What We Teach

Participants engage with First Tee's 5 Key Commitments, while focusing on mastering age appropriate Life Skills, and building upon the 4 Golf Skill foundations as they advance within the program.

Life Skills by Age Group

By seamlessly integrating the game of golf with character-building, we create learning experiences that help kids uncover their inner strength, self-confidence, and resilience that they can carry to everything they do

Age 5-6
  • Showing Respect & Courtesy
  • Respecting the Rules
  • Making Good Choices
  • Being a Team Player
  • Being Honest
Age 7-9
  • Showing Respect & Courtesy
  • Respecting the Rules
  • Making Good Choices
  • Being a Team Player
  • Growing Your Confidence
  • Being Honest
  • Setting a Goal
  • Playing with Perseverance
Age 10-11
  • Meeting & Greeting with A.L.R
  • Digging Deep & Showing Grit
  • Staying Cool – Relax & Replay
  • Playing the Course
  • Finding Your Personal Par
  • Setting Your Goals
  • Respecting Other Perspectives
  • Growing Your Confidence
Age 12-13
  • Setting a Goal Using the 4 Guidelines
  • Goal Ladder: Planning to Succeed
  • Playing the Course
  • Building Confidence with S.T.A.R
  • Celebrating Differences
  • Being a Go-To Person
  • Building a Go-To Team
  • Staying Cool with 4 Rs
Age 14+
  • Using C.A.R.E
  • F.A.I.Ling Forward
  • Taking Ownership of Your Goals
  • Playing the Course
  • Being Trustworthy
  • Building Self-Confidence
  • Respecting Other Perspectives
  • Having Courage to do What’s Right
ACE

ACE is a capstone program built for teens to help them game-plan what’s next. It integrates the skills and inner strengths they’ve developed at First Tee and points them toward exploring, investing in, and building a clear plan and assets for their next step.

To be considered as qualified for Ace, it is required that participants:

  • 14 years old or entering high school;
  • Minimum of 3 years in the First Tee program (do not need to be consecutive)
  • Minimum attendance at 2 sessions per year; and
  • Are assessed as “ready for the program” by the FTCW Chapter

5 Key Commitments

First Tee’s 5 Key Commitments will help our participants discover and uncover what is inside of them and build and strengthen those assets that enable them to grow and flourish throughout life. Key commitments seamlessly cohere with the 9 Core Values.

Pursuing Goals

A goal is something that you want to be, do, or have and need to work for. We teach participants the steps to take in order to succeed at their goals. Game changers pursue goals as they grow in the game of golf and in life outside of the course. We will make attainable goals and work on outlining the steps that can get us there.

Growing through Challenge

Commit, Don’t Quit! Life is full of challenges and we must learn how to overcome them by digging deep when things get tough and persevering. Participants will learn how to grow through challenges and what obstacles they might face on the golf course or in life.

Collaborating with Others

Learning how to build a Go-To Team. We teach participants how to do team exercises and work together towards a common goal. Learn how to treat one another with respect, and help them feel valued and important. We will show kindness, consideration and care for others. In the game of golf we are presented with opportunities to demonstrate respect and courtesy for ourselves, others and our surroundings each and every day.

Building a Positive Self-Identity

We teach participants how to have confidence in themselves and their abilities on and off the course. We work on building characteristics for becoming that Go-To Person for yourself and others. Confidence is not something that you are born with, it is something that develops over time.

Using Good Judgment

Participants learn that golf is the perfect sport to practice being honest as they rely on themselves and fellow players to keep their own score. Unlike other sports, there is no referee therefore we must act with both honesty and integrity. This is one of the most important commitments you can make as a game changer both on and off the course.

4 Golf Skills

First Tee will always incorporate at least two fundamentals per class and may be taught through fun games or drills. These golf fundamentals will be worked on at every age level.

Putting

Takes place when one is on the green and involves rolling the ball to the hole.

Chipping

Takes place when one is near the green and typically involves a low shot designed to roll/run the ball to the pin. Usually a quarter to half swing.

Pitching

Takes place when one is further from the green and typically involves a high shot designed to land the ball softly on the green. Usually a half to three quarter swing.

Full Swing

Takes place off the tee and often in the fairway. Can be used with any club from driver to wedge.

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