Martial arts - Should children participate?                 
Thursday, 03 September 2009

There are parents out there who worry about putting their child in a martial arts class because they may believe that:-

*  their child is too young
* and/or  martial arts promotes violence, and they don't want their child raised that way
*  and/or they don't want their child being beaten to a pulp and have to worry about them getting injured.

First of all, please bear in mind most instructors won’t start a child in their martial arts classed under the age of five. There are a lot of reasons for this, but the biggest one is by far motor skills. Many children just don’t have the physical capabilities to perform many of the moves required. After the children realise that they can’t do it like everyone else, they become frustrated and lose interest all together. However, some kids are ready earlier than others, but five seems to be the right age for the majority.

As far as promoting violence, most instructors teach their students from day one that using martial arts is only for self-defence and as a last resort. If there is a problem with a student picking fights, bullying, or just showing off, most instructors want to know immediately so they can deal with the problem before it becomes worse. Check with an instructor you’re interested in sending your child to and see what he/she will do if such a problem arises.

Finally, injuries in martial arts are low--less than one percent of children sustain any kind of injury due to martial arts training. Most other sports have much higher rates than that.

For those of you who still aren’t sold, many psychologists and therapists recommend martial arts for children with behavioural problems and learning disabilities.

At the end of the day, it’s up to the parent, but the benefits of training in martial arts are far greater than the drawbacks.