7-9 Year Old Martial Arts Classes in Goshen, NY

Introducing the Internationally Acclaimed Core SKILLZ Program!

Seven to nine-year-olds are what most people consider “the golden age”. They are proficient in their vocabulary and problem-solving skills, yet they are not at the age where they want to complete independence from adults. This makes the teacher-student relationship stronger than ever. The problem we discovered is they still lack core skills, and although they are highly intelligent, they struggle to keep up with students ages 10 and up. The solution we found is to provide them with their own program that targets their stage of development in a manner that adapts to their adventurous attitude and youthful nature while at the same time building skills that set them up for success. With that said, a structured program introducing core skill-based training in martial arts has proven to be very successful.

By understanding the stages of development of 7 to 9-year olds, we emphasize age-appropriate skills including but not limited to:

• Agility: Switching feet and kicking the pad with both feet.
• Technique: Demonstrating their blocks and strikes effectively. They must show the proper chambers and ending position for all of the moves in order to pass.
• Flexibility: All kicks must be belt level or above, and progress should be made towards kicking at nose level or higher.
• Perseverance: Students must demonstrate Olympic Style Sparring at the rank appropriate level. They are expected to complete 2, 90-second rounds with or without a partner.
• Speed: Demonstrating kicking combinations without more than 3 seconds of hesitation between motions.
• Concentration: Performing their rank-appropriate form/poomsae. They must perform each move with proper chambers and execution in order to pass.

Here is an example of what a white belt must demonstrate for each of the 8 skills above in order to earn their next belt:

• Agility: Switching feet and kicking the pad with their front leg. They must be able to switch feet and kick a pad with their front leg ten times in a row, without making a mistake or looking sloppy, in order to pass.
• Technique: Demonstrating the three-stage 1 blocks and three-stage 1 strikes from memory. They must show the proper chambers and ending position for all of the moves in order to pass.
• Courage: Dodging targets that are thrown at them from five steps away. They must be able to dodge five targets in a row in order to pass.
• Flexibility: Holding middle splits. They must be able to hold the middle splits for 30 seconds without falling in order to pass.
• Intensity: Palm strike board break. They must break a board with a palm strike in three shots or less in order to pass.
• Perseverance: Holding each static leg, arm, abdominal, and core exercise. They must not lose technique or else they have to start over. They must hold each exercise for no less than ten seconds in order to pass.
• Speed: Demonstrating the 8-move kickboxing combination. They must perform the kickboxing combination with proper technique three times in a row in fifteen seconds or less in order to pass.
• Concentration: Performing combinations 1 – 5 of the stage 1 form. They must perform each move with proper chambers and execution in order to pass.

As you can see we take martial arts training to a whole new level! We use core elements of traditional martial arts curriculums to build skills that are appropriate for 7 to 9-year olds. This means that your child will learn and grow at a pace that is not too easy, nor too challenging. The best part is the Core SKILLZ program will equip your child with skills that they will utilize in every area of their life.

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