Anti-Bullying

Bullying and Martial Arts

Bullying, Martial Arts, Your Child and You: Is It a Good Idea?

So many schools like to claim that they have “no bullying” rules, but the fact remains that teachers and other adults cannot be everywhere all the time. It is those times where and when no adult is around that bullies take advantage of the situation and of other kids. It is very difficult nowadays to just tell your child to defend him/herself when schools are given carte blanche authority to arrest children for assault and battery when in most cases those children are just trying to defend themselves.

So, what can you as a parent do? Some parents have resorted to signing their children up for martial arts classes, but is that a good idea? The idea of your child karate-chopping a bully may seem apropos, but you still have to contend with what the school decides to do about that. However, there are plenty of martial arts moves your child can learn that will actually help with the bullying problem, and these moves will not inflict any legal action upon you or your child. Here is more about these moves and how it can dramatically help your child in the area of self-defense.

Aikido

Aikido is a type of martial art that teaches students how to defend themselves against attackers without harming their attackers at the same time. This is an ideal form of martial art to teach your child since he/she is ultimately trying to defend him/herself against a bully without physically striking or harming the bully. Most of the moves teach your child how and when to move so that the bully’s punches or kicks do not make contact with your child’s body. There are also deflective moves that allow your child to stop contact of the bully’s body parts when your child is cornered and cannot simply move out of the way of the strike.

If your child has to deal with a bully and a couple of the bully’s sidekicks, additional moves are taught to help under these circumstances. Hip rolls, for example, are an effective means of removing an extra person out of the way when a second attacker is coming. The move does not hurt the first attacker, and it helps your child prepare for the second attacker.

Krav Maga

Krav Maga is gaining in popularity because it combines strength training with self-defense. Your child will learn how to become physically stronger while using that strength in reflexive responses to a bully’s attacks. Rather than hit back with his/her newfound strength from training, he/she learns to respond reflexively in a non-violent manner.

It takes a lot of emotional control, which is why it is also a good martial art for kids because it teaches them how to be in control of their emotions. (That is something not even most adults know how to do.) In the event that a reflexive response is not enough against an attack, the strength one obtains through studying Krav Maga can help gently overpower the attacker without releasing the full force of one’s anger or fear responses onto the attacker. Your child would learn to be in control of the situation and never harm the other person while still defending him/herself.

Tai Chi

Tai Chi teaches movements that essentially swipe away an attacker’s movements. It is very slow and controlled in practice, but it shows your child how to breathe and how to be in control of his her body in his/her space. The movements done in a full Tai Chi session seem more like a spiritual dance, but if you speed up these movements, you can see how they quickly become movements for deflecting blows. When practiced often, these movements become second nature, and instantly become how your child responds to a bully’s attack. Additionally, Tai Chi (and Krav Maga) increase your child’s ability to focus and self-regulate, things that can really help even an ADHD student do better in school.

More importantly, Tai Chi can be done anywhere. You can put on soothing sounds or music and even practice the moves at home. Many Tai Chi classes are held out in the open in public parks because of the very soothing movements and controlled breathing involved. Some movements can be used anytime your child feels an overwhelming emotion coming on and needs to breathe and move through it.

Teaching That Martial Art Is to Protect Oneself First and Foremost

Most martial arts instructors will tell their young pupils all the time that what these students are learning is for self-defense only. None of it is ever to be used to hurt someone, or to strike in such a way as to cause real harm. When learning this and taking it to heart, your child will know that he/she can defend him/herself without hurting the bully (even if the bully deserves it). That exacts an equal balance of power in each bully encounter, and removes the fear factor such that your child can get through the situation without creating other legal issues as a result of physical contact with another person. No-contact martial art studies provide all of the above.

Ergo, it is a good idea to sign your child up for any of the above no-contact martial art forms. In addition to learning excellent self defense skills, your child will gain greater emotional control and emotional maturity. He/she may also gain greater physical strength, if that is part of the training. Students who study these disciplines find that they also have much better focus at school and at home, which will help them succeed in everything else they need to study or choose to study. Children as young as five can begin these classes and reach a master’s belt by the time they are in their early teens, although the more important take-aways from these studies is the self esteem, self reliance, self discipline, and personal management skills.

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Bullying and Martial Arts

Bullying is, unfortunately, a situation that many kids feel vulnerable in because they do not know how to handle it. There are many kinds of behavior that kids of any age can experience. There is verbal assault, where unkind words and insults are constantly hurled their way. There is also physical assault that involves the manipulation of one’s body.

If there is one thing that bullies prey upon, it is fear and implied weakness. Usually, bullies will not seek trouble from someone who looks to be bigger and tougher. However, an easy target is someone smaller and weaker. However, there are ways that your child can defend themselves from these situations. One of these ways includes martial arts.

What Are Martial Arts?

Martial arts are systems of combat that are practiced for a variety of reasons. The most common uses include law enforcement application, military training and what your child may need it for most, self-defense. Some of the most popular kinds include kung fu, jujitsu, karate, and tae kwon do. Therefore, you can see that this is more of an umbrella term used to describe the proper techniques of self-defense that is commonly practiced in Asian countries.

