“You’re always going to be better if you’re painting your own picture” -Matt Thornton
Kids Martial Arts and Fundamentals
I’m always looking for ways to encourage my daughter to engage in her kids martial arts class and make mistakes.
I want her to be able to learn something and be able to try and find her own way and the best way to go about that is for her to make mistakes and learn. It’s not always about what you do but how you do it and I want her to realize that there are always different ways to learn-what works for one child may not work for her. Whether it’s something in school, in her kids martial arts class, or her sports she will have her own distinct signature or style to learn and do that activity.
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This is also true of me as a parent.
I find that sometimes I get caught up in doing things my own way and I have to realize and be open to the fact that when I show or teach my daughter something she will see me do it and try to do it her own way. I have coached and played lacrosse for 20+ years and there are 2 tenets I adhere to when I coach: fundamentals and scrimmaging. When I coached I wanted kids to learn the basics, the fundamentals of what was being taught. They needed to learn these so they could play the game. Scrimmaging was important because they needed to be able to learn timing to use the skill in a live setting, to understand the speed of the game. One coach I worked with espoused that if you take one team and only do drills for 1 month and another team and only scrimmage for a month the team that scrimmages will beat the team that drills. There are obviously degrees to this because they need to learn fundamental skills and then apply them to the game, but the idea that the skill is best when applied, as opposed to isolated, is there.
This is true of almost any endeavor including kids martial arts
One of the reasons I chose to enroll my child in kids martial arts is because I want her to be able to have fun. What I wanted to do was to find a program that she would be able to work hard and hopefully flourish in her capacity to learn.
Since starting at SBG she has been teaching me what she has learned in her kid martial arts class. She’s also learning to be patient with me. The environment of learning in her kids martial arts class at SBG: the openness to work hard, make mistakes and learn from them, to see them as a tool is helping her in a way beyond just learning Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Below is founder of SBG Matt Thornton (@aliveness_ape on twitter) talking about fundamentals in their programs. I love how he says “…it’s like teaching someone to paint by numbers as opposed to just giving them some base colors and letting them paint their own picture. You’re always going to be better if you’re painting your own picture.”
I’m giving my daughter the colors and letting her paint her picture.
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Starting out Karate Kid style?
Kids model behaviors exhibited around them: coaches as role models in kids martial arts classes
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When I first found out that we were having a daughter I was excited about seeking and finding positive female role models for her. It was an interesting way to look at things and I wanted to be able to surround my daughter with as many positive role models as possible. Before signing up to join kids martial arts classes I did some research as to which art I wanted her to practice, what was close, what was reputable, what was clean, what kind of curriculum did the gym/school have for it’s students. As a parent trying to find the best for their children it can be a little daunting. There is no shortage of kids in martial arts or classes for kids in martial arts. In some ways it reminded me of the Ralph Macchio Karate Kid. New kid moves to town, gets bullied, looks for a school to learn karate only to find the bullies go to the karate school. Needles to say, the Cobra Kai dojo in the movie where the bullies trained was the exact opposite of what I was looking for in kids martial arts classes.
What I was looking for in kids martial arts classes
One thing I was very aware of when looking for a good kids martial arts class was trying to find a place that would encourage her to work hard. Another aspect was trying to find a place that would have good role models, both male and female for her to respect. We all want the best for our kids and we want to help them do well in life, a staple way to do that is to surround them with positive role models.
A great thing about YouTube is that you can search almost anything. SBGi has their own YouTube Channel which is where I found this highlight video of coach Amanda.
Initially my daughter was intrigued and since taking her kids martial arts class she likes to watch it more. She actually watches it and understands it, she can see what techniques she has learned being used and gets excited to see her coach. The fact she does understand, is more excited to watch the video, and others like it is a testament to coach Amanda.
In the end, my daughter has lots of fun, is learning some martial arts skills, and learning it from a role model she respects.
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Diving in the Deep End
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Why do I want to have my kids in a martial arts class?
This is something I have had to justify to myself more than to friends or family. How important is it to have the kids enrolled in martial arts classes? Most friends are happy and interested when I tell them we’ve enrolled our oldest in a kids martial arts class. No one ever thinks “That’s the worst thing you can do!” To me there are many ideals that are inherent in a lot of kids martial arts classes: discipline, a work ethic, goal setting. Many think that getting your kids in martial arts classes is about self defense, and it is; however I would venture to say that there are many other reasons to enroll your child in a kids martial arts class. I would even go so far as to say “self-defense” goes beyond the physical defending of yourself in an altercation.
Kids are sponges – What kids martial arts can do
When I look at what kids can do and how fast they learn it’s amazing. As a parent I want my kids to have an experience that is multifaceted- something that can do many things at once. Let’s face it, there are many things we cannot protect our kids from and the best way to protect them is to give them the tools to deal with the situations that can be less than favorable. I’ve found that for myself and my family we enjoy our child’s enthusiasm to learn, and her engagement with the class. I think it’s important for her to learn the techniques but what we really like about something like kids martial arts classes is the discipline and respect she learns for her classmates and her coaches/teachers.
Kids martial arts for After school
With many schools limiting or even cutting Physical Education many parents are looking at alternatives for their kids in other activities. We enroll them in team sports like soccer, football, lacrosse, or volleyball outside of school. Kids martial arts classes are in the top 5 physical activities that families enroll their kids-probably outside of team sports I can’t think of another endeavor that families look to engage their children. We all have different activities we want our children to engage in because we are social beings, team sports are important because they teach our kids how to work with other children together. Kids martial arts classes teach kids to learn something new, how to respect each other, and to respect our teachers. We enroll our kids in things that we hope they think are fun.
As I continue to write this blog I will be focusing on different thoughts and influences I have had vis a vis parenting and engaging my daughter in martial arts classes.
In the end I hope the journey for my child is one that leads her to a more fulfilling life as she grows. For me, if she becomes proficient at a martial art she will understand the work and effort that it takes to be really good at something and can hopefully apply that ethic to many other things in her life as she grows. Of course, as a father when she’s 16, and if she has been practicing her martial art consistently, I’ll feel safer when she goes out on dates. I don’t want to overstate that personal benefit of peace of mind for me but it is a consideration.
Here are some qualities I hope my child learns and demonstrates in her life: Compassion,Competence, Confidence, Connection, and Character.There are many activities that can teach and nurture these qualities and these are qualities we are aware of in every facet of our lives-it’s not just on the soccer pitch, the reading class, or the kids martial arts class. These are attributes I think every parent wants to see their children experience and demonstrate in their lives.
Click here for more info on Kids Martial Arts at SBGi in Portland