At what age should kids start martial arts. What's best to start them with.?

Answer 1

Depends on the maturity of the child, but generally around 5-7 years old. Look for at least these things: Focus, Interest, and Acceptance.

Focus: If they can't focus on one subject (and I don't mean TV shows) for a period of time, maybe up to 20 minutes or so, then they might not be ready for it, and if they disrupt the lessons for others, that's not fair taking teaching time away from the kids who are ready to learn.

Interest: If they aren't interested they won't have any fun, which will lead to them not being focused, and if they can't pay attention most of the time, they might feel picked on when the instructor has to bring them back into focus.

Acceptance: They have to be mature enough not to get mad when they are being corrected on their techniques too. If they can understand that it takes time to learn martial arts and aren't frustrated by not doing everything perfectly the first time and having the instructor constantly show them the corrections, then they are ready.

Answer 2

The youngest kids at my dojo were 5, the ones who actually stuck with the martial art were the ones who were considerably older when they started, like 10. I was 13 when I started and I can say right here and now I am never giving up my martial art, but equally if I had started any younger I may not have the same view and given up by now. What I can tell you, is no 3 year olds go around mugging each other and muggers are unlikely to go after kids under the age of 8 or 9, I mean what are they gonna steal, the kids favourite teddy?

Answer 3

Several martial artists would say they began at age 4, but some schools (especially here in the States) will not allow students any younger than 6.

Any Martial Arts are good to begin with; But I wouldn't suggest a heavy contact Martial Art such as Muai Thai.

It's better to start with something well rounded. Kenpo, Tang Soo Do, Tae Kwon Do, and Goju Ryu are very popular, and decent starters at that.

There are many more disciplines, but too many to mention; I'd like to name them all so as not to offend other practitioners and keep this answer as short as possible, but I felt the need to at least list a few.

I myself have studied for the better part of 15 yrs or better in Tang Soo Do and Hapkido and love it still to this day.

Answer 4

I started my daughter in Tang Soo Do at age 3 1/2. That was a year ago. I also practice the art with her so it is something we share. She loves it. I believe it builds self confidence and promotes discipline. Understand though, at that age, classes are only about 1/2 hour long (she goes 2-3 times per week). They spend 10 minutes warming up and reciting a student creed, the next 5-10 minutes they break up to do "forms" , then the last 10 minutes they do either relay racing, run laps around the do-jang, or do run jump kicks. The class is over in no time. The reason I write this is to let you understand that at that level, you want the art to be fun, so the child enjoys going. The real discipline and regimentation comes much later. Our form also does not allow children under 12 to become black belt level regardless of training as they lack the maturity to hold such a thing.

Answer 5

4 to 7 best style to start with is grappling such as wrestling, brazilian
jiu jitsu, judo, etc... because they won't be able to strikes effectively until they're in early teenage. So grappling will apply to their body type and mental set. Also it will allows them to test out technique on other classmate and practice it for real and have fun at same time. This is better than them learn something and never spar then go on playfield to try test it on some kids who doesn't do martial arts.

Answer 6

I would say about 5. Make sure and find a place that has an instructor that is actually able to teach children that young. Many times it is just some person who is low on the food chain.

Teaching children martial arts is like any teaching done to young children. You have to be aware of their limited attention span and literal physical unawareness with what their bodies are capable of.

Answer 7

I think kids should start martial arts at about five, when they can understand what they're learning. The best is tae kwon do i think because it provides self dicipline, self defense, respect, and lots more.

Answer 8

I teach at a taekwondo studio and my students usually start off at ages 4 and up. If your child is mature for their aga and of course fully potty trained then you could start them at 3. Keep in mind that if you do start them at that age the curriculum will be different and they will not grasp most techniques however in the long run it will benefit in the areas such as respect and discipline.

Answer 9

at my school kids can start at 4 which i think 4-7 are good ages to start cause they can pick it up the younger you are and will be better when u get older. I stared when i was 9 but i wish i started at little earlier

Answer 10

It depends on the child. I know kids that have started as early as two. Karate is a good all around form with many variations, it teaches discipline, confidence, and respect.