Tennis for young kids got significantly better as a learning experience when the sport adopted smaller courts and lower-compression balls. Before that change, an eight-year-old trying to return a full-speed adult ball on a full-size court was mostly chasing it. The 10 and Under Tennis format, which the USTA rolled out broadly, scaled the game to the athlete and made it actually playable.
Red ball tennis (ages 5-8) uses the smallest court and the most compressed ball. Green ball (ages 9-10) uses a three-quarter-size court with a medium-compression ball. Yellow ball is full adult play. Most kids move through this progression at their own pace in a group lesson setting, and the skill acquisition improves noticeably compared to the old way.
Group lessons at a tennis club, community center, or public parks program are the standard first step. A 45-minute group lesson with four to six kids costs $15 to $25 per session at most facilities. Private lessons run $50 to $120 per hour and are appropriate when the kid has the basics and wants to develop faster, not as the starting point.
What the first year of lessons builds: grip, basic groundstrokes (forehand and backhand), keeping the ball in play, and learning to serve. Tennis is one of those sports where the serve takes a long time to develop well. Kids at 8-10 are working on coordination and consistency, not power.
Competition in the USTA Junior Tournament system is available to kids as young as six. But entering tournament play before a kid can consistently rally and is genuinely excited about competing creates a frustrating experience rather than a motivating one. Most instructors recommend a year of lessons before the first tournament. Some kids are ready earlier; most are not.
The gear list is short. A racket sized for the kid (a 23-inch racket is standard for most 8-10 year olds), tennis shoes with lateral support, and appropriate balls for the current level. Do not put a kid on a full yellow ball before they are ready. It will feel like the sport is beating them instead of the other way around.