Martial Arts Can Improve Your Child’s Grades
Parents will put their children into a martial arts program for many different reasons. They may think the child needs to learn how to defend themselves or that they need to have more focus and discipline. All of these are good reasons to enroll your child into the martial arts but did you know that martial arts has also been proven to help children in school?
Children can learn a lot more than just how to execute a good punch or kick in our Elite Martial Arts program. The exercise and physical components in martial arts are important; improved balance, focus, body coordination and the ability to defend yourself. These are all great skills but the mental lessons learned in a good martial arts program can benefit children in many areas of their lives, including in the classroom.
Having Fun In Elite MA
There are seven components we teach in our children’ martial arts program and that should be a part of any quality martial arts system beyond just learning how to defend themselves: focus, memorization, discipline, goal setting, confidence, respect and effort. In today’s world of mixed martial arts, it’s easy to get caught up in just the physical aspects of the martial arts, but a good school will focus on all seven of these elements to make sure the student is learning more than just how to punch and kick.
Focus – Whether a child is punching a pad or breaking a board, he or she must have a tremendous amount of focus in a Martial arts class. When a child learns to focus in our Martial arts school, this same focus can be applied to completing a homework assignment or reading a book.
Memorization –We require the students to remember a series of self defense moves and techniques that they must perform on their belt exam. The memorization skills developed in martial arts can help children as they prepare for tests in school.
Discipline – Our instructors will not tolerate excessive talking or goofing around in the martial arts school. Improved behavior in a Martial arts class often translates into improved behavior at school. Improved behavior at school often translates into improved grades. We require behavior reports from the parents to make sure that the student is focused in the classroom and at home, as well as the martial art school. We want to make sure that our students are working on improving his or her behavior at home and their grades at school as well as their martial arts techniques. We teach a very effective form of self defense and want to make sure that the right kids are learning it. We don’t train bullies!
Goal setting – There are many opportunities for goal setting at a Martial arts class. Our traditionally structured martial arts system has a belt ranking system with no belt being the lowest rank and black belt being the highest. This ranking system encourages students to strive to reach the next belt. This teaches children to work toward the achievement of a goal. A habit of goal setting often develops in martial arts students and they work toward other goals such as getting a high school diploma or a college degree.
When a student achieves Black Belt in my Elite Martial Arts program, they feel like they can now achieve anything they put the mind to.I cannot tell you how many times I have seen a total transformation from an awkward, shy child that won’t look you in the eyes, to a true leader among their peers.”
Effort – Students are encouraged to work hard in every martial arts class. This encourages them to never accept less from themselves and it makes them realize their true potential. The Martial arts teaches children that they can be far more than average and that they can achieve far better than average grades.
Confidence – As a martial arts student becomes stronger physically and they begin to realize they can handle themselves in a dangerous situation, they become more confident individuals overall. A heightened sense of self-confidence and awareness will likely benefit children throughout their lives.
Respect – One of the most important words in martial arts is respect. Students are taught to respect their instructors, each other, and themselves. Our instructors spend time in class discussing the importance of respecting school teachers and parents.
Respect is often missing in many facets of today’s society. This is what separates a good martial arts program from other sports. A child’s social behavior should be directly linked to his or her progression in the martial arts class. It’s not just about winning, martial arts should be about personal growth and becoming a better person.”
