The Little Dragons of Kadena
Air Base, Okinawa began in
April 1997 and were a steady,
full class on Kadena AFB until
I consolidated classes in
my Nagahama Dojo in 2000.
It would probably make a great
summer program almost anywhere,
while the Kadena class did
thrive as a year-round program.
My
youngest was 2 years old when
he began, and I accepted children
as Little Dragons until they
were actually in 1st grade.
Some of these kids were pretty
big for pre-school and kindergarten,
but they all got along. In
fact, the bigger children
took the very grown-up responsibility
of watching out for the littler
kids, like they were all big
brothers and sisters.
Classes
were one hour long twice weekly
per group. I gave a short
break between tasks for water,
pats on the back, hugs from
Mommy, etc., so the class
was broken into 5 or 6 segments
of 10-12 minutes each. It
was very important that a
parent attended to watch and
encourage. Young children
are not expected to "grow
up and be an adult" at
age two through five!
The
first 3/4 of the class was
spent on junbi undo (warm-ups,
revised so the children don't
get exhausted), then hojo
undo (revised -- no special
stance, just feet slightly
apart, and some drills omitted
because of complexity), then
sanchin (UechiRyu-based, described
below). The advanced students
went on to Kanshiwa (the 2nd
kata of the UechiRyu system)
with my assistant, while the
others stayed with me and
reviewed the previous material
but in game or riddle form
("What's this called
-- OK, let's do it but backwards!..."
etc.). All wauke (or mawashi
uke – circle blocks)
were described as "push
down, push across, wrap around
and pull". Children counted
all moves out loud with me.
The
last 1/4 or more of the class
was game playing. Among the
favorites were Ninja Chases
Dragons, in which I (the “evil
ninja”) chased the group
from one side of the dojo
to the other. When they put
their hand on the wall (or
crowd onto a wrestling mat
-- "Dragon Island"),
they were "home free".
Then they had to think of
a way to "distract me"
("Hey Sensei, I think
the phone is ringing... look,
it's your Mommy!... there's
a snake behind you... it's
raining and you left your
windows open!... etc.), and
I had to "go take care
of it". As soon as the
coast was clear, all the Dragons
rushed to the other side of
the dojo (wall or mat). Naturally,
I never actually succeeded
in catching any Dragons, and
the really little ones were
"protected" by the
bigger ones (if I got too
close to catching a small,
slow-running child, a bigger
child ran out and "fought"
with me to protect the smaller
one until they could both
return to safety). The threat
was that I pretended to "chop
up" the Dragon and feed
him to my "ninja poodles"
or "samurai Chihuahua"
or something equally ludicrous.
All along the way, I good-naturedly
chewed out my assistant as
if their escape was all his
or her fault. The kids loved
this, so did the parents.
Other
games were Weed Whacker, Attention
Game, Dragons Chase Ninja
(they chase me, and I try
to distract them), Silent
Ball (or Hot Potato, using
a soft foam ball), and a form
of hacky-sack played with
balloons (must keep it in
the air with kicks, knees,
or elbows only, and the children
cannot bump into or even touch
each other -- part of the
skill is speed and avoidance.
A child who bumps must sit
down until only one child
is left standing OR the game
has become too long to continue).
Dragon's
Egg Racing was popular --
the children were broken into
teams, and must get to the
other side of the dojo as
fast as possible -- with an
empty paper cup on their head.
When reaching that side, they
place a plastic egg in the
cup and put it back on their
heads, then get back to the
other side and put the egg
in a "nest" (a basket).
They may NOT touch the cup
or hold it in place to balance
it. If it fell, they had to
take it back to the far side
of the dojo and try again.
The team with the most Dragon
Eggs after three minutes was
the winner. They must count
the number of eggs out loud
in Japanese. These games all
develop motor skills, social
skills, sense of fair play,
balance, and build camaraderie
"among the troops".
I
never used punishment other
than "time out".
I never used phrases like
"You're here to act like
young adults... Grow up...
Act your age..." and
the like. I never used or
allowed derogatory adjectives
like "you're stupid...
dumb... ugly... bad"
etc. I never shouted at the
children except when it's
part of the game.