While many focus on the specific strikes that can do damage, there is much more to learning this art. If your child is properly trained, they will be able to learn discipline and confidence.

Learning Confidence and Discipline

The biggest lesson that children can learn through training is increased self-discipline. This is done by gradually teaching how to resist temptation and how to remove influences that make us weak. Constant studies have shown that self-control and discipline can be accentuated with consistent habits such as a healthy diet. In training, your child can be taught how to change their routine and take themselves out of certain comfort zones.

While comfort zones can be seen as a convenience, it can also be seen as a hindrance to unlocking one’s true potential. Comfort zones lead to complacency and complacency leads to poor results in the long-term. It also teaches your child that things will not always go according to plan. The entire point is to help build habits over time that will help achieve a specific goal.

Your child will not achieve any goals set for them by a couple of big actions that they do in their life. It is the small, consistent things that they do on a daily basis that will determine if they will be successful or not. Self-discipline is about correcting destructive behavior and adapting to certain circumstances.

Control

Control is another huge part of the training that will help your child develop in a positive manner. While combat is a part of what your child will learn, the focus isn’t to overpower or gain control of the opponent. The goal is to use one’s skill and strength in a controlled manner. The idea is that you should want your child to never have to engage in combat and avoid conflict whenever possible. However, if the situation dictates that their safety is in jeopardy, they can use what they have been taught to protect themselves from harm.

It is a meticulous process that will require your child to understand the controlled movements that the training will entail. There is a lot of thought before action and a conscious act of responding with situational awareness has. Professional instructors will be sure to instill these basic fundamentals early because it is easy for children who get bullied to think about what they can do to get back at those who bully them.

Increased Self-Confidence

Unfortunately, one of the long-term detrimental effects of bullying is that it decreases your child’s confidence. A bully preys upon certain people because they may see a vulnerability or weakness in them. That perceived weakness can make your child insecure in their own abilities and cause them to lose confidence in themselves. They may also believe that something is wrong with them, which is why they are a target for bullying.

However, actively participating in martial art training can help them nullify these confidence issues. Confidence results from beliefs that are held within us. If we are negative about ourselves, it will be manifested in our behavior. Practicing will help your child to believe in themselves and to attain any goal that they set for themselves. Mastering a martial art is a great way to not only understand competence but to achieve a goal. The more goals that your child achieves, the more that their self-confidence will increase.

Building confidence is something that cannot be fixed within one night. It is a long-term process that will require consistency and a belief that anything can be achieved. However, if your child eventually trains to the point where they become a master, they may feel like no goal will be out of their grasp. In addition, if a bully approaches them again, not only can they learn how to effectively defend themselves, but they also learn manners to divert conflict, to begin with.

Martial art training not only teaches your child the fundamentals of how to defend themselves, but it also teaches them important life lessons. It will teach them to be confident in their own abilities and how to stay disciplined on a specific task.

While it is true that there may be certain concepts that can be difficult to learn at first, your child will be more disciplined, more confident and more focused by the end of the martial art training. Consider all of these benefits if a bully happens to be bothering your child.

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Bullying and Martial Arts

A child beating up on each other has always been a problem since the school system first started. Many children in school today just don’t have the physical capability to deal with a larger student who picks on them. This leads to that student not wanting to attend school each day. The student knows the other classmate will bully them. They want to avoid the situation. That student’s school grades can suffer because of anxiety from being bullied by a larger student.

This must change for the student to attend school to learn. Until the parents take action, the student who is bullied will remain afraid. Enrolling your child into a martial arts system is the first positive step you can do for the child.

How Self-Defense Can Help Your Child

Learning how to defend yourself can change the way you approach problems dealing with all issues of life. Enrolling your child into a Tae Kwon Do academy can influence major changes to health, mind and physical ability. The training they will receive will build their confidence ability.

Several months into training in a class can boost your child’s mental and emotional health. As they progress with the skill, they will become able to defend themselves against anyone. The effort your child puts into class participation and training is the key goal of learning the skills of martial arts.

Children can enroll in most of the fighting arts to gain the confidence and skills needed to defend against bullies. They get to work with other participants in the class in a controlled atmosphere. It helps them build socialization skills to stop avoiding others. A child enrolled in the class can develop lifelong relationships with others that have dealt with similar problems in the past.

Your child will be more confident after several months of training in self-defense. As they progress through training, they will receive a higher belt level for the skills that they achieve. The philosophy instilled for students participating in self-defense will take them to levels far above those that never studied. The fighting arts are more than just learning a combative skill because it teaches a way of life in each field of study.

How Parents Can Help Their Children

You have a voice to help your children that are dealing with school bullying. Go to the school to discuss the situation with the faculty on how they can help solve the problem. If that doesn’t help, enroll them into a self-defense class for the child’s protection.

Talk to your children about school activities when you feel they are anxious or have anxiety issues about attending school. Children will seldom tell their parents that someone is picking on them in the school system. This is something within most children that they won’t inform a parent about because it could be embarrassing.

A child might be ashamed of being bullied. They may be afraid their parents will inform the school to make it more difficult to attend classes. Explain to your child why you feel that they need to inform the school about what is happening to them.

