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Primary Schools Badminton Coaching
Week 1
 Introductions all round. Badminton England qualified coach.
Schools tournament and proposed league.
 Gripping the Racquet
Basic (forehand) grip. Shuttle control using it.
Soft-thumb (backhand) grip. Shuttle control using it.
Competitions. Who has the best shuttle control for each grip? Who can do the best
control by alternating the grips to keep the shuttle in the air?
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Service
Basic backhand short serve into opposite service area.
Gripping the shuttle and position near to racquet edge.
Angle of racquet, straight racquet arm, wrist movement only.
Stance to aim into opposite service area.
In pairs Serving alternately to each other. Gradually develop rallies. A simple score
can be kept.
Week 2
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5 mins recap. Both racquet grips and shuttle control. Can anyone beat the record set
last week for each grip?
5 mins recap. The backhand serve. Serve onto a target close to the net near to the
corner of the “T”. In bounds service area to control as well.
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Forehand net shot.
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Demonstrate the technique. Explain the purpose of the shot in a game.
Players practice the shot while standing very close to net, then move back to
develop the footwork. Aim to combine the forehand arm movement with the
footwork.
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Basic Game
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Play doubles. Alternate serve from “T” to “T”. How to score using the “rally scoring
system.” Play to 21 or 13. Know the main areas of the court (marked out in masking
tape if necessary). In and out lines for doubles.
(P.T.O.)
Week 3
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5 mins recap The serve. Practice serving onto a target on the floor from both “T”’s.
5 mins recap. Forehand net shot, developing the footwork and aiming at a target
close to the opposite side of the net.
 Backhand net shot.
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Demonstrate the technique. Explain the purpose of the shot in a game.
Players practice the shot while standing very close to net, and then move further
back to develop the footwork. Aim to combine the backhand arm movement with
the footwork.
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Basic Game
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Play doubles. Score as last week. Aim to get the players to concentrate on playing a
variety of shots and to keep rallies going. Accurate serving required.
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5-10 mins recap. Backhand net shot, develop the footwork and also have a target
on the floor close to the net.
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The Drop Shot.
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Demonstrate the technique. Explain the purpose of the shot in a game.
Aim is to play the drop shot from the rear of the court so it JUST clears the net on its
return.
Explain that the idea is to make the opponent “lift” their return shot which makes it
much easier for you to smash or direct a winning shot.
Week 4
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Basic Game
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Doubles again as previously but using a variety of shots and aiming to develop court
positioning and use footwork to anticipate position and so get rallies going. The
importance of communication.
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5 mins recap -Drop shot. Introduce a target on the floor close to the net and to one
side. Develop accuracy and footwork. (Could have different coloured targets with
different points values and set up a contest.)
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The Forehand Drive
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An attacking, points scoring shot form mid court to mid court or rear line of opposite
court. Aim is to “take out” opposing player who is close to the net and move a rear
court player around.
Technique should produce a flat, high speed trajectory JUST over the net.
Concentrate on the length of the shot.
Trajectory requires a flat face racquet to get a flat, straight hit.
Practice in pairs at opposite side of the net. Concentrate on grip, footwork and flat
face of racquet.
Week 5
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Floor target can be used towards rear of court.
DIFFICULT and VERY SKILFUL. Use feather shuttles placed upside down along the net
cord as targets. Who can hit the most off the net?
Finally Introduce players to the “Double Court Game”. Net is extended across two
courts without a break. Mixed teams of equal numbers play each other, all players
on court simultaneously. Usual service technique at start of points but no “In” or
“Out” service areas, but use double court markings for “Out” when playing. This
game improves communication skills, anticipation, tactical awareness and develops
their variety of shots. Score as usual using “Rally points scoring”, first to 13 or 21.
Week 6
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5-10 mins recap of the forehand drive. Use floor or shuttle targets, and/or practice
in pairs.
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The Backhand Drive
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The technique, trajectory and purpose of the shot are as described in Week 6 The
Forehand Drive but using a backhand grip and associated footwork.
It can help to split the shot up into two parts- (i) the grip and drive (ii) the footwork
and then gradually combine the two.
Trajectory requires a flat face racquet to get a flat, straight hit.
Practice in pairs at opposite side of the net. Concentrate on grip, footwork and flat
face of racquet.
Floor target can be used towards rear of court.
DIFFICULT and VERY SKILFUL. Use feather shuttles placed upside down along the net
cord as targets. Who can hit the most off the net?
Finish up with another “Double Court Game”
If time allows they could also play ordinary doubles games.
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Week 7
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5-10 mins recap of the backhand drive. Use floor or shuttle targets and/or practice
in pairs. Develop footwork.
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The Smash
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A very difficult shot but excellent for scoring points when executed correctly.
Usually, it is an overhead shot from the REAR of the court. (Top players can get
speeds of 300km/h (200mph) with the current world record being set at 493 km/h
(306 mph)!
It is an explosive “snap action” overhead shot. Feet position are important as is the
start position of the racquet behind your head, the stretching up and hitting the
shuttle at the top of the arc followed by the racquet. The snap action and speed are
developed by the fingers and wrist movement. Feet need to be positioned so the
player is able to JUST swing into the shuttle at the top of the arc and hit down onto
it. The racquet face needs to be angled down.
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(P.T.O.)
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To start with concentrate on the style of the shot. Go for accuracy and slowly build
up speed. Coach needs to be on opposite side of the net hitting suitable lob shots
into the air so they can be smashed back.
Floor targets can be used in various places from rear to mid- court.
These can be replaced by empty 2.5 litre plastic pop bottles or 5 litre screen wash
type bottles. Aim to knock them over, i.e. accuracy and speed are required. They
could be assigned different points values so the players could compete against each
other.
Finally Double Court Game and/or doubles. By now the players should be increasing
their repertoire and improving their accuracy of shots.
Week 8
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5-10 mins recap The Smash. Use the plastic bottle targets allotted various points to
see who can score the most.
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Forehand Serve. Tactical serving as alternative to backhand, though harder to
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execute.
Basic grip on racquet. Front foot in direction of aim. Both feet to stay on the ground.
Racquet shaft below the horizontal so the head is angled down at point of impact
and hit shuttle from below the waist. (service laws).
Do the low, flat forehand drive serve. Angle of racquet is important. Practice with
an opponent and targets.
Then do the forehand FLICK serve to lift the shuttle high and to the back of the
opponent’s court. Use a flick of the wrist rather than a large movement of the
racquet.
Rest of the session to be spent with on Double Court Game followed by a series of
mixed doubles and same gender doubles.
 Feedback
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Ask players for their opinions of the course and how to improve it. Will they be
playing on?
Reminder re the Schools Knockout Tournament and possible league. Tell them about
local clubs they could join.
Present each player with “lucky bag” of sweets.
Hand to the school Certificates of Achievement for presentation in assembly.
Offer the school the opportunity to but posts and nets at around half price so pupils
can continue to play badminton.