Introducing the Internationally-Acclaimed Basic SKILLZ Program!
Martial Arts training for kids ages 5 and 6
Five and six-year old children are some of the most enthusiastic students. They love creativity and problem solving, which makes them ideal students in the Martial Arts. We have discovered that they are so progressive in following tasks some teachers tend to treat them like their older peers, which is a problem because they still do not have the basic skills necessary to keep up with children ages 7 and up. The solution we found is to provide them with their own program that targets their particular stage of development in a manner that adapts to their social and intellectual curiosity while at the same time building skills that set them up for success. With that said, a structured program introducing basic skill-based training in Martial Arts has proven to be very successful.
Here is an overview for the stages of development of children ages 5 and 6:
Physically - Children in this age group typically do not know how to apply their muscles so they fall often when their body is in constant motion. Even though they have a basic foundation of leg, arm, core and abdominal development, they still lack a lot of strength in those key areas.
We expect them to initially struggle with multiple kicks beyond five reps and we also expect them to initially have sloppy technique when exercising.
The goals for our program are to get them to perform high repetitions of kicks without putting their foot down and to perform static, active and dynamic exercises beyond ten reps with good technique.
Intellectually - During this stage of development, children typically have a hard time following directions beyond three commands and they also have a hard time distinguishing between their left and right.
Initially, we expect them to get confused when we ask them to do more than three things at one time. We also understand that they have a hard time distinguishing between their left and right when following multiple-commands.
The goal for our program is to get them to retain three or more commands at once and beyond. We will also help them learn how to perform various left and right combinations.
Emotionally - Five and six year old children typically focus on things that make them happy and they often have trouble shifting to new tasks when they are excited.
In the beginning, we expect them to lose focus and shut down when they are not happy and we expect them to lose control when they are over-excited.
The goal for our program is to teach them focus even when it is hard for them; furthermore, we will help them to develop control over their body and their energy, especially when they are excited.
Socially - Children in this growth phase demonstrate their love to play with others and their competitiveness.
Initially, they often show weak sportsmanship when they participate in a competition, even though they enjoy interacting with their peers.
The goals for our program are to teach them to act courteous when engaging in team activities and not to cheat. We also help them to learn to control their anger and sadness when they lose; and not to boast when they win.
By understanding the stages of development of five and six year old children, we were able to select eight age-appropriate skills that make up the Basic SKILLZ Program:
FOCUS
TEAMWORK
CONTROL
MEMORY
BALANCE
DISCIPLINE
FITNESS
COORDINATION
We cover one of the skills listed above each class (in order.) During each class, we run a warm-up; deliver a mat chat about the skill; run two or three skill-building drills and then we have them demonstrate the skill to earn their skill-stripe. They must earn all eight skill-stripes in order to graduate to the next belt level. Once they earn their next belt, they will continue to run through all eight skills earning their skill-stripes with more challenging curriculum as they advance to each rank. They graduate to the Core SKILLZ program after they have successfully completed all nine-belt ranks of the Basic SKILLZ program.
Here is an example of what a white belt must demonstrate for each of the eight skills above in order to earn their next belt:
FOCUS - Punching and kicking a pad that is thrown by an instructor standing one-step away from their side. They must be able to punch and kick a pad four times in a row in order to pass.
TEAMWORK - Holding a kicking target for their partner while their partner does ten kicks. They must be loud while counting their partner's kicks and hold the target tightly in order to pass.
CONTROL - Stopping their body at attention position after running forward when an instructor says, "stop." They must be at attention in less than three steps after the instructor says stop in order to pass.
MEMORY - Demonstrating the three stage one block's and three stage one strikes from memory. They must show the proper chambers and ending position for all of the moves in order to pass.
BALANCE - Executing five front kicks without putting their foot down in between each rep. They must show full execution and retraction while keeping their knee chambered at belt level or higher in order to pass.
DISCIPLINE - Demonstrating how to properly sit, take a knee, kneel on both knees and stand at attention without moving. They must hold each position for no less than five seconds.
FITNESS - Holding each static leg, arm, abdominal and core exercise. They must not lose technique or else they have to start over. They must hold each exercise for no less than ten seconds in order to pass.
Coordination - Performing left and right-hand punching combinations on the mitts. They must hit the mitt with proper technique and with the proper hand five times in a row in order to pass.
As you can see, we take Martial Arts training to a completely new level! We use basic elements of traditional Martial Arts curriculum to build skills that are appropriate for five and six year old children. This means that your child will learn and grow at a pace that is not too easy, nor too challenging. The best part is the Basic SKILLZ program will equip your child with skills that they will utilize in every area of their life!
6 Week Special ($150.00 Value) Your child will receive two 45 minutes classes for 6 weeks and a free uniform. Children must pass a pre-evaluation to determine if their social, emotional, intellectual and physical attributes that are appropriate for their age group, which will help to insure their success in our martial arts programs.