How To Teach FUN Martial Arts Kids Classes (NO Silly Games!) 

Thanks for watching! Visit my website to learn more: www.karatebyjesse.com 😄👍

As an owner of a studio I appreciate the kids drills. Keeping them fresh with new ideas is always a challenge. Wouldn't mind seeing you go more in-depth in kids drills in your weekly videos that I am a subscriber

I’m a firm believer that burpees were designed as a form of human torture.

I like how he puts.. no silly games in the title lol

Had to take a mixed adult beginners & kids class at short notice and unashamedly ripped off a couple of these exercises. I have little experience teaching kids & my adult lessons don't really translate. Pad balancing to practice stance changes proved REALLY popular. Great video & has given me lots of food for thought. Thanks.

As a physical trainer myself, I surely know how challenging a children class can be. This is a very nice and smart way to optimize the training time and getting closer to the goals. It's great how you also apply the concept of gamification for adult classes, it also sets another obstacle to surpass, really enjoyable and helpful! Greetings from Chile, Jesse! 🙏🏻🇨🇱

Can you do more videos on teaching. I'm new to teaching and this was pretty helpful.

Finally, I hate! Playing games at my dojo! I’m going to show my sensei this.

Thanks for letting me know I’m already on the right track with my teaching method! This exactly what I’ve been using all a long in my instructor career!

Awesome way..

I have several new younger students and I was trying to think of good ways to keep them engaged. Finding this video with your ideas and method for coming up with them is awesome. Thank you!

You are a genius! i'm a pretty new to teaching kung fu, and i'm algo a video game designer and i'm familiarized with the concept of gamification, but i had never tought of gamify a kung fu class! Thanks for this video!

Thanks Jesse. We've got some new kids starting at my dojo soon, ages 5-7. It's a scary prospect as we haven't had kid sin class for a long time. Really appreciate your unique take on this.

Thank you Jesse really appreciate and enjoy your knowledge and understanding of martial arts

Thanks for sharing your approach and your other videos. Your students look great in their technique.

Thank-you for this! It's always nice to get a little reminder on how to spice things up without diluting the ultimate goal (and that's to teach karate!).

This is fantastic, just started teacher training and I will be taking these tips forward

Hey Jesse! Could you maybe do a video of how to focus on individual students in big classes (opossed to smaller ones).

The after effects are on point Jesse! Thanks for sharing, I'm going to teach my future kids this way. The learning never stops with your videos, again thank you.

Love this video. Love the idea of the mitt on the head. Will definitely use that in my classes.

This was really helpful.Thanks a lot.Have a great day.😊👍🏻

Thank you for your excitement and instruction - kids are the greatest and I enjoy watching how others instill knowledge and enjoyment of martial art - well done man!

This is helpful, I've been trying to develop into how to make different activities/lessons fun

I've come away from competitive sport karate to teach with an old instructor, his clubs all are based around participation and kids karate and cant stress the difference and positives being around karate this way, great seeing the next generation growing an interest

Great stuff Sensei Jesse! Reminds me a lot of my own Sensei Juan Cruz at Shotokan Karate-Do Academy, Delray Beach. One of the things that attracted to me to the dojo was the way he trained the kids. He doesn't baby them but TEACHES them. Everything from holding rocks while punching to using hula hoops for moving in kumite. Most of all he often reminds them that they are the FUTURE of traditional karate. Imagine having a 4th dan tell you that as a child! May God increase your tribe Jesse-san. Please give your mom a big Mother's Day kiss for me! Oss!

Thank you, Jesse. Those examples and your 5 principles of Gamification are a great way to introduce or practice serious karate fundamentals. Highly appreciated. 🥋

Thank you! I’ve been trying to figure this out for years and this has given me new tools to work with.

