Does your child stare aimlessly at something while you are talking to them? Do you get letters from teachers stating that your child is always talking, when he/she should be listening. Are they horse playing when there suppose to be still? Does this sound like your 6 or 7 year old? If it does, then they could be that they suffer from ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), or a microbiological disability that interferes with an individual’s ability to sustain attention and to control impulsive behavior.
This is a disorder very common with our children today. Especially between the ages of five through eighteen. ADD affects five percent of all Canadian children. It affects their minds by interfering with their focus. Which is something important to do well in school and progress in life. Without focus, they cannot concentrate or follow adequate directions.
That is why it is vital for them to learn to stay focused, ....and it can be taught! Also, ADD children are easily bored, and this is where the problem arises. Children with this attention disorder often times start to have a hyperactivity disorder or ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). This is when these children become hard to control. They are impatient, irritable, and outbursts of temper tantrums becomes a habit. This can make it extremely difficult for them to concentrate, sit still, and follow directions.
Child Psychologists, and researchers who are in that field of study are not positive what really causes this disorder and this kind behaviour. Symptoms such as impairments of perception, language, memory, and motor skills, low degree of attention span, impulsive behavior and hyperactivity are often treated with drugs. We at Peaceful Warriors' feel that this is just a masking of the symptoms by loading the child up with something that is not necessary for their small bodies. We, as well as many professional researchers believe that Martial Arts training can be a wonderful cure and fulfilling experienced for children diagnosed with ADD.
Martial Arts has the perfect elements necessary to teach them all about control and how to modify their behavior. Its structured forms and techniques teaches children how to concentrate on what they’re doing. First of all, it offers the students a choice of short term goals such as being from one belt level to the next belt level, or from being a beginner belt level to the ultimate black belt. Each child in Martial Arts is responsible for his/her own progress level therefore, this gives them a sense of responsibility and a feeling of leadership to which they can apply it to the control of their behavior.
Also, the classes are broken down into segments, with different high energy activities in each segment. This keeps the children with ADHD that have short attention spans from being bored. In Martial Arts, they use their abundant energy towards their efforts to kick, punch, and yell. We offer structured drills that are fun and exciting so that they will consider it games, rather than work that they have to do. The catch to these “games” are that there are certain rules that they must follow in order to win. Of course, wanting to win, they must listen carefully to be able to perform the task. Then they receive an award of some sort to congratulate them. They learn to be appreciative, and want to win more and more. In addition to the drills being fun and exciting, they are on going whereas to a baseball game that there is plenty of time to wait thus misbehave.
Another benefit in Martial Arts is that patience is an attribute among all our Peaceful Warriors' instructors. Our instructors have learned to use of concept of Praise, Correct, and Praise. In other words, we understand that children with ADD and ADHD are easily discouraged, and criticism is a delicate subject. Peaceful Warriors' instructors know to find a way to praise even if the child’s technique is not perfect. Then they correct, and then praise again. This means a lot to the children because they can see that there is someone that recognizes their efforts.
Martial Arts attain many attributes that can help a child with ADD or ADHD. We can teach them to divide and conquer by teaching them to slow down when they’re going to fast, to concentrate, to focus, to pay attention with forms, and to win themselves over for confidence and to win in life.
For more information on the benefits of martial arts training, visit our website at http://www.thepeacefulwarriors.org, email instructor@thepeacefulwarriors.org or call 519-962-9820.
Also to find a more information on a DRUG FREE solution to ADD/ADHD follow this link:
http://www.bigleagueplayersclub.com/3clicks/published/12824/27138/index.htm
Master Art Mason
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