Fun warm ups for kids classes?

Discussion in 'General Martial Arts Discussion' started by never too old, May 29, 2009.

  1. never too old

    never too old Valued Member

    I'm doing an assistant instructor's course at the moment, and would love some suggestions on how to make warm ups more fun for the kids - mostly they do slow motion head from side to side, rotate shoulders, circle knees then on to four corners and a set number of press-ups, sit ups etc, but I feel they're pretty bored by thaDoes anyone have any ideas on how to make it more fun for them? They are 7 to 11 y.o. and I think if they enjoy the warm up then they engage more in the rest of the class.

    So far I've done remote control trainers (fast forward, rewind etc.) and pretent visit to the zoo, had them running sideways like lemurs, balancing on one leg like storks etc.

    Anyone willing to share something good they've seen at their own classes?

    tia.:)
     
  2. Fish Of Doom

    Fish Of Doom Will : Mind : Motion Supporter

    i'd suggest two things:

    first, don't start with the slow motion stuff. kids wanna move, make them jog a bit, with extra stuff like jumps or backwards jogging, etc, then go to dynamic stretches where they're still moving, then onto more passive stuff.

    second, talk and talk and talk and talk and don't stop talking to them. if you can keep constant communication with the kids, their attention will be on you, and you will also develop a trust relationship more quickly, which by itself will mean that they will be more predisposed to listen to you and learn from you.
     
  3. rtkd-badger

    rtkd-badger Fundimentaly Manipulated

    Games, get them moving. Tug of war, sit them on the floor back to back and have them compete to see who can push their partner to the other side of the room. Leap frog is another. Get creative, think like a child :cool:
     
  4. koyo

    koyo Passed away, but always remembered. RIP.

    Wheelbarrow races. One kid has the others ankles in his hands and the other takes his weight on his hands and they race like pushing a wheelbarrow.

    Horseback "fighting" One kid on the others back and the riders try to pull each other off.

    Squat like bunny hops palms out and they strike each others palms (or pull their palms away) to unbalance the other.

    Push up position and they attempt to sweep the arm/s of the other moving around still in the push up position.


    regards koyo
     
  5. axelb

    axelb Master of Office Chair Fu

    split them into teams and have one member from each team sprint to a line, do exercise 1, then back, and to next line, exercise 2 and back and to last line and do exercise 3, when then go back the next team member goes, all other team members chear on the person doing the task.

    exercises can be anything from things like
    1 pushups
    2 situps
    3 burpees

    the ones who finish last get extra push ups or some such exercise.
     
  6. Moi

    Moi Warriors live forever x

    Jam 'em in a microwave
     
  7. slacker

    slacker Valued Member

    In My JJ the kids play a form of british bulldog, on knees, the bulldogs have to keep the others on their backs for a few seconds.
     
  8. never too old

    never too old Valued Member

    We do bulldog already, normally at the end. Dodgeball too, again at the end- the instructor has been doing it this way for years, and I do need to give him his place - he's the black belt and already an instructor.

    I like the tug of war idea- they do enjoy a bit of competitiveness.

    The horse and rider thing is out because of 'Elf and Safety.:mad: As is the microwave, lol!

    I bought a whistle tonight, I was told I could raise my voice more to get their attention, but feel I'm shouting loudly enough already. Maybe I could think up some kind of Gladiator's start for the game..."contenders ready! Yellow belts you will go on my first whistle" type stuff. Tying in with axelb's suggestion to give the 'last in' some extra push ups?

    I'm open to all suggestions - although I'm a Mum it's a different thing altogether working with other people's kids.

    (And ismultaneously trying not to favour your own child too, or pick faults too often either!)
     
  9. slacker

    slacker Valued Member

    We sometimes start with a large ball, in a circle on your back and you have to pass it around with your feet, then they introduce a smaller ball like a tennis ball, and sometimes you have to do it with eyes closed.
     
  10. illegalusername

    illegalusername Second Angriest Mapper

    Shoulders-and-knees tag.
    Basically you square off in pairs and attempt to touch your pair in the shoulder or the thigh. Great fun.
     
  11. never too old

    never too old Valued Member

    illegal username - we had a game of shoulder tig today, just to get them started - keeping it simple, paired off in a column and the first to three was the winner then the loser ran to the wall and back before they restarted.