This video helped me a lot! I've found myself in the position of being a Capoeira teacher, and we start with kids as young as 3. Despite the natural "playfulness" of the art, I struggled to think of ways to keep the class fun while teaching disciplined movements! Sometimes we'd play games for warming up, like red-light/green-light, or tug of war, or some kind of tag with Capoeira movements mixed in, but I like this approach that seems a lot less guilty when parents are watching! Some parents just want their kids busy for an hour, but I want them to leave feeling they can move better than before!! :D

Great explanation of gamification, certainly start to think about using them in excercises! I am just working on a long-term gamification system, to make the student connection with karate itself stonger, starting in september, with the new season. A student will have to collect point in order to go to belt exams. The higher the level, the more points you need to collect. Mainly the can collect the by attending to class, but there also will be "missions" or "achievment", n three category: bushi, sempai and zen. A bushi achievment is f.e. going to a competition. Sempai achievment is f.e teaching another student a technique, or a kata. Zen is about getting a deeper understanding, f.e. reading a book from a certain list. All the points and achievments are set to the students level. I'm really looking forward to it, how will it work.

I love watching these types of videos! I’ve just become the head instructor for my university karate club and it helps me get ideas down for the new students :) keep up the good work !

This is amazing! People really need to be aware that parents expect the kid to actually learn karate. I've always thought that a class full of (silly) games is just a summer camp with uniforms 🤷🏻‍♀️

Can you post a new video om shadowboxing and switching stance while punching

Thank you Sensei, I'm a taekwondo instructor your video makes me more to imagine with my students on how to apply Gamification.

Thanks so much i really found this so Useful...💪🏾

I agree games can teach, as long as they are based on the original exercise. Great vid 👊

Thanks, i do the punching on one leg, its good to get feedback that I do some things the way others do.

Great ideas. Thank you.

Hey Jesse enkamp I love your videos and I think your the best karate videos I hope you enjoy your life, and I when feel sad I watch you to feel better.

Nice one! I've just begun to teach karate at school (1st-4th grade) and this is gold. Helps with planning coming sessions. Thanks, Jesse-san!

Im suppose to be working on a thesis on pedagogycal techniques.... this is the best example i have found on gammification.

You are so cool bro. I have been in martial arts for 33 years and all your videos is so in depth and brilliant.

Excellent video Jesse. We do this approach as well with our Juniors. It's very effective. I find that if you play games outright kids leave because they're not getting an authentic experience and know they're being pandered to. Gamification on the other hand just sets a more fun and immediate goal oriented approach to the authentic content that you already deliver. It's all about the delivery.

Great I was just worried about my online class interesting. I can do some of this with them. Thank you!

Very much helpful. Thnxxx🙏🙏

Thank you Jesse for this video it’s given me some ideas 💡 for running my karate classes, loving all of your videos bro 🙂👍🏻🥋

Thank you for that video, you are a great teacher! RESPECT

Hi Jesse encamp your the best teacher

Wow.. amazing... Gamification.. beautifully explained.. thanks for sharing .. Sensei

I’d love to open a dojo one day myself. I’m watching these for tips on how to actually teach, because while I practice my techniques and train, I could use help teaching it to others lol.

Thankyou very much Sensey! These are very interesting concepts in order to achieve a very fun and didactical classes for our students. I was thinking about how to teach Karate and not just play with my special disabled pupils (Asperger sindrome) and I feel that your ideas will be useful for us. Thanks again!

Super fan i dont lose all your vídeos #karatenerd 🥋🥋💪

Great Video. Keep them coming💪🏼

Thank you very much for this video.

Great I’ll implement these ideas tonight at lessons 👊😎

Thank you Sensei 🥋. I always learn something new From you ❤️ 🇮🇳🥋

Here in Brazil we study in the university this kind of game in sports learning. I work with judo and I'm starting to give karate lessons to the less graduated using games. My students of judo are 3 years old to 8 years old (in 3 different groups). In this school I wold be very unhappy without the games in this first year of work. My difficult now is to create games to the karate but I am working on it. , glad to see your work

Love this! Please post more fun exercise ideas! We can get inspired by others! From a fellow martial arts teacher ☺️🙏

that was great do you have more of those?

Sir can you pls say me how is the karate grandmaster?

Thank You! This is a wonderful video :)

Hey Jesse I have my national tournament which Kata should I do please tell any of black belt

Man Jesse I needed this thanks bro

Very Useful. thank you brother for the Video.

lovely and very helpful, could u give more examples especially for children under 5yrs of age

excellent advice Jesse I liked it!

