Who Is Teddy Tennis?
The co-founders of Teddy Tennis are Richard and Stephen Bean.
Richard Bean
Richard is a career tennis coach and singer songwriter who has combined both skills & expertise to create the Teddy Tennis concept.
Richard, who is one of the UK’s leading children’s tennis coaches, attributes his success to his unique ability to communicate and interact with young children. Through these special communications skills, Richard has been able to tap into the imagination of his young pupils and to jointly create the songs, stories and characters that make up Teddy Tennis.
Stephen Bean
Stephen is a career marketer and has spent 20+ years working in corporate marketing in the computing sector. More recently Stephen has been involved in teaching and lecturing in marketing.
Stephen has combined his commercial, marketing and teaching skills to develop the Teddy Tennis program into a deliverable and highly desirable lifestyle program for young children.
Stephen and Richard have received a massive amount of assistance and support in developing Teddy Tennis and they would like to pay particular credit to:
Where can I play Teddy Tennis?
Currently, Teddy Tennis is available in many locations around the world, including UK, USA, South Africa, Cyprus, Mallorca, Geneva, Egypt, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, Peru, Maldives and Mauritius).
To book lessons please use our booking system on the Find a Class page.
We are always looking for new business partners who would like to teach Teddy Tennis. If you are interested in setting up a Teddy Tennis Franchise please visit our Teddy Tennis Franchise website www.teddytennisfranchising.com
What equipment do I need?
If you are a parent you need to ensure your Cub Cadet has the following for every Teddy Tennis lesson:
- Bottle of drinking water
- A pair of trainers
- Suitable sports clothing (Teddy Tennis Togs)
- 17 or 19 inch Tennis Rackets are provided.
If you are running a Teddy Tennis franchise or program you will need the following:
- Teddy Tennis Trainers Manual (including all the lesson plans and activity cards
- Teddy Tennis CD player and the ‘coaches cut’ CDs (very important!)
- Teddy Tennis net
- Teddy Tennis rackets, and racket covers
- Teddy Tennis balls and ball basket
- Teddy Tennis bucket, bouncy ball and beach ball
- Teddy Tennis Cub Cards and Stickers (very important)
Did Teddy Tennis feature on BBC’s Dragons’ Den Programme?
Yes they did. Teddy Tennis was in Series 4 Episode 3 which was first broadcast in February 2007.
For more details click on this link: http://www.dragons-den.org.uk/series4.html
Do you need a tennis court to play Teddy Tennis?
No you do not need a tennis court to play Teddy Tennis. Teddy Tennis can be played anywhere where there is suitable space indoors or outdoors.
What is the smallest space that is suitable to play Teddy Tennis?
Squash courts are good for playing Teddy Tennis as are small playgrounds.
Does Teddy Tennis teach children to play tennis properly?
Absolutely. In fact they could not receive a better start to tennis. Every Teddy Tennis games and activity has been specifically designed to help a young child develop the key fundamental skills of tennis. Graduates of the Teddy Tennis Academy will have developed the highest skill levels, and ones that will set them up to be successful tennis players for life.
Can I set up a Teddy Tennis license in my area?
We would be delighted to hear from businesses and individuals who would be interested in setting up a local Teddy Tennis license; both here in the UK and overseas.
For more information see our Teddy Tennis License section.
Can a child of 2½ years of age really learn to play tennis?
Yes, children aged 2½ will learn to play tennis correctly through Teddy Tennis; the system works brilliantly and what is more, children love it and will want to play more and more.
Where can I buy Teddy Tennis equipment and merchandise?
Teddy Tennis produces a variety of equipment, clothing and merchandise.
Rackets, T-Shirts, Balls etc are currently available from our e-shop
Where can I get samples of Teddy Tennis music and video?
All Teddy Tennis music is performed by the in-house band “Head Ted & the Cub Cadets”.
Click on our YouTube and Spotify links at the bottom of our website to listen to our 2 Teddy Tennis Albums as well as more music, lessons, games and stories.
What is the history of Teddy Tennis?
Teddy Tennis, as a concept, began in 2002 and evolved into its current format in 2006. From the outset Teddy Tennis was created to make the process of learning tennis for young children to be easy, enjoyable and above all fun.
Throughout its development, music and songs were always seen as an integral part of the teaching method, but a key breakthrough came when pictures of the teddy bear characters were combined with original songs into the learning process.
The combination of sight and sound, two key human senses has proved to be a very powerful teaching/learning tool, and one that proved to really work: – Teddy Tennis was born!
During the evolution of Teddy Tennis, every game, song, picture and indeed every new idea has been market tested on the most discerning member of the public; the 2½ to 6 year olds who have been taking Teddy Tennis lessons in Holland Park, West London. Teddy Tennis is indebted to the many hundreds of Cub Cadets (and their parents) that have helped evolve the program into what we know and love to day.
Teddy Tennis is subject to on-going development. New activities, games, songs and ideas are being developed and will be introduced as a formal part of the program but only once it has passed the demanding requirements of the Cub Cadets in Holland Park.