Start Smart

Group photo of Start Smart participants (kids and adults)
smart-start-logo

Registration Information

  • Register online
  • Scholarships are available! A paper registration form and scholarship form must be completed to apply. Please email [email protected] before registration opens for more information
  • Paying by cash or check? Complete the paper registration form and waivers, then email to [email protected] or fax to 907-586-4589
  • Registration is first come, first served. All registrations received after the session is full will be placed on a waitlist
  • Cost is $40 + tax and includes a t-shirt
  • Questions? Contact MJ Goedeken at [email protected]
register online
Youth Sports Resources

Start Smart

The Start Smart program is for ages 3-4 year olds (must be 3 by first session). Start Smart sessions are held once a week for 6 weeks. Children and the adult in their life participate together to learn skills each week, with the goal of going home and practicing the skill we learn. Adults are active participants in the program. All participants receive a free Start Smart t-shirt!

Start Smart is a proven instructional program that prepares children for the world of organized sports without the threat of competition or the fear of getting hurt. The goal is to develop a child’s basic interest in sports, to increase their self-confidence and to help them find success in sports, all of which can lead to a lifetime of continued fitness and health.

The Sports Development program focuses on basic skills of several sports: kicking, throwing, catching, batting and agility.

  • Dates: Saturdays, September 7 – October 12
  • Time: 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
  • Location: Dimond Park Field House (9/7-9/28), Floyd Dryden Gymnasium (10/5 & 10/12)
  • 25 spots available

Registration opens at 12 p.m. on Monday, June 17. Unlike other Start Smart Sessions, Start Smart Tennis is for children ages 5-7 at the time of the first class.

Children will learn basic tennis skills during this session: ground strokes, serving, volleying, and running/agility.

  • Dates: Tuesdays, July 9th – August 13th
  • Time: 5:45 – 6:45 p.m.
  • Location: Cope Park Courts
  • 25 spots available

Registration opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, May 6. Children will learn basic soccer skills during this session: kicking, dribbling, trapping, and agility.

Downtown Session

  • Dates: Tuesdays, May 28 – July 2
  • Time: 5:45 – 6:45 p.m.
  • Location: JDHS Turf
  • 25 spots available

Valley Session

  • Dates: Saturdays, June 1 – July 6
  • Time: 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
  • Location: Dimond Park
  • 25 spots available

Children learn basic skills of baseball during this session: throwing, catching, batting and agility.

  • Session Dates: Saturdays, March 23-April 27
  • Location: Dimond Park Field House
  • Time: 9am-10am
  • 25 spots are available

During this session, children learn basic skills of basketball: dribbling, shooting, passing and agility.

  • Session Dates: Thursdays, January 30-March 6
  • Location: Floyd Dryden
  • Time: 5:30-6:30pm
  • There are only 23 spots available online; 2 are reserved for scholarships