Conducting Seminars

[Nidan Melbourne]

Hi all,

I've been asked to host a seminar sometime in 2017 and i'm curious to know what I should include.

The school that has invited me to come is a Wado-Ryu School, and they've asked me to run a Goju-Ryu Seminar as to help further their technical abilities and expand their horizons.

However the problem is I'm not sure what to include and at what type of level i should put things at.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Wastelander]

Personally, when I am asked to teach a seminar, I ask them what type of material they would like to be covered. Do they want to learn a new kata? Do they want to learn drills, and if so, what kind? Do they want bunkai? Etc. From there, you can build a curriculum for it.

Now, sometimes they will come back with: "whatever you want to teach!" That can be a little frustrating, but usually I mix some fundamental drills that may be different from what they do, and move that into kata applications, which I can either connect to kata or not, depending on their experience with the kata.

[tallgeese]

When I do something like this, I usually look at what the school having me in is known for and go from there. I like to add something to their tool box that they can use. Something that is more my specialty than theirs. That said, it has to be useful to them in some way.

For instance, I did a couple of seminars at a JKD school for ground fighting. So step one was easy. I'm a grappler and they aren't so clearly we're going to the ground. Knowing that they are a self defense type of school I knew that some of the more artistic or sporty movements wouldn't appeal to them. But countering strikes when stuck on bottom and reversing position would. So that process guided my choices. Personally, for me, I always like some application under stress but a open mat at the ned just wouldn't have fit, so I had them switching partners and applying the whole sequence live. It worked great. It can be harder to choose when your base arts are similar and I've had harder to decisions to make on stand up stuff, but the process is always the same.

In your situation, I'd look at what your Goju does that is unique to that form of karate compared to Wado. If memory serves, you guys have many more circular, softer type movements in your system. I think that where the maewashi-uke (sp?) kata comes out of, correct? The circular blocking kata. I'm less familiar with Wado, but it's entirely possible that they don't utilize that kata or movements contained therein.

Maybe start with the kata, or portion of it (if it is indeed unique) and then move directly to bunkai for a handful of these movements, say 3. This will give them an appreciation of the form and introduce the "why."

Then finish by putting the bunker into a string that moves from defense to control. If everyone is getting it, let them to some spontaneous attack and defend using the 3 related series that you just worked through. This kind of thing really leverages adult learning and aids in retention. They'll take something away thats useful and repeatable AND they will get a taste of a unique facet of your art.

Just some thoughts. It's a pattern that's worked frequently for me. Good luck and keep us posted.

[strangepair03]

Can never go wrong with sparring drills and Bunkai. IMHO.

[sensei8]

Great advice, thus far, by all! My advice is to, whatever it is you might plan, make sure that you're very well versed in whatever it is. Otherwise, the floor will reveal you as incompetent across the board.

I mention this only because I've attended seminars where I've watched what the floor can do to a person who's only slightly unprepared as to the subject at hand...it's not a very pretty sight to behold.

Whatever the topic is, be sure you're very well versed in it!!

[Nidan Melbourne]

Thanks for input all, i'll be in contact with the Sensei who wants me there in regards to anything that they may want me to cover.

I agree with your comments Sensei8 because I have had that before where someone took my class for a seminar and they weren't exactly confident.

[JackD]

Nidan we do a kata Seishan, the beginning has similarities to the classic Goju-Ryu tension kata Sanchin. It's one of our advanced katas but I suspect most would have seen it done.

Personally I think it would be a good thing for a wado practitioner to explore seeing as the tension/breathing thing is quite a fundamental to Goju-Ryu.