All
games were karate-oriented
but fun, and taught basic
motor and social skills. I
did not teach a karate system
per say, just very basic motions.
These kids were as young as
2 or 3 years old -- sanchin
for them is different from
that for a teen or adult,
and I broke it down into 4
sections (the story of the
Mountain, the Two Dragons,
and the Three Typhoons). Each
section was learned slowly,
and is commensurate with a
"Little Dragon"
rank level.
I
approximated stance and blocks,
etc. until the child was older,
or began earnestly to imitate
movements with more precision.
One foot in front of the other
was more important than a
perfect angle of foot placement.
Learning left from right was
a major achievement at this
age -- don't get too strict
on the exact performance.
I avoided giving directions
like "Right Sanchin means
step off to the right, with
a right wauke" and preferred
"Turn that way and push
the wall down with a big circle
and a strong push!"
Learn
to make faces. Practice this
in the mirror -- they are
important in emphasizing certain
lessons or in games (role-playing,
etc.). Don't be a Somber Sensei,
afraid to have fun.
The
key word for any game is SAFETY.
If a game is unsafe in any
way for the age group, don't
use it! Example: games that
involve punching or kicking
with contact between students
are NOT safe for 3 and 4 year
old children. Little Dragons
do NOT punch or kick each
other -- they have not yet
learned to "hold back"
and will give it everything
they have, thereby injuring
each other or themselves.
For
play sparring, only the instructor
and assistant may safely "fight"
with a child. Games involving
weapons may not be suitable
for some students at all.
Make sure all participants
are well prepared for playing
and learning.
The
Sensei or a qualified adult
assistant, not by another
youth student, must supervise
all games. Especially, monitor
any game closely which might
involve physical contact between
students.
Rank
levels were quite plentiful,
but there was no fee for testing.
First yellow stripe on the
belt was just for coming out
of the shell, so to speak.
When a child willingly participated
in classes without having
to run and hide behind Mommy
or Daddy, and tried to perform
the motions with the group,
it was time to recognize and
honor that special achievement
and growth with a stripe and
certificate. Second stripe
was for improved coordination
and earnest attitude, and
was also not tested for --
just announced at the end
of a class (with applause)
and awarded. Certificates
were awarded -- more applause
-- at the next class session
(teacher needs time to letter
and register these). These
are essentially confidence-builders.
Third stripe and up were actually
tested for, so they had more
meaning and importance to
the child. Ranks could be
bypassed -- a child with 2
stripes could test and earn
the fourth stripe or yellow
belt, or even go higher. Some
children shoot ahead and need
to be shown that acquiring
a specific skill level earns
recognition of that level.
Regular
ranks are based on the ten-kyu
system. Little Dragon ranks
broke these further into 3
or 4 more levels per regular
rank, to reward short-term
goals. Frequent reward and
recognition is very important
at this age. The whole point
is to encourage development
and have fun by making skills
attainable while keeping the
ranks realistic.
Good-looking
certificates are important.
For most preschoolers, this
may be the FIRST certificate
of achievement they will ever
receive -- make it look good
for them! Parents will frame
them, and usually put them
where the child can proudly
point and say "See what
I did!” Mine had a color
dragon background, dojo seals,
were hand-lettered with the
child's name, date, and rank,
and signed. This made it an
important document for both
the child and parent. And
it wasn’t "fake",
but a real certificate expressing
appreciation and acknowledgement
of growth and skills. All
issued certificates were numbered
and registered. Years from
now, someone will say "I
began my karate training with
Sensei X in the year Y"
and there will be a registered
certificate.
When
a child outgrew the Little
Dragons class, he or she moved
up into the regular youth
classes. Some children outgrew
the class in skills, others
in age. Eventually, the child
fit into the regular class.
Rank was maintained until
the child exceeded the same
commensurate skill level as
the regular students. A yellow
belt with 2 purple stripes
equals a regular nanakyu in
my classes, so when the child
reaches the rokkukyu level,
he/she was tested for the
regular rank like all the
others -- this is what I meant
by keeping ranks realistic.