Your child could be picked on from disabilities. Size and weight can influence how other students view your children in school. One bully can choose several victims in school to toy with. Race can play a role in school bullying. These are things to consider when discussing problems your children are having attending school.

Parental Self-defense Strategies to Help Children Cope

Attending martial art classes can help your children in so many ways above learning how to defend their physical bodies. You can be a voice in helping your child succeed during those difficult times of attending school. You may have to attend some self-defense classes to learn how to help your children. You are their role model.

Teach your children to be aware of all surroundings. This is an important life-skill that many adults are unaware of. Awareness of what is happening around you at all times is the key to staying safer in an unsafe world.

Talk to your child about courage. Teach them that it takes more discipline to walk away from a situation. Any fighting art is all about how those who take it can find ways to avoid a bad situation. Self-defense classes will teach your children this but you play an important role in addressing it to them.

Talk to your children about how they feel. Things associated with school and daily life should be addressed in this conversation. Ask them about how martial arts class is going after they have studied for several months. Attitudes should improve as they move on in classes. Motivational skills will improve. Confidence will become better as they continue training. Physical ability with knowledge will ultimately help them avoid bully situations in time.

Be The Motivation Your Children Need

Your children can learn how to be a fighting force by attending self-defense classes. You must realize that learning a fighting art is about self-protection from harm. Never tell your child to punch someone in the mouth. Avoid any conversation that lets your child know it will be fine to hit another student. Your role as a parent is to help your children cope with the nasty problems they may deal with daily.

School bullying is more than a physical issue. They can bully by words and simple actions. A threatening nature by a school bully can intimidate your children. The fighting arts can develop your children with the ability to protect and defend others. Your job as a parent is to be their role model as a Mom or Dad.

What your child does in and out of the schooldays all goes back to how you have taught them during their young lives, check out cool gadgets site. You must be their leader and motivator throughout their younger ages as children. Taking a self-defense course along with your children can help give you the skills needed for them to succeed. You can learn the same teachings that the classes will instill in your child forever.

Martial art training can take your children a long way in life. They could grow from a young age into adults to teach classes on their own. The training could lead to them wanting to go into the military. So many things that they could make a career out of are positive results from the martial art training they receive.

Sometimes, a child needs the supervision of a parent shown as an example. You can take those steps by starting to be their ultimate role model. Show them how much you care by enrolling with them at a martial art school during the near future.

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Discipline and Martial Arts

Enrolling your children into a martial art school can help them grow in a variety of ways. Some studies suggest that children suffering from attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can have a huge success rate with discipline and concentration by learning martial art skills.

Learning any martial art requires the student to pay attention to the instructor who teaches the class. Students learn discipline and respect for others while attending a self-defense school. Practice sessions may include attending classes several times a week for one-hour classes.

A typical class session involves basic exercise with stretching involved to loosen the body up for self-defense techniques. Students will learn kata movements as they continue to advance. Routine light-contact sparring is something else they learn how to do with each belt promotion. Belt levels start at beginner white, yellow, purple, orange, brown and black.

Experts agree starting children at a young age allows them to learn the art and gain the best results. Six or seven is a fantastic age to begin training in any martial art. A child’s body is developing the muscles needed for more rigorous training as they mature. The many benefits listed below are what children will gain by learning a martial art.

Self Defense

Children learn how to protect themselves with any martial art they learn. As they grow older, those skills will remain with them as long as they continue to practice their skills. They could have to rely on those skills during some moment of their life.

Attention To Details

Learning a martial art will help your child improve their ability to focus on schoolwork and physical activities. It helps improve mental function as they continue to master the art they’re receiving the training in. Parents should see a huge difference in how their child reacts to situations that involve them.

Self-control is another aspect that learning a martial art will help the child achieve. It involves the child is focused on the task at hand. They will have the desire to strive to finish anything they have the mindset to accomplish.

Improved Balance And Posture

Poor posture and balance can cause health problems as children grow into adults. Health issues can include back and spine problems. Sitting or standing the wrong way causes this. Martial art training builds confidence that helps your child develop good habits to avoid having health issues. They will learn how to stand properly while developing a healthy lifestyle from participation in martial arts.

Memory Improvement

Martial art training will take years to master. The skills learned will improve the student’s memory because there is so much knowledge about the art involved. As students learn a martial art skill, their ability to remember improves with homework and other school classes.

Improved Physical Fitness With A Healthy Lifestyle

Learning a martial art will increase your child’s ability with physical exercise. The martial art will promote healthy living to the student to only put nutrients and substances into their body that promotes positive results. Bad influences associated with wanting to use drugs or alcohol will be removed from a student’s thoughts after they begin taking a martial art. They develop the mindset to become the very best from learning any type of martial art skills.

Self-Discipline And Responsibility

Students taking a martial art class will develop strong behavioral skills when it comes to being a responsible individual. Although they are still at a young age, children seem to take on more responsible work that must be done at home for their parents. Learning martial arts helps develop a student into being careful not to use the skills they learn on others.

