Karate Classes for Kids Teach Focus
Martial Arts for Today’s Kids
“I want my child to learn to focus.” For over fifty years, parents have sought Karate classes for kids in order to teach focus, respect, and discipline, but how do martial arts classes do this? For more than ten years, Self-Defense Global KC has been teaching martial arts for kids in the Kansas City area from ages three through teens, and even three year olds can begin to learn to focus.
We start by teaching the kids that focus is tuning out distractions and doing one thing well. We start with focus of the eyes. A student must be ready to learn and see a martial arts demonstration in order to be able to do the technique after seeing it, and there is no point in doing a demonstration if all students’ eyes are not on an instructor. Next, the body must be still in a listening position such as taking a knee with a straight back.
The problem younger children have with focus is that they are often asked to sit still for too long without moving, or are isolated from each other. In our Karate for kids programs, kids are taught and expected to be still and focus for a few minutes to see a martial arts technique such as a jab-cross punching combination demonstrated, then the student has to do the combination or hold pads for a training partner. The reward for focusing is doing the technique correctly, hearing the pads pop, and being praised by instructors and peers.
How Martial Arts Builds Focus in Children
A good martial arts for kids program builds a culture where the instructors are not constantly stopping class and lecturing on dicispline, but the kids in the karate class understand standards and maintain discipline because there is no happier child than one who is taught to excel, is doing so in the company of peers, and is praised by instructors and parents for effort and improvement.
Here are three magic phrases our instructors use and students starting at age 3 learn to answer, as a group:
1
"Eyes on Who?"
Eyes on YOU sir/ma’am!" - Techniques are taught when students are focused and ready to learn!
2
"We Get Organized…”
"And STAY Organized!!" - Before class, and in our lines and classroom formations during class. We move from activity to activity together keeping order, making it through our whole lesson plan!
3
"We Get an Instruction, We Follow It…”
"Right Away!" - We don’t have time to waste, and answer an instruction right away, respectfully. If there’s a question about a technique or safety, we welcome the question, otherwise we are moving with a sense of purpose from every instruction!
How to Learn More
These are a few of our keys to Black Belt Excellence. If you live in the KC Northland and would like to meet with us at no charge or obligation to learn more about how our Karate classes for kids build focus, leave your information here and we’ll be in touch very soon.