A Little Dragon Purple Belt
level equated to the skills
needed for a regular purple
belt, except the skills needed
to get there are acknowledged
more incrementally along the
way.
Be
careful to fully explain to
parents how, why, and when
ranks are awarded. Children
do not understand the concept
of rank, and are just as happy
with a pat on the back and
a smile as they are with a
stripe or new belt. Often,
the rank is more important
to the parents, who tend to
take it all much more seriously.
Don't let the Little League
Syndrome run amok among the
adults watching ("Why
does that boy have three stripes
while my son has only one?
My boy works so much harder!...
MAKE THAT BLOCK -- C'MON,
YOU'LL NEVER GET A YELLOW
BELT THAT WAY!!!... Why are
you so clumsy, just look at
that other boy, how GOOD he
is...” etc.). Make the
rank level requirements and
process of selection, testing,
grading, etc. VERY clear to
the parents, especially that
this is solely your jurisdiction.
I
let children win when playing
games, sparring, etc. Sometimes
I let them knock me on my
butt -- everyone laughs! For
pre-school children, my place
is NOT to teach the major
lessons in life, nor supply
trauma and injury, or "wake
a child up to reality".
These lessons will come in
their own time and are best
handled by the parent. At
this early age, the world
is still a magic place and
everything is new and fun.
I kept it that way. For that
very short time of their lives,
my Little Dragons were encouraged
to face the world with a winner's
attitude -- and in this class
everyone was a winner.
Keep
the parents in the loop! I
try to have a parent or guardian
present for each child whenever
possible. The study material
was written for the adult
to assist the child, with
the assumption that the adult
knows no karate but can follow
the simple directions and
help the child practice at
home. Simple enough to follow
but not insulting to the intelligence
of the parent -- the fine
art of communication.
I
also found it quite beneficial
to ask one of the parents
(usually a Mom) to volunteer
to assist in the classes.
This adult became the class
"Sempai", and in
return for assistance in the
class she received regular
karate lessons for free (rather
than pay an assistant, she
got trained as a regular student).
Her child also attended the
Little Dragons class tuition-free.
All others paid a small monthly
fee per child. Be careful
in selecting your assistant
-- he or she must be in good
active physical condition,
show great interest, show
an aptitude for conveying
concepts well, is willing
to work with the children,
and attends constantly. I
began my selection process
by announcing one day "I
need one brave Mommy to help
me keep the children in one
straight line while they take
turns sparring with me."
One mom proved to be better
at this than the others, even
to the point of keeping the
children's attention on the
sparring session and not on
playing games with each other
and "goofing around".
She taught them how to encourage
the fighter by leading a cheering
squad, and getting them all
to shout some "helpful
advice", etc. It was
all in the name of good fun
and healthy activity. Later
she gave the children a dragon
on paper to color. She showed
initiative and planned her
own Little Dragons oriented
handout material. After she
took over teaching the Little
Dragons class altogether,
this developed into a weekly
handout and became a "Little
Dragons Coloring Book".
Teaching
the children strengthened
her karate immensely by allowing
her to slow techniques down
and review basics at every
class. She worked her way
up to Ikkyu level, and except
for her family’s military
change of station (assigned
to a new base in the USA)
she would probably have tested
for Shodan.
As
you can see, much more can
be done with a preschooler's
class than many teachers realize
-- good, healthy training
is important to youngsters
at this stage. What it takes
most of all is endless patience
and energy. If you let the
kids down, frighten them,
or fail to keep your word,
you risk losing their trust
(and their parent's), and
quite possibly initiating
a traumatic experience that
will color a child's life
forever. How many times have
you heard of (or been victimized
by) the wrongful or frightening
actions of an adult or sitter
when you were just out of
the toddling stage, or by
the careless actions of a
poorly trained or jaded teacher?
The
enormous positive impact a
teacher has on a young child
can set the pace for enthusiastic,
healthy growth and development
on many levels for the rest
of that child's learning years.
As instructors, we must take
our responsibilities seriously,
and prepare material and class
agenda professionally -- even
for the "fun" classes...
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