b'A HAPPIER, HEALTHIER, SMARTER place to learnWere a full time alternative to school for kids ages 4-18.@thevillageelectricOur Lady of Sorrows SchoolThe Catholic School of South Orange and Maplewood Bruce Andreini about to hit an overhead smash in an N&K pickleball game at Maplewoods Walter Park with (L-R) Helen DuBowy, Ross Minichiello and Luise Neil-son. When you see a shot like this coming, youre likely to hear other players shout out: Put it away!players a chance to play. There arentfriends to play with and have fun.just a few advanced players dominat- After that, I decided to sign up for ing the court. afive-sessionintroclinicatPickle-The reason our group blew upball Palace that goes over everything Enrolling now for PreK through 8th gradeand was so successful was we try tofrom serves to dinks, volleys and drop OurLadyofSorrowsSchool.orgoffice@ourladyofsorrowsschool.orgfocus on equal play time and havingshots.(Adinkisasoft,controlled 172 Academy Street, South Orange, NJ 07079973.762.5169 fun, Heacock says.shotthatarcsoverthenet,usually He also suggested that we put outnear the kitchen line, forcing the op-an open call to N&K members onponenttomakeadifficultreturn.)TeamReachtoseewhetheranyonePickleball Palace and its website make waswillingtomeetwithustogoit super easy for beginners to get start-overthebasics.Anotherneighbor,ed. During the clinic, I learned some Luise Neilson, readily accepted andvaluable tips, such as keeping a really met us a few days later at DeHart toloose grip on the paddle and how to go over the rules, such as who serves,follow through so I dont hit the ball M A P L E W O O D where it has to land, what the kitch- too hard or pop it in the air. (Im still A CULINARY ADVENTURE AWAITS YOUR CHILD en is, why you cant volley in thea work in progress!)kitchen and how scoring works.Onceyoulearnhowtoplay, WITH (Thekitchen,incidentally,isathere are a variety of ways you can FA L LSE MESTERCLASSES seven-foot area on either side of theimprove your game. First, just keep FORA LLAGES net.Noonereallyknowswhyitsplaying. Second, you can do a play called the kitchen other than maybewithaprosessionoraprivate ANDSpecializing in classes for middle & high school studentsthe term was borrowed from shuffle- lesson.Youcanalsobuyapickle-to learn the basics of culinary techniques and knife skillsboard, but its purpose is so you cantball net from Amazon or one of the under the guidance of professional chefs. just stand at the net and smash it onmajor retailers, draw chalk lines on the other side.) your driveway and make your own Her advice for beginners? court.Therearetonsofpickleball Ithinkbeginnersshouldlearnvideos on YouTube, where you can thebasicrulesfirst,especiallywithlearntherulesanddrilldownon regardstothekitchenandscoring.specific types of skills and shots.Next, Id suggest either take a lesson,You can really go down a rabbit GO TO KITCHEN TABLE MAPLEWOOD.COMjoin a beginner clinic, or work withhole with pickleball videos and tuto-an experienced player to get a feel forrials. But dont try to absorb it all at the ball and the paddle. And lastly,once, Mandell says. Just try to learn getonthecourtandpracticedin- one thing from each video.kitchentable.maplewood Kitchen Table Maplewood king, serving, and returning the ball,Love that tip!Neilson says. Most of all, find someAsyougetbetter,youllfigure 20/ matters magazine / school 2024'