LIL’ DRAGONS

Three to four year olds love physical activity and anything involving play. They have a rich

imagination and strong desire to be less dependent on their usual caregivers. The problem we

discovered is that many children this age have a hard time with structure in a group

environment like what is commonly found in most Martial Arts schools. The solution we found

is to provide them with their own program that targets their stage of development in a manner

that keeps them entertained while at the same time building skills that set them up for success.

With that said, a structured program introducing early skill-based training in Martial Arts has

proven to be very successful.

Here’s an overview for the stages of development of children ages 3 and 4:

• Physically– they typically have low tone and poor hand-eye-coordination. 

We expect them initially to drop their arms when punching and fall when kicking

or jumping. We also expect them to have no concept of spatial awareness,

therefore they will drop things that are thrown to them and bump into people

and obstacles often

The goal for our program is to get them to punch without dropping their arms;

kick without falling; jump without falling; and catch objects thrown from various

directions and distances.

• Intellectually– they typically have a limited vocabulary therefore learning is normally

limited to visual and kinesthetic activities.

o We expect them to initially lose focus when activities are over-complicated. We

also expect them to struggle with commands that have more than two

instructions. The goal for our program is to get them to follow verbal commands with no

visual demonstration. Also, our goal is for them to remember rules and

commands without being reminded.

• Emotionally– they typically have strong preferences and fears therefore they will

normally act out of bounds when their emotions get out of control. We expect them to run off the

mat when they have anxiety. We also expect

them to shut down when something either scares them or doesn’t go their way. The goal for our 

program is to help them follow directions and persevere

through an activity even if they are initially emotional.

• Socially– they are typically very self-centered. Also, due to their limited vocabulary their

common form of communication is mainly physical. We expect them to mock each other, such as 

falling when their classmate falls. We also expect them to crash into things when they are excited.

The goals for our program are to help them build good social skills such as spatial

awareness; not interrupting when others are talking; and taking turns properly.By understanding 

the stages of development of 3 and 4-year olds, we were able to select 8 age appropriate skills that make up our Lil’ Dragons Program:

1. KICKING

2. PUNCHING

3. BLOCKING

4. CRAWLING

5. HOPPING

6. ROLLING

7. RUNNING

8. CATCHING

We cover one of the above skills per class (in order). During each class we run a warm-up;

deliver a mat chat about the skill; run two or three skill-building drills; and then we have them

demonstrate the skill to earn their skill-stripe. They must earn all 8 skill-stripes in order to

graduate to the next belt level. Once they earn their next belt they will continue to run through

all 8 skills earning their skill-stripes with more challenging curriculum as they advance to each

rank. They graduate to the Lil’ Tigers program after they have successfully completed all 9

belt ranks of the Lil’ Dragons program.

Here is an example of what a white belt must demonstrate for each of the 8 skills above in

order to earn their next belt:

1. KICKING – Front kicking in the air, alternating legs. They must be able to execute ten

kicks in a row alternating legs in order to pass.

2. PUNCHING – Straight punching in the air, alternating arms. They must be able to execute

ten punches in a row alternating arms in order to pass.

3. BLOCKING – High blocking in the air, alternating arms. They must be able to execute ten

high blocks in a row alternating arms in order to pass.

4. CRAWLING – Bear crawling across the mat. They must be able to bear crawl up and

down the floor without their knees or elbows touching the mat in order to pass.

5. HOPPING – Hopping down the floor with both feet. They must be able to hop down the

mat with both feet together, and without falling, five times in a row in order to pass.

6. ROLLING – Rolling a ball down the floor. They must be able to roll a ball down the floor

while alternating hands, and keeping at least one hand on the ball at all times, in order

to pass.

7. RUNNING – Running down the floor. They must be able to run down the floor as fast as

possible without falling in order to pass.

8. CATCHING – Catching a ball thrown underhand from one step away. They must be able

to catch a ball five times in a row in order to pass.As you can see we take Martial Arts training to

a whole new level! We use early elements of traditional Martial Arts curriculums to build skill

that are appropriate for 3 and 4-year olds.

This means that your child will learn and grow at a pace that is not too easy, nor too

challenging. The best part is the Lil’ Dragons program will equip your child with skills that they

will utilize in every area of their life!