Awareness Of Surroundings

Children learning a martial art have a keen sense of what is happening around them at all times. This is important when it comes to society in today’s world. Children need to be aware of all types of danger that surrounds them. They develop this sense of awareness by the martial art philosophy they are trained in.

Courage And Bravery

Students learn to be physically and emotionally strong as part of the benefits of learning a martial art. They lose the fears that many people deal with in everyday situations, visit evergreenmaids.com. Confidence increases with a long study in art. Students can conquer the emotion of fear by an inner strength instilled in them from learning a martial art. Children learn this from participation in a martial art. They’re more capable of setting goals and being successful in life.

Leadership

Leadership begins inside the dojo where children learn martial arts. The classes teach students important leadership skills by allowing them the responsibility to lead the class during a session. This is something the instructor will do with students showing success in what they’re learning from the training. The instructor decides when a student has improved enough to allow them a leadership role with the class. What students learn will continue to follow them into adulthood.

Martial Art Systems To Consider For Children

Choosing the correct martial art class for your child to participate in is important to keep them happy and satisfied. All of the self-defense arts listed will teach your child respect and self-control, look this website . You need to learn about the types of skills offered in each art. You should visit the facility to learn more about who the teachers are. Here are a few recommended fields of study that make a perfect match for children.

§ The Japanese art of karate uses quick movements involving kicks and punches that involve students to warm up properly before participating in techniques.
§ Korean Tae Kwon Do remains a popular martial art participated in widely across the United States. Great art for children to participate in.
§ Japanese Judo teaches balance and leverage to throw an opposing opponent to the ground.
§ Chinese Kung-Fu is a great martial art that will keep the interest of children as they learn the skills to master the art.

Martial art training will impact children throughout their lives. Along with learning self-defense, the arts will give them what they need to be successful adults.

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Enter the Dojo, Exit the Bullying

Bullying is a serious problem being faced in schools today. More than one in four students report being the victims of bullying. Sadly, the pain of being bullied does not end when the aggressive act concludes. The psychological effects can be long-lasting.

Parents want to help protect their children, but they usually can’t be in school with them. Martial arts training is something that parents can provide that WILL follow the child there.

Martial arts skills are not meant to encourage your child to exhibit violent behavior. Rather, they are meant to build your child’s confidence. When a person is confident in him or herself, this confidence is conveyed to potential bullies. A bully wants to pick on an easy target. Someone who carries themselves assuredly is much less likely to be the object of taunting and aggressive behavior.

Further, when someone has been trained to defend themselves, it frees them from having to prove that ability to others. A martial artist knows that they have the tools to deal with aggressors, and is therefore not as panicked. Maintaining a calm demeanor in an altercation makes it less likely to deteriorate into physical violence.

Disciplines such as karate teach students to fulfill their potentials. The process of being a student requires growing physically through training. It also involves increasing self-motivation by requiring work at home to practice different combinations of moves. When a child sees that they can do more push-ups than they ever thought possible, new levels of self-belief become possible.

Also during training, students reach the level of participating in sparring matches. During these matches, combat experience is gained with the benefit of protective guards. This removes the fear of the unknown when it comes to situations where someone is trying to hit you. After that experience, a child is more able to get over the fear of what a bully is capable of doing.

Several dojos offer training in breaking boards with the bare fist. While it sounds incredible, it is actually a feat which school-aged children can achieve. It is representative of the breaking through of barriers possible to someone who feels empowered. When a child can do something seemingly impossible to a board, it is not a great leap of the imagination that other obstacles in life can be overcome.

Further, training oftentimes involves working in pairs and groups. The camaraderie which grows between partners at the dojo has the added benefit of fostering social skills. Lasting friendships that form there can lead children to discover new social skills with which to resolve tense problems in situations like school.

A bully wants to feel powerful by making someone else feel less powerful. At heart, bullies don’t feel secure in themselves. With character-building experiences practicing kicks and punches with other kids, your child stands a good chance of being in a state of better emotional maturity than the aggressor, which is an advantage in defusing the situation.

Having a hobby such as a karate is another way for a child to define her or his identity. It is another mirror in which they can learn to see their potential. The image they grow to see is of someone who is not a victim. They forge an aspect of themselves that can look at a developing conflict without succumbing to fear and helpless feelings.

Another benefit of time spent in the dojo is improved over-all physical health, which contributes to added mental health. Regular exercise can increase mood. This can help your child to form more social bonds in the school setting, which could help prevent him or her as being seen as a target by the potential bully. Also, a better mood can help with one conflict resolution method taught in karate, which is humor.

Mastering the techniques of self-defense teaches the student that they are capable of undertaking a long term endeavor and reaping the rewards from it. This mindset can be helpful when considering a relationship with a bully. Just because your child may have been victimized by this person in the past doesn’t mean your child is that same victimizable person now that they were then.

Your child has to face the school day throughout the years in order to get the educational foundation to build a productive life. Along the way, it is an unfortunate reality that an encounter (or encounters) with a bully are not an unlikely situation to have to deal with. For this reason, training is a good option to instill the values of self-reliance.

The mind that knows it can accomplish a difficult task, such as becoming skilled in martial arts, will be more likely to face resolving difficult tasks in the future. The next time your child is confronted by that bully, the dynamic will have changed. Your child knows her or his power now.

