Three Things to Know Before Your Child Starts Martial Arts
If your daughter has been bugging you to join martial arts, or you’re looking for a constructive activity for your athletic (or not-so-athletic) son, you may have questions. That’s good! There are many wonderful benefits for children in the world of martial arts, and asking questions is a great place to start learning about them. Here are three things to know before your child starts martial arts.
How do I know my child is ready to start martial arts?
Sometimes, they make it easy. You’ll know your child is ready to start if she keeps asking you to sign her up! If this is your idea, try bringing your child in for a visit. He can watch a class, and that may be enough to peak his excitement.
At Freestyle Martial Arts Academy, we offer a children’s program for kids ages 4 to 7 and a youth program for the bigger kids, ages 8 to 14. Our Little Dragons children’s classes are designed to introduce the basics in a fun and engaging environment, with an emphasis on focus, patience and respect. Our youth program emphasizes attitude while teaching a mixed martial arts curriculum that is challenging without being intimidating.
When you bring your child in for a visit, or to take advantage of our introductory offer, we’ll do a brief evaluation and offer a recommendation for class most suitable for him or her.
I know my child will be learning to punch and kick. Should I have any safety concerns?
While there is always a chance that a child could be injured, no matter what the activity, our focus is always on safety. All classes are taught on padded mats. Our instructors will teach your children proper technique to minimize the risk of injury, and contact classes in our youth program, such as grappling and sparring, are carefully supervised. In these classes, protective gear including helmets, shin guards, chest protectors and mouth guards are used. Martial arts training is cumulative – the skills your child learns as a white belt will be built upon until he or she is ready for more advanced training and contact.
You should expect the odd scrape or bruise, but more serious injuries like concussions are very uncommon.
What kind of time commitment should we expect?
When children join our martial arts program, we expect them to attend class two to three times per week. Our Little Dragons classes are 30 minutes long, and classes in our youth program are 45 minutes. As your child progresses through his or her belt ranks, we may extend an invitation to the Black Belt Club, which means they can attend unlimited weekly classes.
If your child is ready to begin martial arts, you probably have more questions. We welcome you to call us or come in for a tour of the facility so that we can provide more information.