Kids Karate

[Safroot]

My daughter (4.5 years old) recently started karate class & she is enjoying it to the max .

My question is what to expect from her in terms of improvement (how can you tell if she is on the right progress/improvement track, what to look for ? )

How can we help her at home to improve her skills ?

Any advice is much appreciated

[Spartacus Maximus]

A child that age cannot be expected to grasp more than gross motor skills and things like coordination, balance and basic movement. That is what she must be evaluated on to mark any progress rather than any specific techniques or finer points.

It is important to give much encouragement and praise as well as keeping a good level of energy so that the child enjoys doing it. It must be a game. Every part of training has to be fun and adjusted to the appropriate level. This is difficult with a group, but easier to do at home with one's own child.

[Safroot]

A child that age cannot be expected to grasp more than gross motor skills and things like coordination, balance and basic movement. That is what she must be evaluated on to mark any progress rather than any specific techniques or finer points.

It is important to give much encouragement and praise as well as keeping a good level of energy so that the child enjoys doing it. It must be a game. Every part of training has to be fun and adjusted to the appropriate level. This is difficult with a group, but easier to do at home with one's own child.

she is really enjoying it but what to do at home, just try to repeat whatever she learned in the class ?

[sensei8]

Just allow her to have her fun. If she learns anything, great...if she doesn't learn anything, great!! Remember, it's HER MA journey, and in that, she just wants to have fun on the floor with the others. If pushed, she'll have no fun, and nothing good can come from that!!

[Safroot]

Just allow her to have her fun. If she learns anything, great...if she doesn't learn anything, great!! Remember, it's HER MA journey, and in that, she just wants to have fun on the floor with the others. If pushed, she'll have no fun, and nothing good can come from that!!

Thanks for the advice , for sure I will

[DWx]

I say under 7s in martial arts should mainly be learning gross motor skills and learning that physical activity is fun. I wouldn't worry about practicing too much (unless they want to) and wouldn't be looking for them to be able to kick and punch per se.

In terms of improvement I would say the basic stuff is more important:

- Balance (standing in stances > standing on one leg > kicking her leg out)

- agility (walking > running > changing direction, hopping and jumping)

- strength (holding oneself up and in a variety of positions, good posture)

- coordination (catching things, hitting targets, throwing things)

[Safroot]

I say under 7s in martial arts should mainly be learning gross motor skills and learning that physical activity is fun. I wouldn't worry about practicing too much (unless they want to) and wouldn't be looking for them to be able to kick and punch per se.

In terms of improvement I would say the basic stuff is more important:

- Balance (standing in stances > standing on one leg > kicking her leg out)

- agility (walking > running > changing direction, hopping and jumping)

- strength (holding oneself up and in a variety of positions, good posture)

- coordination (catching things, hitting targets, throwing things)

Thanks DWx will keep an eye & try to work on those points , You should see her kicking the boxing bag , usually I can't stop laughing in the waiting are but seriously we are always encouraging her.

She actually liked it more than her ballet class which was a big surprise for me !

[Lupin1]

I agree with the others-- the best thing you can do with a kid that age is let her have fun and enjoy class. If she asks you to practice with her outside of class, do it for awhile, but never force her or do it longer than she's interested or she might start disliking it and thinking of it as a chore.

The best thing you can do to help her improve is play with her let and let play on her own in many different ways. Children learn through play and they need to crawl, climb, jump, balance, swing, spin, throw, catch, etc. The more ways she can move her body, the more she'll develop coordination and athleticism-- all by playing.

Play games where you crawl across the yard or hop from rock to rock. Get her a structure she can climb on and jump from. Let her roll down a hill or balance across a log. Pick her up and spin her around. Basically just encourage active play-- preferably in nature.

[Safroot]

Play games where you crawl across the yard or hop from rock to rock. Get her a structure she can climb on and jump from. Let her roll down a hill or balance across a log. Pick her up and spin her around. Basically just encourage active play-- preferably in nature.

That would be really interesting, she is full of energy & love playing. She will just love that sort of games

[catlike]

Similar situation for me, my son went to my school last week for the first lesson. Lots of newbies that night too, so was ideal. But he was shattered, the class is just too late. His bedtime is 7pm and the class was 6-7, which is too much of a stretch right now.

6 months and I'll try him again, see how he goes.

My expectations are discipline, fun and motor skills at this age.