    It went well - they enjoyed something different, and I mixed up the pairings to make sure no one was losing all the time and doing all the running.

    Thanks everyone.:cool:
     
  12. illegalusername

    illegalusername Second Angriest Mapper

    No prob. What class are you teaching? Karate, judo or what?

    Because trying for the thai clinch and fighting from over-under to double underhooks is great warmup for the neck and the back. (And workout if you up the pace). Might be a bit tough for kids though, if for nothing else then flaring tempers.

    Football with only crabwalking allowed.
    DODGEBALL where you use the whole room, and everyone apart from the ballholder can only crabwalk. Count only hits above the knee.

    speaking of crabs here's a video where a guy has the most awesome laugh
    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dyQlZziHnw"]YouTube - TF2 Crab Spy[/ame]
     
    Last edited: May 30, 2009
  13. rtkd-badger

    rtkd-badger Fundimentaly Manipulated

    Kids love to grapple, have them sit on the floor back to back, when you blow the whistle the can rise to their knee's only and grapple.
     
  14. never too old

    never too old Valued Member

    I'm doing Kupso - it's a mix of Tae Kwon Do, Chung Do Kwan Karate and Ao Denkou Jitsu, so we're doing joint locks, grappling, kicking, punching, forms (I think some folks call these kata) semi-contact sparring.
     
  15. Gojushinki

    Gojushinki Pre-Blue Belt

    A pretty fun idea is chalk sparring. You give each kid a small piece of chalk, pair them up, and half them "spar" with the chalk. It gives them a feeling of accomplishment because they can see any hits they made. The chalk comes right off in the wash.
     
  16. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    Crabwalking from one end of the mat to the other, and you going "spear fishing" with a jo or practice spear or the like. You hold the spear and slowly fly it through the air as if you tossed it toward the crabs, trying to get one. The children frantically race backwards in crabwalk form as the spear comes at them and lands between their feet.

    "Almost got one! Here it comes again!"
     
  17. never too old

    never too old Valued Member

    That sounds like good fun!!

    Will try it next time I have my sticks with me.
     
  18. Fire-quan

    Fire-quan Banned Banned

    Our wushu classes often began with games, instead of the usual jogging warm up, and we all loved them - a mostly adult class.

    One really great martial arts game which never loses its charm, is copycat tag. Just like normal tag, but the person who is 'on' has to copy any movement that the person they're trying to 'tag' does to try and slow them down. So if I'm chasing you, and you squat and touch the floor, then I have to squat and touch the floor before I can tag you. That's a cracking game, which also makes people think and use movements on the fly - very good for martial arts.

    Additional rules include that a person only has to make their best attempt to copy you - if you can do something they can't do, they've only got to make an attempt. And you can't keep dong the same movement, like five left leg raises on the run - each movement has to be different from the last. Also no instant tag back - like, I tag you you immediately tag back. No!

    The second game we played involves everyone stood in a circle in pairs, with each pair standing next to each other, touching feet - if I'm on the left, my right foot touches your left foot. Basically just stood side by side, feet touching. You may a circle of pairs like that. Those pairs are effectively 'bases'.

    Now, it's like tag again, with one pair on - one chasing, one running away. If the one running gets tired, he or she just stands next to any pair, their feet touching - and the person on the other side is on. So if I'm stood next to you, and the person who is being chased runs up to our 'base' and stands next to me, YOU have to go, like you've been pushed off the end! Now you're being chased! The person who is chasing can't run to a base, though - they have to get someone, then get to a base themselves before they're tagged again!

    If you have an odd number, make one three person base, that's all.

    It's a very, very funny game, with people day dreaming, not realising they should 'go', and getting caught.

    Another game we played was tag, but if I tag you, we link arms, and now we have to work together to tag the next person - then we'll be three, all linked, after the next person and so on.

    And we also played dodge ball - one team in the middle of the room, the other team splits, half one side half on the other. Throw a soft ball - if it hits anyone in the middle, they're 'out' - unless someone in the middle catches a ball, in whic case the last person out is back in. Object is to get everyone out, then switch over.

    Hope that helps.
     
    Last edited: Sep 7, 2009
  19. adouglasmhor

    adouglasmhor Not an Objectivist

  20. Ironized

    Ironized Valued Member

    2 bins, 1 ball

    2 teams.

    sort the rest out yourself :p
     

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