Babysitter?

[David Jamieson]

What are some of the best practices for instilling a strong interest in martial arts as a way of life for those who teach children?

Do you have an active method for teaching a way towards eager learning?

Do you find yourself stuck babysitting and not knowing how to motivate some of the kids to do the work?

Care to share your innovations or ideas in this important part of martial arts instruction in this day and age?

[goju]

In before Bawang says to beat them with a stick.

[瓜娃子]

I only allow kids with parental supervision.

Kids are a huge liability and overall a waste of energy. I allow families to come and I teach techniques, parents must discipline their own kids. If kids or adults show a lack of respect they are excused.

If parents don't have time to spend with their kids, I don't have time for their kids either.

[ginosifu]

I have been teaching kids for over 15 years and I have these thoughts:

Less memorization of complicated patterns. Single movement drills are easier to remember. With many single movement drills you can always change to a different drill before they get bored.

More Shuai Chiao first before sparring. Wrestling is natural for kids and they like grappling better than forms anyway.

Have a rotating curriculum that changes every 3 months or so. This way when kids start to get bored, they have already moved on to something new.

The major problem with kids is they get bored quickly, keep things moving in class. Never let them stand around. My classes have a flow that never lets them stop until I bow them out. Kids will cry to their parents and want to quit as soon as they get bored and usually parents will pull their kids if they cry hard enough.

We are heavy on SC and Sparring.

ginosifu

ps. I don't babysit

[瓜娃子]

I'm a big fan of the rotating curriculum.

Following internal martial arts theory I change it based on the time of year.

[bawang]

children have no place in martial arts

[wolf3001]

I don't like teaching kids especially if they are not my own. I have taken on my ex girlfriend's kids her son likes it and at least tries but her 2 daughters they don't always want to be there and would rather mess around. I tell them to do something and they say they don't want to. I told one to do something and she told me she was practicing some other thing that wasn't important at the time. I just tell them to sit down or whatever. It takes away from my time with others who are there to learn. If or when I have a kid I plan to teach them as soon as they are able I want my kids to be able to handle themselves. My friend has 3 daughters and he is very serious about teaching them once they are ready they are learning a bit now. Once they were at a ball game and some guy was trying to get several kids to come with him to go look for bugs when he noticed one was not there he quickly found her and scolded her fairly harshly for it. She was crying about it because he scared her. I sat down with her and told her he only did it because it's true and he cares about her. Some people are just bad they will take you away do horrible things to you and then you will just disappear.

As a kid I knew things and I was allowed to have knives at a fairly young age I carried one most places because I knew I wasn't physically strong enough to really fight off an adult. My ex girlfriend's oldest daughter now delivers papers in a bad area of town I worry about her at times because she is just to girly. She wants to learn but then has issues with training with me or others when we start getting sweaty. I told her if something happens run don't allow someone to take you anywhere claw their face bite kick and scream. Some local teen raped and sodomized his girlfriend. He then strangled her, snapped her neck, slit her throat, shot her then burned her after that he threw her in my sister in laws parents dumpster. She was going to leave him reportedly because he was seeing some other girl. His mother may have even helped to clean up the blood. People are just ****ed up.

[SPJ]

kids class is tough

but nothing serious though

somehow inspire their interests and hopefully life long

that is most important

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