Instructors often ask me how they should handle the kids that never take their training seriously and always giggle and lose focus.  I know that  this can be a problem when you need them to be serious but having times in your lesson for the kids to giggle is practically required.

Kids love to do things that are fun.Quite simply kids want to have fun or they will stop what they are doing and do something else.

I find the best way to hold their focus is to always keep them moving.  Don’t just keep them busy doing the same thing 100x, that is exactly the kind of thing that will make them zone out.Always have them active in the lesson and swith activities to keep them focused througout the lesson.

Kids want to have fun and I think they should have fun during training.It is your job as Instructor to set the bondaries of when they can have fun and when they need to be serious and focused.There is no benefit to a lesson plan being all fun and games or being all serious repetitive drills.  Break your lessons into segments and balance out the fun and serious stuff.

Here is a sample lesson plan:

6:00-6:03              Warm-up stretches/exercises

6:03-6:05              Basic strikes and stances

6:05-6:10              First Martial Game (get the heart rate up and burn off some excess energy)

6:10-6:15              First technique

6:15-6:20              Second technique

6:20-6:25              Second Martial Game (use a game that reinforces the new techniques)

6:25-6:35              Revision of all belt levels techniques learnt so far.

6:35-6:40              Individual or group forms and sets

6:40-6:50              Controlled sparring

6:50-6:55              Third Martial Game (a fun group game to end the lesson on a high note)

There are two huge advantages to structuring your lessons this way.  Firstly the kids will soon learn when they can have fun and when they need to concentrate and take their training seriously. Secondly, because the kids know that there are times to have fun during the lesson you can use those times as the reward for them concentrating during the serious moments.

If you have kids that won’t behave you can make them sit out the next fun section of the class.Don't be one of those Instructors that uses push-ups as a punishment, that's a common mistake.  Push-ups are a great exercise and should not be turned into a punishment.Making them sit out while their friends get to enjoy the fun sections of the lesson plan will quickly modify their behaviour.

There is a time and place for kids to giggle and you are in charge of when that’s acceptable in your class.

Regards,

Aaron Perry

ps. Martial Arts Drills and Games may seem like time fillers but they are not.  They help add variety to the lesson while reinforcing the skills taught in a fun way that the kids will remember and even do outside of the class which benefits everyone. 

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