Thanks bro, I was just wondering how can I keep students interested and engaged while not scaring them with excessive aggressive training and I knew you were going to be a reliable source for assistance with this.

Awesome! Thank you!

Thank you for lesson. I always try to make Friday fun in my dojo.

Hey there, nice ideas! i also use these principle but would be interested in if you more to learn specific kicks like mae geri, yoko geri or some other basics.

As of writing this, April 2024, my sons are 7 and 9, and I am teaching them at their level. And not too long, about 30 minutes per class. We spent about 6-7 classes just working kihon: just stances, punches and blocks. There’s no rush here. I don’t want to tire them out and I want them to enjoy it. We started Heian Shodan last Saturday. 2 months in, and they love every minute of it. Shotokan.

Very good tips Jesse👍 Its always fun to develop new training methods that are fun and useful to both kids and adults

Great concept! Unfortunately, many "coaches" lack this.

Thank you sensei...❤

Awesome! Thanks again. This will help me to much with my 7 years son.

I'm a junior instructor at my dojo. I guess we use this method almost to the t. My question is... how do you deal with children who, despite the gamified exercises, still don't pay attention?

Great. Thank you.

My younger students are quick to start talking and become lazy, Consequence based training might help maintain focus. I love the one leg punching idea... that's definitely getting used tonight. Might even add a Mae Geri to the mix for the higher grades if it works. And the focus mitt on the head will be a great reward game at the end.

Great Video...We apply this method in our daily class....not saying we dont also play a hard core game of dodgeball but, we are always creating new karate skill games.

Thank you so much Jesse-san, i have been waiting for this kind of video for a very long time OSU

I Ppreciate your advice. Thank you.

if you have any good method ,exercises that's mix playing with learning , i aml gladly taking it , because sometimes i am out of ideas , thanks in advance.

Take it from a crusty old professor with 45 years in the classroom. Gamification is for all ages. This is a solid pedagogy. BTW you did have a reward for you exercise. That high five meant more than you know to that blue belt. One should never underestimate the power of an "Attaboy!" as positive reinforcement!

I like your rewards your a great teacher, I feel like I have learnt alot about being a better person from your videos they remind me of my teachings when I was younger.. Osu

That is awesome!

Loving this series. Although coming from another martial art, four of my children, my wife and I started Karate from scratch a few moths ago. Great family strengthening stuff! I'm cataloging it all and hoping to dedicate a channel to the journey. Any tips on editing the endless hours of 'in the Dojo' footage to be meaningful to an audience?

Simple and effective. I will try it tomorrow!

Just started training to become a karate instructor, I currently assist my master. My assisting usually consists of trying to help kids learn kata. They would rarely listen to me but after trying out the stuff from this video, they listen to every word I say. Thanks

NICE! Thanks for share!

I already did this without knowing!!! But even so I learned to much with this video! Thank very much Jesse

I love your videos!!!

Oss Sensei. Sensei can you make a video on weapon training. We would love to learn some weapons techniques from you. Oss. 😊

Wonderful concept. I learned something really useful. More videos please...

Your sessions look like a lot of fun. I would love to come and train with you.

Thank you nice👍

Thank you i needed this

My sensei didn’t do anything like this when I was a kid. He was very strict (even actually made us learn the Japanese language to a proficient level by the time we reached black belt, or else he wouldn’t let us test). He was very strict, but I do thank him for that. However when I teach I may use these tips to make it more fun for my (hopefully future) students. Though I do want to implement Sensei’s rule about studying the language as well, because it really made me feel like I was in total harmony training physically, spiritually, and mentally.

Hello - Really appreciate all the content you share. I recently began training my (2) young sons in Karate. It has been quite some time since I trained myself. The information you provide has helped me tremendously. So I thank you! I remember hearing that in the old days of Okinawa, Karate practitioners elected to have other Karate Instructors teach their children. Can you verify the accuracy of this? If true, can you share the reasoning behind it? Thanks again!

Absolute genius instructor, i cant believe i never figured out something so simple as punching on one leg. I would pay all the money for a karate instructional from the karate nerd.

Great ideas, Jesse!

Totally agree with your poin of view "A Dojo is not a kindergarden". Thanx 4 the sharing !