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Discipline and Martial Arts

Self-discipline isn’t something that comes naturally to most children. No matter how hard you might try as a parent, you’ll find that actually teaching a child this skill requires a great deal of outside intervention. Martial arts have long been considered an excellent tool for helping children learn the confidence and discipline necessary for becoming successful adults. Understanding why is a matter of looking at exactly what a good martial arts education can teach a child and, ultimately, how these lessons can be applied to other areas of the child’s life.

A Note on Martial Arts

It’s perhaps a wise idea to start with what kind of setting best leads to the desired results. It’s not necessarily the sport itself that leads to a greater sense of discipline and self-worth, but also the environment in which the skills are taught. A good class that’s taught by a skilled teacher and full of dedicated peers is always the best place for a student to learn any type of skills. It’s not enough to know how to perform the actions taught – the student needs to absorb the lessons that come along with the physical teachings.

Learning Self-Control

One great thing about this type of class is that children are taught the value of self-control. When most children are told to control themselves, they are given theoretical reasons to do so. Control means not getting in trouble, for example, or not getting on the nerves of an adult. When children train in a martial art, though, they’re getting immediate reasons why they need to control themselves. Self-control is the key to success, and failure to exercise it can lead to painful failures.

This is not to say that control can only be learned through sparring. What students will notice is that those who do what they’re told are those who advance the most quickly. They pay attention and are able to learn how to correctly execute specific skills, giving them an edge over those who refuse to participate correctly. Simply being able to see that controlling themselves actually leads to real results can wildly change a child’s point of view on the value of self-control. From here, your child should be able to see the value in applying those lessons to other parts of his or her life.

Learning About Self-Worth

Of course, discipline is only one benefit that a child can get from proper training. More than anything, children learn that they have worth when they go through these classes. They are able to see that if they try hard and do their best, they will succeed. They may not be the best in the class, but they will notice a slow and steady improvement that will, in turn, lead them to become more confident and more willing to keep trying. Learning a martial art is not just about learning how to fight or even how to do specific physical feats – it’s about learning how to get outside of one’s comfort zone and accomplish new things.

Understanding the arc of a typical student is very important if you’re trying to figure out why self-esteem is so often boosted by practicing a martial art. When a student starts, he or she has only his or her own basic athleticism on which to rely. No matter how well the student might do at other physical pursuits, he or she is at a severe disadvantage because the student simply doesn’t have the knowledge base to keep up with the rest of the class. This can be tough, but something very special happens over the course of a few lessons – the student begins to learn the basics and can see a path towards improvement.

The type of self-confidence gained from learning a martial art is the kind of self-confidence that can be applied to any other area of life. When a student can see that hard work actually leads to results, he or she is more likely to push forward and try harder in other areas of life. Knowing that he or she can accomplish a difficult task even when the odds seem insurmountable is a great thing for any child, and definitely something worth learning early on.

Learning Social Skills

Learning a martial art also encourages children to improve their social skills. Because classes are inherently social, students will be forced to spend time with people with whom they may not have a lot in common. They will, however, learn that they can find common ground based simply on their enthusiasm for their current class. This will teach students that they really can make friends with people so long as they are willing to find something they have in common.

Social skills also come from a tremendous amount of trust one has to place in a partner. Every martial art is physical, and there’s a certain level of trust inherent in learning any new skill. The students will have to work with others in order to master physical skills, and this means developing solid methods of communication to avoid getting hurt and to avoid confrontation. Students who are able to work with their partners are better able to master their skills and are able to get promoted more easily, showing that embracing social skills is absolutely worthwhile even for the shyest or least social of children.

If your child needs to learn self-control, confidence, and social skills, it may be a good idea to have him or she learn a martial art. While every class is different, the vast majority of classes focus on lessons that instill these qualities. Though every martial art is physical art, it’s often the mental lessons that stick with students for the long-run. Even if your child doesn’t choose to pursue lessons past the most basic levels, he or she will walk away learning quite a bit about how to interact with others and even more about his or her own self-worth.

Bullying and Martial Arts

Bullying is a common problem among kids. It’s a constant discussion on the news and is often the subject of public service announcements, but nothing is as effective as martial arts training for both bullies and the kids they dominate. It might sound far fetched, but the inner strength and discipline that martial arts impart are highly effective at helping young people control both bullying impulses and timidity.

Understanding bullies

Researchers at the Yale Center Child Study Center recently set out to discover why some kids are consistently hostile towards others https://www.yalemedicine.org/stories/understanding-bullying/. Their research was driven by statistics that show that the number of children menaced by bullies has reached worrisome levels. While it may seem like bullies are the ones who have the power and advantage at school and areas where kids play, Yale found that bullies act out negatively towards others because they lack the personal skills to express themselves any better. The fact that bullies find themselves at the center of negative attention and disciplinary action on a constant basis can give the impression that they don’t mind, but they undergo the same stress and feelings of guilt as less aggressive kids. It’s just that they lack the mental and emotional control to stay out of trouble.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is one common source of bullying behavior http://www.nbcnews.com/id/22813400/ns/health-childrens_health/t/kids-adhd-may-be-more-likely-bully/. Parents who have kids who bully others often over-rely on ADHD medication as a solution. Studying fighting is a more holistic response because it reinforces personal discipline and emphasizes the importance of being focused. The training it imparts is actually more effective at managing reckless impulses as well as giving a young person who has difficulty interacting with others a more controlled framework to do so in.

