A grass class throwing volleyballs into the air beside the nets, cheering

Youth classes · grades 4 to 8 · Nocatee and Fruit Cove

Volleyball on the grass.

After-school classes through the school year, for players who are just starting and players building toward a team. No experience needed.

Pick the closer park.

Both run twice a week through the St. Johns County school year. Parents are welcome to bring a chair and watch, or run an errand at the town center next door.

Two young players on a grass court, one serving, pines behind

Ponte Vedra

Nocatee Fields

707 Little River Road, Ponte Vedra, FL 32081. On the grass south of the dog park, north of the soccer field and east of the restroom. Free parking in front of the courts; a playground and walking paths nearby; Nocatee Town Center minutes away.

Directions

Fruit Cove

Julington Creek Plantation Park

3060 Race Track Rd, St Johns, FL 32259. The multipurpose field behind Fruit Cove Middle School; come in through the park entrance. Free parking in front of the courts, a playground close by, Plantation Plaza next door.

Directions

Call or text (310) 435-5840 for this year’s class days and the current schedule.

Nocatee Fields, on video

A grass class at Nocatee.

Coach Andor teaching a grass class at Nocatee Fields in May 2022, the club’s first season. The classes still run the same way, at Nocatee and at Julington Creek Plantation Park in Fruit Cove.

Nocatee Fields · Fruit Cove · Beach volleyball

A wide grass court at Nocatee, two a side, backlit by the afternoon sun

Why grass

Two a side, not six. She touches the ball all class long.

Whether or not your kids think of themselves as athletes, they love playing in the park with their friends. The classes build on that. We like to say “Keep playing.”

Grass volleyball is played two, three or four a side, and our goal is two. Compare that with six on an indoor team: she touches the ball many times more in the same hour, in every skill. More touches means faster skill development, and it also means more fun. College coaches will tell you players who grew up playing two-a-side read the game better.

Grass also keeps the cost down: no gym rental, and as many courts as a class needs. It is the way to find out whether she loves the sport before investing in indoor club volleyball.

Two levels.

Classes are billed by the month and follow the school calendar, so a player can start any month and the level can change as she improves.

A young player in a bump drill under the palms

Bronze · 4th and 5th grade

“Try it” or “Just starting”

One-hour classes, twice a week: a basic introduction to volleyball with the first skills, passing, serving, setting, and the first games. For the youngest players; older beginners go straight to Silver.

A player airborne setting over the net, pines behind

Silver · 4th to 8th grade

“Enjoy it, building skills”

Two-hour classes, twice a week, with far more game play and more purposeful reps. For beginners and up, including new 7th and 8th graders. Players come out well prepared for their middle school tryout, and some move up to a club team.

Hands-on overhead form teaching, three players with their arms up

How a class runs

Lower nets, half courts, and winners stay on.

The net comes down.For younger players the net is set at about the bottom of their hand, so she can swing over the top with good form from the first week instead of learning a bad habit on an adult net.
Eight to ten players a court, often split in half.Two games on one net at once, and newer players on a smaller court, so nobody waits in line for a touch.
Winners stay on.Competition makes everyone better, so the classes compete. Better players go up a court, newer players go down one, and new players stay near their own age before they are sorted by skill.
Every class ends with a lesson.It’s Bigger Than Volleyball®: a few minutes on communication, goal-setting or learning from mistakes, and Coach Andor talks with parents so the same ideas carry on at home.
Rain.Coaches are on site whenever rain is forecast and play on through light rain. If heavy rain is coming for the whole class, parents hear an hour before. Bring a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and water; shoes are optional on grass.

A circle of young players listening to the coaches on the grass

Not sure she will like it?

Come try one class first.

New players can drop in to a single class before signing up for a month. Introduce yourself to the head coach afterwards, and Coach Andor will tell you honestly what makes the most sense for her next: Bronze, Silver, or a tryout.

Every player needs the online player waiver and parent consent form on file before her first class.

Call about a first class Text (310) 435-5840

The whole summer camp lined up on the grass, the youngest players in front

Summer camps

Ready for the school tryout by August.

Summer camps run Monday to Thursday at the facility, for girls in grades 4 to 10, and every camp day includes an hour of lifting or Volleyball Pattern Training® in the strength room. We train the skills school coaches are actually looking for: passing, serving, game awareness and performing under pressure.

No club experience? No problem. Many of our club players started at a camp and made their middle school team months later. Call or text for this summer’s weeks.

A grass class gathered at the net in the late afternoon — From the grass to the courts: players who want more try out for a club team.
Club teams and tryouts