LIL’ TIGERS

Five and six year olds are the most enthusiastic students. They love creativity and problem solving, which makes them ideal students in the Martial Arts. The problem we discovered is they are so progressive in following tasks, some teachers tend to treat them like their older peers. This is a problem because they still do not have the basic skills necessary to keep up with children ages 7 and up. The solution we found is to provide them with their own program that targets their stage of development in a manner that adapts to their social and intellectual curiosity while at the same time building skills that set them up for success. With that said a structured program introducing basic skill-based training in Martial Arts has proven to be very successful.

Here’s an overview for the stages of development of children ages 5 and 6:

• Physically– they typically do not know how to apply their muscles so they fall often when their body is in constant motion. Also, they have a basic foundation for leg, arm, core, and abdominal development, but they still lack a lot of strength. We expect them to initially struggle with multiple kicks beyond five repetitions. We also expect them to initially have sloppy technique when exercising. The goals for our program are to get them to perform high repetitions of kicks without putting their foot down, and also perform static, active, and dynamic exercises for beyond ten reps with good technique.

 Intellectually– they typically have a hard time retaining beyond three commands. They also have a hard time distinguishing between their left and right. We expect them to initially get confused when we ask them to do more than three things at one time. We also initially expect them to have a hard time distinguishing between their left and right when following multiple-commands. The goal for our program is to get them to retain three or more commands at once, and beyond. We will also help them learn how to perform various left and right combinations.

Emotionally – they typically focus on things that make them happy. They also have slow brakes when they are excited. We expect them to initially lose focus and shut down when they are not happy. We also expect them to lose control when they are over-excited. The goal for our program is to help them focus even when it’s hard to do so. We will also help them control their body and their power, especially when they are excited.

Socially– they love to play with others, but are typically very competitive. We expect them to initially show weak sportsmanship when they participate in a competition.o The goals for our program are to help them build good teamwork such as no cheating; don’t get angry when they lose; and don’t brag when they win.

By understanding the stages of development of 5 and 6-year olds, we were able to select 8 age-appropriate skills that make up the Basic SKILLZ Program:

1. FOCUS

2. TEAMWORK

3. CONTROL

4. MEMORY

5. BALANCE

6. DISCIPLINE

7. FITNESS

8. COORDINATION

We cover one of the above skills per class (in order). During each class we run a warm-up; deliver a mat chat about the skill; run two or three skill-building drills; and then we have them demonstrate the skill to earn their skill-stripe. They must earn all 8 skill-stripes in order to graduate to the next belt level. Once they earn their next belt they will continue to run through all 8 skills earning their skill-stripes with more challenging curriculum as they advance to each rank. They graduate to the Kidss’ Basic program after they have successfully completed all 9- belt ranks of the Lil’ Tigers program.

Here is an example of what a white belt must demonstrate for each of the 8 skills above in order to earn their next belt:

1. FOCUS – Punching and kicking a pad that is thrown by an instructor standing one-stepaway from their side. They must be able to punch, and kick, a pad four times in a row in order to pass.

2. TEAMWORK – Holding a kicking target for their partner while their partner does ten kicks. They must be loud while counting their partner’s kicks and hold the target tightly in order to pass.

3. CONTROL – Stopping their body at attention position after running forward when an instructor says, “stop.” They must be at attention in less than three steps after the instructor says stop in order to pass.

4. MEMORY – Demonstrating the three stage 1 block’s and three stage 1 strikes from memory. They must show the proper chambers and ending position for all of the moves in order to pass.

5. BALANCE – Executing five front kicks without putting their foot down in between each rep. They must show full execution and retraction while keeping their knee chambered at belt level or higher in order to pass.

6. DICSIPLINE – Demonstrating how to properly sit, take a knee, kneel on both knees, and stand at attention without moving. They must hold each position for no less than five seconds.

7. FITNESS – Holding each static leg, arm, abdominal, and core exercise. They must not lose technique or else they have to start over. They must hold each exercise for no less than ten seconds in order to pass.

8. COORDINATION – Performing left and right punching combinations on the mitts. They must hit the mitt with proper technique and also with the proper hand five times in a row in order to pass.

As you can see we take Martial Arts training to a whole new level! We use basic elements of traditional Martial Arts curriculums to build skills that are appropriate for 5 and 6-year olds.

This means that your child will learn and grow at a pace that is not too easy, nor too challenging. The best part is the Lil’ Tigers program will equip your child with skills that they will utilize in every area of their life.usi