Understanding kids who have been bullied

Kids who have been victimized by bullies are caught off guard by them. They have no idea how to respond when suddenly shoved them or threatened so are overcome with anxiety. Some may even be prone towards being picked on and have lost confidence in anything else is possible. They instantly succumb to acts of aggression. Bullies may perceive them as easy targets because they’re small in stature or are shy and stay to themselves. Kids who are routinely bullied sometimes come from homes where they’ve been raised to be polite and knowing how to deal with an aggressive kid is a skill that’s totally missing from their upbringing.

How training affects kids with histories of being bullies

No child is a bully at birth. It’s not an unchangeable part of their identity. It would seem that a kid who enjoys beating up and pushing around others would become even more dangerous while learning how to kick and punch opponents into submission. It’s important to understand that a young person who learns karate, Judo or another martial art is studying a form of self-defense, however. Young people who train at dojos aren’t being given a green light to be violent. That couldn’t be further from the truth. In Jiu-Jitsu, for example, being an attacker doesn’t turn out well since every jab you take is quickly used against you.

No competent student can step on the mat without mastering the emotions that will distract them from winning a match if they don’t. In Karate, belts begin with white and move up to black. Every kid is vying to improve their technique. They must be attentive towards what they’re learning in order to reach the next level. The journey from beginner to advanced demands steady improvement and confidence. Getting a new belt requires so much more than brutally overpowering someone else. Kids have to exemplify leadership qualities. They have to know the correct way to stand so need the right posture and technique. They must also be able to manage stress and pressure as well as the disappointment of not winning. The acquisition of these skills leads towards a more balanced approach towards others that kids carry with them into their lives outside the gym. Sensei Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan Karate-Do, http://web.iyte.edu.tr/~gokhankiper/Karate/Funakoshi.htm believed that a true karate expert tried their best to have a few fights as possible.

How training affects kids with histories of being picked on

Kids who are shy by nature might prefer reading or drawing to physical activity, so it may be a challenge for them at first to spend their free time kicking and punching in a gym after school, but with a good teacher, they’ll soon develop a new relationship with their bodies. Hitting a mat or grappling won’t seem so shocking after they experienced it a number of times with changing opponents in a structured environment. Furthermore, they’ll develop greater confidence and a more realistic expectation of other kids that don’t rely on them being polite and respectful. Training for surprise conflicts will turn being grabbed by someone they assume is tougher than they into a moment they’re prepared for and respond to methodically with a clear head.

Choosing the right style and school

Never simply pick the studio closest to your house. All martial arts training is not the same. You want to choose the technique you think will be the best fit for your kid, and the only way you’ll know is by visiting an array of schools that allow you to watch classes and chat with instructors about their distinctive teaching styles and backgrounds. You’ll also want to talk to them about why you think your child needs to study self-defense. From kung-fu to Judo, the variety of schools that teach self-defense to kids is growing at a steady pace. The ideal prospective instructor will tell you what they recommend for your child whether they’re withdrawn and shy or overly physical with others.

6 Ways Martial Arts Can Build Confidence, Self-Esteem, and Discipline in Your Child

Are you looking for an activity for your child that will help build their confidence, improve discipline, and keep them working hard to accomplish their goals? Martial arts could be just an activity for your child. While there are many different elements to consider depending on the style you choose, you’ll find that enrolling your child in one of these exciting classes can help create a variety of changes within them.

1. Give Your Child the Power to Stop Bullies

There’s nothing like ongoing bullying to sap a child’s self-esteem and leave him feeling out of sorts. By learning karate, however, your child can develop the skills needed to stop bullies in their tracks. Most traditional classes don’t just teach punching, kicking, and fighting techniques. They’ll also teach your child to:

• Get out of a bad situation without resorting to violence, including a number of basic conflict resolution skills.
• Redirect their opponent’s energy, stopping them from causing damage without actually hurting them.
• Avoid bad situations, to begin with.
• Develop the inner strength to stand up for themselves, which often stops bullies in their tracks.

2. Watch Your Child Do Things They Didn’t Believe They Could Do

In a traditional martial arts class, it doesn’t take many classes before your child will see older students doing things they firmly believe they could never accomplish, from breaking boards or performing a complicated kata to performing techniques that they’re sure they could never do.

Then they start to learn to do them.

As your child stays in the class, they will have the opportunity to work through many different techniques, building skills and confidence at the same time.

3. Develop Discipline in All Areas of Life

In order to become a successful martial artist, your child must develop discipline. It’s not just a matter of showing up when they feel like it. They must also:

• Make a commitment to showing up to class regularly so that they miss out on neither instruction nor training time.
• Practice outside of the dojo to build their skills and increase their abilities.
• Maintain healthier eating and exercise habits to help build strength and develop a body that is able to handle whatever they ask of it on the mat or in the ring.

