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In this “day and age”, like the elders would say, the time of PlayStation 3, Xbox, fast food, computers and social networks and the like, we often read articles about our kids and the effect the world has on them.
These articles range from obesity due to lack of exercise, ill-mannered teens that are just out of control, children still wetting beds after age 7, the list goes on…. One of the issues that should be on the radar of your Karate Class or Dojo is the issue of child neglect by parents. This neglect does not refer to physical neglect such as food, clothing and shelter, but rather, emotional neglect.
Emotional neglect can have many roots, but can lead to various symptoms later such as lack of cognitive ability, lack of social behaviour skills, lack of confidence etc. These symptoms can manifest separately, or one can cause the other and have a snowball effect.
One of the key enablers of growing a successful student, is identifying these symptoms and addressing some of these roots. A point should be made at every Instructor’s meeting, to discuss the behaviour, interaction and conduct of certain students within the class. You need to look at those that need to be lifted up, but also at those who need to get down to earth. Your training methods should be structured to address both scenarios with a tweak here and there as necessary to tip the scales. This mental reprogramming of a child takes quite a while, depending on the damage caused by a person, event, or a combination of the two.
I have personally identified a trend in children that are dropped-off and collected after class vs. children that are brought to class with the parent/s or guardians sitting in on the class. In most cases, the children who are dropped-off, are those children that need boosting vs. those whose parents / guardians are part of the training experience, even by just being there. You do get those parents that are present at the class, but they are disconnected from what their child is doing, how he is performing because they are reading a magazine or something to pass the time. These are the boundary line children and you should consider “working the audience” when identifying that this is happening to a child. Engage with audience by saying, Hey parents, did you see that great stance” or “Hey Daniel’s dad, did you teach him this or is he just that good!!”
The mission of your class or dojo needs to focused on building people by what you do and how you do it. Character, sincerity, effort, etiquette, self-control and respect must be the foundation of learning at your dojo and be in the hearts and minds of your students.
Teaching children martial arts is like nurturing a Bonsai tree (not to steal the fame from Mr Miagi), You cannot let it grow for 10 years and then try and shape it, it requires constant attention to detail, sometimes, detail you never knew was there.
We build confidence in our children by regular, controlled kumite and karate training camps (Gashuku), Our tournaments are focused on controlled, professional development of people with a well formed rewards and recognition system. We teach our children how to manage and deal with emotions of success and defeat in order to maintain a delicate balance.
Have Fun – Train Hard – Train Smart
Sensei Malcolm Bale
Tags: Benefits of Martial Arts
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, January 25th, 2012 at 3:15 pm and is filed under Kids Martial Arts, Martial Arts, Martial Arts for Kids.
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