Kids in class

[Shotokan-kez]

Hi guys. I know we have had many threads about this before, but something is bothering me in class and i thought i would share it. We have mixed classes, which normally i don't mind to much as long as the kids behave. On the whole they do but there are a small minority that don't.

When we line up in class they all push and shove to get to the end of the line. For example, i'm 1st kyu so i would be at the end near the black belts, The other 1st kyu kids race like mad to get the closest And then they also race so they can be next to their friends in the line. Of course the problem with that is that all you can hear are giggles and whispering during the warm-up. Then they pair up together and all they do is mess around. I remember once a 10 yr old black belt was on one side of me and her friend a 1st kyu was on the other side of me, and they were talking to each other with me in the middle. In the end i just said to the 1st kyu, do you wanna swap places or what?!?!?

The 10 yr old black belt is good at her karate, don't get me wrong i'm not disputing that. I did watch her take her shodan grading and she well deserved it. But her behaviour in the dojo is sometimes wrong, her silliness and laughing isn't setting a very good example to the lower grades. We have an awful lot of beginners at the moment and i don't think it's very good for them.

She was told off quite a lot on wednesday night for fooling around, which i was pleased about. Do i sound like i'm going overboard or over reacting? I just find it hard enough being only 1 of 2 adults in the class as it is. Anyway just wanted to get this off my chest, cheers for listening!

Kez x

[bushido_man96]

I see lots of posts like this, yet I notice that in my own dojang we don't really have this problem with the mixed classes. The kids are pretty well behaved, for the most part. The only time they tend to get kiddish is when they do partner work in one-steps and sparring, but it usually doesn't last too long, because the instructor jumps their case pretty quick.

What kind of actions does your Sensei take when they act this way?

[username8517]

Actually this environment exists because your sensei has allowed it. As bushido_man said he doesn't really have that problem at his dojang and when the kids start to act up in our dojo it's quickly addressed by an instructor.

Perhaps you should discuss your feelings with your sensei and let him/her know that it is disrupting your training and ask if he would be a bit stricter on the talking in class. I understand you're one of the few adults in the class but you still have every right as the children to learn as much as possible in there.

[Rateh]

In our dojo, if kids rush to be in the front of their rank in line, I make them go to the back of their rank. If they continue to do it, I make them go to the back of the line with the lowest ranks. Perhaps if your Sensei did this, then there wouldn't be that problem.

[karatekid1975]

I don't really have young kids in my class. We don't have mixed classes. But when I trained at the main dojang, we did. Saturday mornings was the mixed class. There were a fair amount of kids. But they, for the most part, were well behaved. When they didn't, they would get yelled at by a parent (who also trained) or our instructor.

[obiwansbane]

our dojo has a policy that it takes a lot more than just pure martial arts skills to progress in belt ranks, especially to get a black belt. So we have never encountered the problem where someone red or brown would need to tell a child to stop talking/pay attention or get to work, only to see they cant because the kid is a higher rank than they are.

Do not get me wrong we do have some really young high belts (prob highest would be one red belt i know she cant be more than 10?) but once again, she is really mature and handles herself well in class so she deserves it.

just for clarification our red belt is directly below brown which is directly below black

[Shotokan-kez]

I have to admit the kids don't get away with messing around, when they do, they do get told off for it, but the silence doesn't last long lol. I also have to admit that my own son is guilty of it sometimes, until he see's me glaring at him with a mean look lol

[cathal]

Actually this environment exists because your sensei has allowed it. As bushido_man said he doesn't really have that problem at his dojang and when the kids start to act up in our dojo it's quickly addressed by an instructor.

Perhaps you should discuss your feelings with your sensei and let him/her know that it is disrupting your training and ask if he would be a bit stricter on the talking in class. I understand you're one of the few adults in the class but you still have every right as the children to learn as much as possible in there.

I agree, controlling the class is imperative. This situation exists because of a lack of proper decorum and it's a major sign of disrespect.

[jaymac]

Kez, I agree with others. This is behavior that should never have been tolerated in the very beginning. Your instructor needs to step in and do something about it. In our dojo, we focus on positive behavior vs. negative. When we have a child who is fooling around in line, we pull a student who is attentive and quiet in front of the class and say, "wow, look how awesome he/she is! He/she got right in line and is displaying great attitude by being respectful and not talking or fooling around! Then we award them a nonranking stripe on their belt to indicate their special achievement. Usually works and seldom do we have to use negative reinforcement.

[AngelaG]

We made it a rule in our dojo that all adults stand in front of the children in line (within that rank band), regardless of how long anyone's been in that belt. I have 40+ year old students and personally I think that age is a greater factor in respect than time in belt.