In addition, many schools provide an incentive for students to show their commitment and capability in other areas of their lives, too. For example, if your student’s grades start to fall or you notice your child displaying inappropriate behavior with his siblings, you have the right to withhold a belt promotion or to hold them out of class until those grades come up. Many parents discover that this method creates higher levels of performance in their child regardless of what other goals they need to focus on.

4. Work in an Environment that Encourages Kindness and Teamwork

Many children turn to karate classes to escape bullies. They may have few friends at school, or they may struggle to form relationships. In these classes, however, children are encouraged to develop friendships and show kindness to one another. Higher-ranking students often work with lower-ranking students to encourage them, show them new techniques, and provide them with support. Over time, relationships often develop. As a result, your child may start to develop better self-esteem and more internal strength–and they just might take that ability to build friendships out of the dojo and into their everyday lives.

5. Watch the Progression of Skills Over Time

Many children struggle to get past the difficulty of learning or accomplishing new skills. They want to be able to do these incredible things that they see others doing, but when they start, they discover that it’s much more difficult than it first appears–and often, they give up without ever giving it a real chance.

Martial arts classes are expressly designed to help overcome those difficulties.

When your child enters class, they’ll begin by learning basic techniques that can be performed at a relatively low level of skill. These techniques help increase confidence, encouraging your child to branch out and try new things. Over time, their punching strength will increase, their accuracy will increase, and they’ll get to try new, more difficult techniques. Over time, your child will develop increased strength and capability that will have them doing more than they ever dreamed possible–but they’ll build those skills in a way that is designed to support their self-esteem and personal view of their capability, rather than tearing it down.

6. Students Compete Against Themselves

One of the first things many martial artists learn is that there’s always someone better at something. One student may be a fantastic ground fighter, while another excels at stand-up fighting. A technique that is fantastically easy for one student may be incredibly difficult for another–but that same student who struggled with one technique may find that another one comes naturally.

In the dojo, students have many opportunities to compete with one another. More importantly, however, they have the opportunity to compete with themselves. They’re constantly learning, growing, and developing new skills while assimilating new techniques–a strategy that often allows students to see how they have been able to learn and grow over time.

If you’re looking for a sport that will build life skills in your child, consider enrolling your child today. This incredible sport will support your child in more ways than you have ever imagined.

How Martial Arts Can Help Reduce Bullying

Bullying is becoming an increasingly prevalent problem among children and teens. When children are bullied, it can affect both their physical and mental wellbeing. They may become more withdrawn, anxious and depressed. These children may have more headaches and may have a harder time adjusting to school. Some may be physically harmed or commit suicide. People who are bullies may have a higher risk of substance abuse and violent behavior later in life. For some children, they have both been bullied and bullied others. These children are at a greater risk for all these problems.

These are serious issues that need addressing on many different fronts. While there is no one cure-all solution to this problem, we are not powerless to stop it. One simple option to help reduce bullying is through martial arts.

Both a child who is a bully and a child who is being bullied can benefit from being enrolled in a martial arts program. Here are several ways that learning a martial art can help both these types of children.

Confidence

Being bullied often wears down a child’s self-esteem. They may feel lonely, scared and anxious. Going to school may become increasingly difficult. One of the best ways to combat this issue is to help your child build confidence. A child who appears confident is more likely to discourage bullies than one who appears shy and withdrawn. Through learning a martial art form, children will become more confident in their abilities, in their strengths and in who they are. This will make them less of a target for bullies.

Discipline

Martial art forms teach children discipline. This is important for both the bullied child and the bully. It helps children to control their impulses because they have to work hard and stay focused to do well in a martial art. This trait can help reduce negative behavior. For a child who may be bullied, having self-discipline helps him feel like he is in control of the situation.

Respect

Martial art instructors are great at teaching respect for others. This is evident in one of the first things children will learn — the bow. Instructors teach and model respectful ways to address one another and keep impulses under control. Children who bully others often do not have a sense of respect for their peers. When a child is bullied, their sense of self-worth drops, and they may no longer have much respect for themselves. When a child truly grasps respect, she will understand the inherent worth that each human being possesses. The more the sense of respect, the fewer instances of bully behavior. For the bullied child, respect helps him stand up for himself because he knows he has worth.

Body Language

Body language goes a long way in standing up to a bully. When a child feels threatened, she can use her martial art training to communicate through words and body language that the exchange should not go any further. She will be able to instinctively draw upon the stances used in her martial art training to stand her ground, breathe calmly and maintain eye contact. This body language will communicate that she has confidence, deterring bullies

Self-Defense

Ideally, the situation would not escalate past the need for assertive body language. However, if it does, martial art training will help your child know what he needs to do to defend himself. Your child will feel safer and more confident knowing that he has already learned the proper techniques in a safe place. His body simply needs to recall them until he has the opportunity to get away.

In martial arts, it is important to note that your child will not be learning how to pick a fight. She will learn how to defuse the situation before it escalates, and she will learn how to use proper self-defense techniques if it does.

