I help out at JSKM on Mondays with
Russell and it's always loads of fun. An hour or so, playing games and teaching
little kids from ages 5 to 10 the
finer points of how to avoid being grabbed, hit or picked up along with
striking work. Great for me and great for them.
The kids had wanted to have a
grading for quite a while and Russell agreed a couple of month ago that it
would go ahead in late September, getting the holidays out the way and meaning
as many children as wanted to could attend. Last year there were about 10 students
but with the class numbers having risen considerably (with classes in Leamington ,
Stratford and now Redditch )
it was clear that attendance would be high.
The grading was 10am to 3pm and when I got there at about quarter to ten , the sports hall was busy with
parents and little kids milling about. Russell and newly qualified Kids
Insructor Al Natrins were there and organising everything. Helping out were my
equivalents from Stratford and Redditch ,
Graham Matthews and Jason Tipping, along with Russell's girlfriend Jane Bracey.
The children looked hyper keen, running around and climbing on the wall bars. I
saw quite a few familiar faces plus a few more I hadn't seen before as they
attended one of the other two venues for training.
At 10am
Russell and the others got the children into a big group and explained how the
day was going to unfold. There were three levels. Young, Junior and Teen with
the teenagers off to one side and the main group of students on the mats in the
middle of the room. Russell and Al would be assessing and grading them with
Graham, Jason and Jane helping out. Once the initial 'Kida!' was out the way
they got warmed up with some games. The instructors were chasing them round the
mats with foam covered mallets or 'boppers' and the kids had to avoid them. Once
they were good and sweaty, they moved on to specific techniques and were
kicking and punching the strike shields with gleeful abandon. Most were clearly
having the time of their lives, working hard while grinning from ear to ear. I
chatted to Tanith and Dave Swain whose daughter Evie was up for her second JSKM
grading, having achieved the grade of Young 1 at last year's event. They said
she'd been super excited about the whole thing and we could see her getting
stuck in to the techniques she was required to demonstrate.
The Teens groups had just three
students, one of which is Graham Matthews' daughter. The difference between
them and the other kids was very clear. They were just a couple of notches
below adult Krav Maga in terms of what they were required to do. Proper kicking
and punching drills were being performed and assessed and Russell turned up in
protective gear at one point as a 'sparring' partner. He said that they were to
hit two focus mitts that he was holding, in a two minute pressure drill BUT if
they dropped their guard at any point he would try to strike them in the head
with one of his hands. They also had to perform other pressure drills involving
kicking & punching strike shields plus being on the ground and trying to
stand up while the others attempted to prevent them doing so.
As time moved on the students were
getting tired. Having graded myself, I know how gruelling these things can be
and the fact that it was not as intense as a 'grown up' exam did not make it
any less daunting for the kids. After another five minute break the children
moved on to forward rolls onto crash mats (and going over a crouching
instructor) and then into the final pressure drill. The children got around a
crash mat each and three other students held strike shields. They then had two
minutes to punch and kick the shields. The twist was that behind them was one
of the instructors wearing a helmet and groin guard who would occasionally
try and pick them up or grab them. The child was required to kick out and
struggle to get free, then carry on hitting and kicking the shields until their
time was up.
The little girl from this story was
initially involved in the drill, holding pads for the others but got scared
very quickly. She had already sat out the 'boppers' warm up at the beginning
and was adamant she didn't want to have a go when it came to her turn. I work
with her on the Monday classes in Leamington Spa and know just how easily she
can become scared. Me and Al Natrins had a little chat with her and eventually
persuaded her to join in with me and her mother holding the pads. She really
tried hard and me and her mum were very proud that she finished the whole
thing.
Finally it was over and the kids
ran to their parents for some snacks and a drink while Russell and Al compared
notes. All the kids looked tired but happy and were nervously waiting for the
awards to be given out. After a short time Russell called them into the middle
and got them to line up according to level. One thing I picked up on was the
pride in the faces of the three students in the Teens level. They were allowed
to stand while the others knelt and were clearly very proud to be achieving
what was effectively only one step down from an adult Krav grade. I remember
how this felt as a child, to be privileged enough to be considered a senior
member of an organisation, both at school and in the Cubs and Scouts and I hope
these kids go on to have a lot of success in Krav Maga in later life.
The awards were read out, with
Young going up first. Russell gave the certificates while Al handed them the
patches and gave the students a high five (in 'adult' Krav gradings, we shake
hands). All the kids looked super pleased and finally a photo was taken before
the babble of voices could be heard as coats were pulled on and little voices
could be heard, excitedly telling their parents everything they'd just done.
A little 6 year old lad from the Leamington
class ran up to me beaming, with his patch and certificate to ask "Can I
'ave my picture taken wiv you?" Very touched by the gesture I got a few
photos with him and also some of the other students before we all headed off home.
Very enjoyable to see just how much
fun these kids had and how a grading that last year had only 10 participants
had now jumped to over 20. Every child should learn self defence and Krav Maga
offers common sense tactics and approaches to the real world we face every day.
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