BECOME A VIP: A Very Involved Parent of a Karate Student

TOP WAYS TO BE A V.I.P. (Very Involved Parent)

The following is a list of five ways that you, as a Very Involved Parent, can take an active role in your child's journey toward becoming a Black Belt Champion in Martial Arts and in Life!









1. Teach your child the importance of being on time for class.
When it comes to regular classes, my Sensei always reminded us "It's better to be 15 minutes early than 1 minute late." This helps develop a sense of responsibility, with your child getting ready for their Karate lessons.
Help them get in the habit of getting into uniform early, and checking to see that they have all the required items. Such as their belt, targets, weapons or required safety equipment.
When a child comes late for class they experience a negative feeling for the start of their class. They miss out on the meditation and if allowed to happen over time, tardiness will develop into a habit that shows up in every area of their life.

2. Stop in to Watch and Observe your Child in Class.
We are all busy people and it may be tempting to drop your child off to class while you run an errand or two. While this may be acceptable once in a while, it should not become the norm. Your child will perform better knowing you are watching, especially if you are really watching.
Children like to please their parents; staying to watch your child will develop a sense of pride and accountability for their efforts in class.
By the way, PRIDE stands for...Personal Responsibility In Daily Effort!

Maybe you can let your child be the instructor, and you can be the student for a while. Then switch the roles. If children look at practice as something that's fun to do, they will do it without you having to push. Kids like accessories; invest in some hand targets and kicking shields that will allow your child to really get into their practice sessions with you at home. (Any equipment you see us use on the floor can be ordered and purchased at our pro-shop.) Plus it will help save your pillows and furniture in your home.

Follow the Praise - Correct - Praise formula when working with your child.

Getting too critical of your child's technique or detail will only put up a wall between you and them. Understand that with time and training, your child's skill will develop to unbelievable levels.
When correcting, be what we call a Good-Finder. That is to point out all the good you see and sandwich it around any corrections you may suggest.

You know the old saying, "You catch a lot more bees with honey than you do with vinegar!" Your child will respond to the positive praise much better than they ever will by pointing out all the areas they need to work on. Spoon-feed the corrections and smother them with praise and you'll see your child's confidence and skills grow at an amazing pace!

These are just a few ways be a V.I.P. even if becoming a student yourself is not right for you.
Remember to Team Up with us and never Give Up when it comes to keeping your child on track with their martial arts training and progress. Don't forget to visit www.karatebudokan.com for all of our latest news and advice!

Yours in Karate,

Shihan

Testing times in Noosa at Karate Budokan!

Day 1.

Saturday of the Karate Budokan International, Noosa Winter Black belt grading has come to an end with all of the candidates exhausted and also relieved to have completed 60% of the test.
The 1st day consisted of 90 minutes of Kihon (Basics) and Ido (combinations), this was followed by 60 minutes of Kata performance.
This grading we have 7 candidates for Shodan (1st Dan) and 2 candidates for Nidan (2nd Dan).

Some of the emotions on display were nervous anticipation, excitement, fear, confidence and of course focussed energy.

A lot of the friends and family in for support were displaying more nerves than the candidates!
Also completing the 1st day of the grading was Students testing themselves in anticipation of being invited to the Summer Black belt grading in December.

All of the Noosa members of the Queensland team trained as part of their preparation for the National titles in Perth.
The energy on the tatami was great and contagious.

3 candidates are testing for their junior Black Belt, these three young boys have come all the way through the KBI Little Legend program and are now on the last stage of achieving their long awaited Junior Shodan, this is a great achievement for these young Karateka to display the focus & determination required to reach this goal.


Day 2.



Sunday was an amazing climax to this fantastic test of endurance, skill & determination that is the Black belt. The day started with our candidates demonstrating their proficient self defence, covering defences against strikes, grabs, chokes, head locks, kicks & knives!

This was finished with a display of self defence against two attackers, very entertaining & inspiring. The self defence was followed by the kumite drills which is a very demanding effort displaying endurance & perserverance.

Then the test finishes with the required 5 one minute rounds of Jyu Kumite (Free sparing), awesome effort, courage, versatility & skill was on display. Some of our candidates had to contend with the best fighters KBI has, these are National & Australian open champions!

They came through with class, extremely exhausted, emotions were running high, as was sore bodies & fatique. However the smiles from the knowledge that they had made it was fantastic an memorable.
A Black belt is definitely something that you earn but more importantly it is something that you become, it's far more than just a cloth around your Dogi.

So as the weekend came to a close we had seven extremely tired deserving new Shodans and two new Nidans, with a Dojo full of family, friends and fellow Karateka cheering them on. It was also wonderful to see the look of satisfaction and pride on the faces of the Senseis that had helped our candidates achieve their Karate dream.

We would like to wish Jake Lowe, Patrick Gelling, Grant De Chastel, Lara Pogson-Manning, John Studdock, Aprile Nuske & Sophie Wrigley a warm welcome to our KBI Black belt family. Mitch Lollback & Luke Walker now as you are a Nidan the journey gets bigger & better. Well done everyone!


Until next time.

Yours in Karate,

Shihan

An Interview with a young Champion.

Mitchell Barber, 17 of Noosa Heads in Queensland, Australia has recently returned from a visit to India where he competed in the Indian National Cahampionships in the Senior division for the first time and came home with Gold. Mitchell has kindly granted Karate World with this interview.

Mitchell congratulations on your success in India.

What was your impression of the Indian Athletes?

My impression of the Indian competitors was great. Compared to some of the competitors at home in Australia, their attitude is very good. As I was fighting my first match I realised that they have a lot of heart and determination to win, but even if they don’t they still have smiles on their faces and I think some Australian competitors could learn a lot from their attitude.

How did the competitors feel about you competing in their National titles?

Most of the competitors and spectators were ok with me competing in their tournament, but I often got bad vibes and weird looks from the fans of the guy I was fighting in the final. I think some of the older coaches weren’t very happy about an international competitor to start with but they gradually started to accept it and enjoy themselves.

What can the Karate Budokan India do to improve their results in competition?

I think that if the Indian students had a more variety of coaches to train them it would greatly benefit their competition skills in both kata and Kumite. Also if they had a high number of international competitors to train with them so they can get used to the way the rest of the world is fighting and performing kata. They need to know what standard the rest of the world is.

How did you feel going into your first senior Kumite division?

I was quite nervous going into the first match mainly because it was my first time fighting in the men’s division. I thought I was going to get the crap beaten out of me. But when the match started I realised that I had a chance, my best memory from all of the matches was when I won the second fight 8-0 it was the first time I had ever done that.

As a Sensei at the Honbu Dojo what is your tip for the Indian instructors?

One bit of advice I would give to the senseis of India is to include more variety into their dojo’s curriculum. Such as partner work and fitness exercises. Also, the kids would also enjoy training a lot more if an extra element of fun is added, this would also help with member retention.

Finally what feelings did you take away from this trip and championship?

I feel extremely privileged to be able to travel to India again, and to be able to win in the adults division and take home a trophy is the icing on the cake. I am amazed that I was able to win a tournament in another country and I don’t think it will ever sink in.
It was one of the best experiences of my life.

Visit http://www.karateworld.com.au/ for all of your news and great Karate stories.

Below is Mitchells Smile of Success!