Education

While many of these positive traits and behaviors will be inherently learned through martial art training, many martial art programs activity teach about how to handle being bullied. This is increasingly important in today’s youth culture where this issue is becoming more prevalent. Children will actively learn what to do if they are being bullied, how to defuse situations, and when it is and is not appropriate to fight. This kind of training is an invaluable resource for your child.

Martial art training is all about dignity, respect, and confidence. These qualities are vital in teaching children to stand up against bullies, as well as teaching them not to bully others. They will have the confidence to stand up for themselves, with a greater sense of self-worth that will not be easily broken down. Through training, dedication and hard work, they will be able to better defuse situations and know when the right time to use appropriate self-defense is. While it may not eradicate the problem, learning a martial art is a positive step towards reducing bully-related problems among today’s youth.

Bullying and Martial Arts

Sadly, bullying has been around for a long time. It does not just involve conflicts between boys. Girls may also be bullies. Often, such incidents occur outside of the eyes of watchful adults, like teachers and parents. 

Types of Harassment –

It is common today for harassment to begin and be fueled away from the victim. Cyber harassment is common today. Bullies can spread deceitful rumors about your child and invite others to move beyond the virtual world and participate in real life harassment tactics. Children may be having things stolen from them as they come or go from school. They may be targeted in the school locker room, physically or through theft and menacing threats. Harassment may occur over boyfriend or girlfriend situations. Children may be threatened to join gangs.

No Commonality Among the Victims –

Any child can become the target of harassment. For some, it may be that other children are jealous of their academic ability. Others may be targeted because they do not look strong or because they do not follow some concocted “norm” that children mimic from the media. Other children may find themselves victimized because they just are at the wrong place at the wrong time. As we know, the victim is not the perpetrator. Your child and all children have a right to be free from bullying and other forms of abuse. 

Problems Children Experience When They are Targets of Bullying –

Children who are targets of bullies may not want to go to school. Their grades may suffer. They can lose their self-esteem and self-confidence. When harassment is prolonged, children may be stifled in their unique self-expression. Long-term effects of harassment can include depression, under-achievement, and a hesitance to be self-assertive in other situations. This can harm a child’s proper formation of their personality. 

A Hidden Crime –

Sadly, your child could be the victim of bullies today, and you might not know. Children can be reticent to admit that someone is bothering them. Bullies often shame their victims. All too often, groups of children stand and watch harassment as bystanders. The bystanders often lack the self-esteem and courage to say, “No,” to the bully. This makes the victim feel that everyone is against them.

What to Do? –

Counting on adults to see and do the right thing is not always possible. Ideally, that is the best solution. Children who are being bullied and their bystander friends and cohorts need to have the training to be able to confidently deal with such situations when an adult is not present. Sometimes, children will be on their own and will have to cope with this type of danger. 

Martial Arts Training –

By teaching children martial arts, they learn self-defense and gain the confidence to stand up to bullies. Our training teaches children to be good citizens who have self-esteem and are self-assertive. Our training also teaches children to do the right thing and be a caring person and to be proud of that. Asian defensive combat arts training teaches the other skills that come before having to fight, like saying, “No,” and defusing tense situations. The training we provide helps students have the confidence to stand up to a bully on behalf of a friend if that is safe. Asian defensive combat arts training also teaches children when it is not safe to stand up for another and what to do next.

Asian Defensive Combat Arts Training Improves Physical Shape and Development –

Children in our Asian defensive combat arts classes are able to improve their cardiovascular health, agility, and strength. This alone inspires more confidence in one’s own abilities when one is in strong, agile and vigorous health. Bullies are less likely to pick on a child who is vigorous and strong. Bullies tend to be cowards who have poor self-esteem. A child in better physical shape with Asian defensive combat arts training will be more likely to fend off a bully than a child in poor physical shape who has no such physical training in their background.

Martial Arts Training Emphasizes Defensive Strategies –

Asian defensive combat arts training is not just about how to kick and punch when the time comes to physically defend oneself. Our training emphasizes all aspects of self-defense – such as staying fully aware of one’s surroundings; being aware of danger signs; and knowing how to diffuse a situation with words, self-assertion and confident actions. When your children participate in our Asian defensive combat arts training classes, they learn the proper reactions to tough situations and practice those reactions over and over, so they can use them automatically when the time comes. 

Some schools have a zero tolerance policy on any type of fight and any student that is a combatant in a fight, even when the combatant is the victim of harassment. In our Asian defensive combat arts classes, your children will learn how to defend themselves, first with words and actions, as appropriate. This is important. Many fights involving children can be defused if one of the children is trained on how to do just that. Some school has a zero tolerance policy for any student combatants, which sadly assigns blame and punishment to the victim of harassment who may have had to resort to simply defending him or herself. Our Asian defensive combat arts training program will help your child know when to run, when to use words and when to physically defend himself. 

All children can benefit from learning the self-defense techniques we teach in our classes and from building their physical strength and agility. This helps their self-confidence and provides them the skills to stay safe, even when adults are not present to ensure their physical safety. This allows them to flower in their own unique manner, not a servant to anyone else – each their own master. 

Contact us today about how we can help your child stay bully-proof, confident and free. The best part is that our classes are enjoyable and engaging year-round recreation for the whole family!