloon touches the ground or is held too long – coach makes a silly “crying” noise and resets the game.

3. Optional: Add more balloons for chaos & teamwork!

IMPORTANT: IF THE SPACE IS TOO SMALL PLEASE DO NOT USE RACKETS TO AVOID INJURY!

🪶 Feather Levels (Differentiation)

🪶 One Feather – Starter

• Only one balloon in play

• Use hands only

• Coach helps redirect the balloon

🪶🪶 Two Feathers – Developing

• Add more balloons

• Encourage racket use

• Players must stay in their own space

🪶🪶🪶 Three Feathers – Confident

• Keep balloon aloft for 10+ hits

• Count aloud each hit

• Use only rackets or only non-dominant hand

• Introduce small challenges (e.g. spin before hitting, or tap it to a partner)

🔁 Progressions & Variations

• 🧢 Team Rally: Count how many touches as a team before balloon drops

• 🏃‍♂️ Movement Balloon: Must travel from one cone to another while keeping balloon up

• 🎯 Target Zones: Tap the balloon over a line or into a hoop

• ⛔ No Hands Round: Only use feet, knees, or rackets

• 🧦 Balloon Chase: Everyone has a balloon to chase and keep upWhatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Attack the Fort 🎯– Serving & Strategy Game

Great for summer camps

Objective

Build, defend, and attack a makeshift fort using teamwork and serving accuracy. 

Setup

One team constructs a “fort” in the centre of the court using tennis nets (coaches help for speed), cones, and a large parachute for shelter. They have a set time limit (e.g. 3–5 minutes) to complete their build.

During the building of the fort; the opposing team spreads out around the court collecting “ammunition” (soft balls, foam balls, etc.).

How to play

1.       Once time is up, the attacking team lines up around a marked firing radius (created using cones).

2.       Players take turns serving/ hitting balls into the fort, aiming to get them past the fort’s defences and through the structure to the players inside.

3.       Defenders must stay seated inside the fort and cannot block shots.

4.       Count and score how many balls make it through.

5.       Teams then swap roles – attackers become builders and vice versa.

Skills Developed

·       Teamwork and problem-solving (building phase)

·       Serving accuracy and power control (attacking phase)

·       Spatial awareness and tactical creativity

Coaching Tips

·       Encourage creativity in building – test different ways to prop up the parachute.

·       Challenge kids to improve accuracy with progressive serving distances.

·       Optionally reward best fort design and most accurate attacker!