8 Reasons for Children to Learn Self-Defence [2020]

Sometimes having your kids sent to learn self-defence classes is a good idea. Why would small kids need to learn self-defence? Well, most parents worry about their kids’ safety. If you’re a parent yourself, you understand. Some folks can even become totally overprotective when it comes down to keeping kids safe from potential threats. The thing is that it’s impossible to keep an eye on your child all the time and follow them everywhere.  

Why should kids learn self defence in school?

There is one issue most parents are aware of – schools which often become a place where your child can be exposed to “bullying”. Nobody wants to see a child becoming a helpless target of mockery. This awful experience can cause lots of undesired side effects affecting your child’s personality – fear of classmates, fear of school itself, or even personality deformation. We have many confessions from grownups who admitted the fact of being bullied at school and that it was nearly the worst experience of their life. Lots of them couldn’t cope with it for a long time with trying to forget and forgive.  

Bullying is just a part of the whole selection of unfortunate problems that our modern society has. We have TV channels and social media reporting on child abuse cases almost daily. Not every time a child can fall victim to their own parents’ neglect. There are lots of cases when kids face abuse from strangers and psychopaths who see them as weak targets. So, that’s where a question whether your kids should learn self defence in school or not becomes a good one to ask. 

How can you get your kids to learn self defence?

Encourage your child to take martial arts courses either in a dojo, learn self defence at home, or even online. Explain that the benefit is not only in learning how to defend themselves against physical attacks but also in building confidence and physical strength. Besides, self-defence courses are great for physical training and building physical strength. Self-defence training also is a great way to teach kids about self-discipline and handling hard work. Self-defence classes can become a fun and playful after-school activity, where your kids will meet new friends, boost their social skills, and learn how to maintain good relationships with others. 

In this blog post, we came up with some reasons why you should engage your children in a martial arts program and encourage them to learn self-defence .

Reason #1. Self-defence training builds physical strength and improves coordination.

With self-defence classes kids benefit from improvement of their locomotor and non-locomotor skills. Going through the regular practice day after day and participating in the martial arts program self defence techniques become contributive to building physical strengths. 

This ongoing process also contributes to motor skills improvement and plays an important role in increasing their physical and mental capabilities, as well as boosting self-confidence. Since muscles become more and more flexible while doing aerobic exercise, fitness becomes a fun and rewarding activity. No doubt, self-defense training contributes to the improvement of dexterity, balance, coordination, and increases their reactive responses.

Reason #2. Self-defence training cultivates a sense of respect for opponents and develops discipline.

What is the best self defence to learn?

Martial arts training gains credentials from their remarkable abilities for a long time now. These abilities effectively cultivate such important social features as a sense of respect for others and strong discipline in the goal achieving process. While students are taught the art of self defence, they are encouraged to listen carefully to the instructor and motivated to be complient with demands necessary for successful self-defence training. 

Some self defence tips and major requirements that students have to follow during their self-defence training:

• Listen carefully and follow instructions recommended by the sensei;
• Keep a posture straight without hunching;
• Your seated position has to be still and reserved;
• While standing in a line, be quiet and don’t push other people around;
• Cope with your patience and cultivate it while waiting;
• Take turns with your opponents and treat them with respect;
• Respect your teacher, sensei, or Shifu, always bow to them expressing your gratitude.

Reason #3. Self-defence training teaches how to take pride in achievements.

The main goal of any self-defense program is to teach kids new skills by engaging them in different challenges and teamwork activities. While the level of complexity carefully increases with time, kids constantly increase the amount of effort they invest into self-defence training. 

Regular practice in self-defence challenges helps them to overcome their fears and weaknesses. A good self-defence class for kids gives a sense of pride and contributes to boosting self-confidence. Especially, if they receive positive feedback from the instructor praising them for their work.

Reason #4. Self-defence training teaches the skill of persistence and drives tenacity.

How to learn self defence techniques?

Martial arts techniques aren’t easy to learn and it takes time to see actual results. You need lots of determination in order to master the skills in self-defense. This is a good way to develop assertiveness through hard work, failures, and taking small steps to big improvements. Kids are taught how not to be jealous of somebody else’s success. Self-defence training teaches that staying motivated by achievements of others can bring better results in self-defence training to them too.

The common practice of martial arts dojos is in acknowledgment of students’ achievements through assigning certain ranks. These ranks signify their level of expertise by granting belts or patches of a particular color. The main point here is to motivate and teach that anything can be achieved – once your mind was set for achieving the goal.

Reason #5. Self-defence training teaches good behavior in groups.

Why should you learn self defence and why should kids learn self defence for improving social behavior?

Since most activities held in the dojo are taking place in groups, kids are taught how to behave properly around other siblings. The main motto of any self-defense program is to educate students on how to stand up for themselves in certain situations but do it the right way. 

While going through training, kids work in groups and interact with each other developing friendships and providing support to one another. Those are great skills that contribute to the sense of engagement with others and might become crucial for achieving their future life and career goals.

Reason #6. Self-defence training develops an intuitive ability in potential danger recognition.

What constitutes self defence in terms of expanding mental capabilities?

Martial arts train and strengthen not only your body but also your mind. A regular self-defence training prepares your consciousness to be aware of potential dangers or threats. It also teaches how to stay focused while in nerve-racking situations and pull all your strength together in order to resolve them. Most people prefer to find ways to escape from undesired problems instead of trying to resolve them. This is a common problem for kids too. Here comes one of the main aspects of self-defense training – developing awareness of the importance of safety precautions. This also involves understanding concepts of body protection including road safety, treatment of burns or wounds, water safety, proper handling of tools, electricity precautions, etc.

A regular self-defence training prepares your consciousness to be aware of potential dangers or threats.

Reason #7. Self-defence training teaches how to speak up and resist bullying properly.

What is another good reason why should you learn self defence in school?

We all know that kids can be mean to each other. One child can attack another child for no obvious reason. Sometimes it’s just a rough play and the way they interact with each other through wrestling. However, there is a thin layer of ice between a rough play and bullying that can really hurt your child or put them in a life-threatening situation. The last thing that most parents want is to see their kids hurt badly by other kids. 

Parents want to avoid situations when they need to rush to the emergency room where their child is getting stitches or medical help. An effective self-defense program can empower your kids with valuable skills for finding solutions to resist anybody in case of an attack. This also can involve the use of non-violent conflict resolution approaches that martial arts classes teach as well. Those can be really helpful and handy for life.

Reason #8. Self-defence training gives more opportunities for kids to have fun.

While your kids train hard working on their warrior spirit and fighters’ reflexes, they also have lots of fun because, well, they are kids! One of the most effective, proven-over-time strategies is when kids learn faster by having fun, smiling, and laughing. Fun keeps their interest going and they want to learn even more.

How to learn self defence at home you may wonder? One of the best ways to learn self defence is taking an online course. One of the popular Health & Fitness Online Courses that Grinfer offers on its teaching platform is  “KIA! KARATE & SELF DEFENCE TRAINING FOR KICKING KIDS!” Enroll your kids into this awesome online course created by Simon Morrell, Martial Arts and confidence-building consultant. 

This course is offered for only $19.99 with lifetime access and any future updates. Simon Morrell has put together this informative, educational, fun and practical Martial Arts & Self Defense online course specifically for kids. The course contains 3 lessons teaching blocks, punches, and kicks. It also comes with a copy of the award-winning author’s book “Kia, The Karate Handbook for Kicking Kids!”. Learn self defence by yourself, teach your kids, and collect benefits!