only a little boy so does it matter?

ok, i work with children doing morning activity classes. naturally i get to know the regulars and often ask them if they have any hobbies ect...
there is a little boy who goes to my mornings and he is 6 years old. he is incredibly bright for his age. he told me he started kuk sool won about 5 months ago.
i know that the kuk sool won club in my town is a Mc Dojo. it has even been discussed here on map. the students are overweight and rubbish, and as the instructor is a 7th dan, he can grade all his students, including black belts, so he passes them even if they are poo. there are about a million in between belts that all cost a lot of money, and you need to buy patches to go on your suit and what not.
this little boy told mw he has just graded to get his WHITE BELT (!?!?!?!) which has taken him about 4 months! one of my friends did kuk sool for a bit till he realised the instructor wasnt right, and showed me the requirements for 1st grade and they are just a few little moves. this kid then showed me his first form, which looked really good. i can really see the potential in this kid and he could go far. in my opinion his parents are wasting money as this kid wont go far at that club.
he is only 6, and clearly his parents must have bought the suit, payed the liscence ect...and the kid is probably innocently enjoying it.
but i'm so badly tempted to tell his dad (who i get on with well and chat with before and after the class) what i know about this club and maybe introduce him to mine where i teach ( i'm so not trying to convert anyone, but i trust my club better than the other one obviously it makes sense to introduce him to mine whatever) it might look to the dad like im trying to steal students, but i just can't stand the idea of a wasted talent. considering his age, this really doesn't matter does it?? he's onyl 6 at the end of the day. what do you think?
should i say something, or should i just leave it? and if the kid seems naturally good at martial arts, do you think he will become good at kuk sool naturally or will he get worse as he develops bad habits and is not told about them ect...?

 

I would invite him to at least have a look at your club, I'm sure he doesn't want to pay money for his kid to train in a load of rubbish, and I think he'd be a bit defensive if he was to instantly assume you were just stealing students.

 

As the man has just said invite him to come and look at your club. Maybe even dont mention how bad the other club is just invite him over to see how other clubs train.

 

I would at the least give the invite. If there is real tallent there I would push a bit. There is nothing worse than wasted tallent. (There is, but we're talkin MA).

 

you can also tell the boy's father about crosstraining, if he sees benefit in that he may send the kid to check out other schools(try to convince him of that then suggest your won ) and realize what he got his son into.

 

No, no, just tell him what you have just told us. Flatter him by saying you think his son is talented, but his talent is being wasted where he is. Tell him your not trying to steal students or whatever but that the school he currently goes to is renowned for being below-par and in it just for the money. Explain the concept of 'McDojos' that charge for the belts and so forth, and then recommend yours to him as naturally you've found it to be the best one around.

 

actually going all come to my school your son's school is bad, but i'm not trying to steal students of course, is a sure way to get you kicked outta the front door!, besides the dad might gossip the other school that you said it's bad.

you should say something about his son's great talents, and then mention he could cross-train him in other things to make a full use of that potential, and when he starts thinking "yeah that's a good idea it could help my son quite a bit" suggest your school.

when he sees the difference he'll know

 

I'm with JayKay. Play up the talent factor (every dad like to hear that about their son, especially when it's sports-related), emphasize what potential this kid has, see if you can get some info from dad about how he feels about the school... Does he feel it's expensive, what does he think about the instructors, etc. Feel him out, and certainly extend an invite you your school.

ONLY IF HE SEEMS OPEN TO IT: If you have to, print out the KSW thread for his benefit and let him see what others think.

 

Yeah i know its dodgey but if he trusts her he should take her word for it, especially if she explains the concept of McDojos and tells him that his current school has a reputation amongst other MAists for being pants. Like BKguy said flattery is the best policy here.

At 6 years old i don't think the father is going to be too interested in cross-training at this point. Why do people cross train? to become better fighters. I dont see fighting prowess being the number 1 priority of six year old doing martial arts. Cross training takes up a lot of time too.

 

Did I read this wrong, or is the child in question six years old?
This is silly.

 

Don't talk about McDojos or anything else like that. But do suggest crosstraining, and make it known that you teach, very subtly of course. Maybe at some point say: "You know, at my school we offer a free lesson to anyone who wants to stop by. Maybe you and your son would like to sometime together, there's lots of really cool kids his age. It might be an opportunity for both of you to learn something new" Do not make a sales pitch!

Especially if the dad comes along you can go very slowly with the kid and show him how you do things. For instance, if he's kicking with his toes or something like that, some bad habit (because he's not doing Savate), show him how to kick with the instep or flat of his foot. Take him to a bag and demonstrate the difference between the two. Breaking things down bit by bit and explaining why and how they work is a great way to impress people with your knowledge and ability.

 

tough love

There is only one thing to do...

Challenge to the kid to a duel.

If he refuses the duel... attack him.

He needs to be shown that his skills are not up to snuff because of his McDojo training. He needs to learn the hard reality of it all. Anything else is raising this kid up to be milquetoast!

The best way to do that is by a broken jaw or busted nose.

It may seem like tough love now... but one day he will thank you.

 

The answer is obvious. I trained at a Mc Dojo when i was younger and still suffer from some of the bad habits i developed there, ESPECIALLY now that i've returned to a more traditional style. ( TKDMcDojo to jkd, now shotokan)

Definitely rescue this boy. I guess the way to go about it would depend entirely upon your relationship with the father. If you and he don't really know each other too well, just mention a free class at your place in passing. If you know each other a little better than that, just come right out and express your concern. Offer him a free class, but don't try to sell your dojo to him. Strongly suggest that he look into other styles at other places, then tell him what you like about the style you do and the place you train / teach.

 

Sap him in the back of the head.. drag him to your dojo and when he awakes he will have forgotten all the McSkills he's learned and he'll be ready to train at your place

 

That's what MJ said.

 

If I was in your situation I would find out how much in advance they've paid then offer to teach the kid for free for the remainder of that period. I would be totally honest about it and tell them everything.

If you offer to teach the kid for free (only up to the point that the parents have paid already) you won't look like a money hungry person. And seeing as you care about this kid so much, it would probably be something you won't mind doing.

 

Trust your own natural caring and diplomacy (totally ignoring anything slipthejab said ) and do what you need to in order to let the Father see the facts.

One question that nobody has asked is - what does the kid think of what he is doing? He may be your biggest help.

Here's hoping you can get him with a knowledgable and caring instructor

 

I think you're probably better off not mentioning the other club at all. Just say to his parents "Your son is a very talented martial artist and I'd like to teach him at my club. Would you consider letting him come along?" - if they like you and trust you (which I'm sure they do) they'll probably be happy to leave their son in the hands of someone they know gets on well with him.

"-0-"

 

The other side of the coin, just for arguments sake:

This kid is six. As you mention he does have some skills already, so Ronald McSensei must have taught him something at least. He seems to have a sense of acheivement from getting his belt, even if it is quite meaningless to us. I worry that if you take him to a real school and push him a bit he might not see the fun element and lose interest all together. It might be worth waiting a while then acting. I agree that you need to do something as no one likes seeing a blatent rip off in action, but is it important right now? If in a few years he is still MAing then I'm sure both kid and parents will be informed enough to make a better decision along the line.


My true thoughts:

**Perhaps you could drop the McDojo concept into the conversation, mentioning no names, and let the parents draw their own conclusions. They would probably come to you if they choose right as they know you, you work with kids and run an MA lesson.**

 

If you want to avoid looking like you are stealing students, and don't want him to get defensive, tell him about another school. Last time I checked, great britain was a free country and people were allowed to express their opinions. Thus, I think you should at least let him know what you think of the school.