Parents love the life skills that are built and/or reinforced by our martial arts classes. Few life skills are more valuable than Discipline. But how do does martial art teach discipline to children in way they will both understand and enjoy?
Defining Discipline:
We start with a clear definition. “Discipline is doing things the first time you are asked”. If a parent asks a child to do a thing, they should do it the first time. Most the kids can relate thru personal experiences. After all, if they put their shoes away first time they’re asked they know that makes mom and dad happy.
However just because it makes Mom & Dad happy isn’t always reason enough. So we go on to explain that having discipline = more fun!
Most every child has gone on a trip at some point; camping, amusement parks, or even a new city or town. And on that trip they will gladly recount how much fun it was.
What they often fail to see is that on that trip or vacation, they had to stay closer to parents and be better listeners than they would in their common day to day. They showed better discipline and as a result had the time of their lives! “You see when you listen better moms and dads, teacher, and karate instructors we have more confidence that you will be safe and because your a listening and following directions better -showing more discipline- we are excited to share in the fun and do more fun stuff!“
We also teach the kids self-discipline as “doing things without being asked“. Most the kids all have some activity they perform daily that demonstrates self-discipline, brushing their teeth, making their bed, or getting ready for school.
Self Discipline:
Self discipline as we say, is the Black Belt in discipline. Every parent has a Black Belt in discipline proven by they fact their kids are fed, clothed and are in our program!
We don’t expect Self Discipline out of every child, in fact part of being a child is exploring the world around you and learning new things. We expect the kids do their best, to follow directions and show Discipline in class, at home and at school. When a child has a task they must complete regularly, we encourage them to become self-disciplined so they can do even more fun stuff!
Discipline is a building block of all success. It is absolutely a key ingredient in every student who achieves Black Belt! If your child could benefit from the Discipline that training in the martial arts builds try us out at www.neweratn.com.
