Chanbara Teaching Overview

INTRODUCTION
So, you have a black belt and you want to open a dojo. There are many things to consider in
taking this big step along the path of your learning, doing and passing on your martial art. Two of
the biggest considerations are being a good teacher and staying in business. Like it or not, that’s
what this is; a business. To stay in business you need to be a good teacher, and to be a good
teacher and pass along your art, you need to stay in business. For an instructor of any martial art
to be really a good, memorable teacher, he/she must understand some basic concepts. Besides
the obvious point of being well-versed in the art you are teaching, these other important items
must also be considered:
1) Why did the students come to learn a martial art? In particular, why did they
come to learn this martial art?
2) How do you stay in business? And, better yet, how do you grow the business?
3) How should the classes be structured (how long, how often, etc)?
4) What do you charge for lessons? And how to bill?
5) What attire is acceptable in your dojo during class?
6) What equipment or other capital investment will you need to make?
What
investment in equipment and gear will your students need to make?
7) Do you use a ranking or belt system? How often do you promote?
8) Since this is a business, what else do you need to consider?
This Basics Manual was designed to answer these questions and provide additional information
on these topics (and more) as they relate to teaching the various sword arts, such as kendo,
kombat kenjutsu, chanbara, iaido or battodo.
KNOWING AND UNDERSTANDING THE STUDENT
Every student that enters your dojo is there for some personal reason. These reasons range all
the way from “my parents are making me take this” to “I am learning the sword to learn more
about myself”. Although other factors are involved, your effectiveness in both being able to teach
each student and keep each student is heavily dependent on whether or not you are able to
discern why the student walked through your door in the first place.
Keep in mind that the sword can adapt to every martial art because all martial arts in one way or
the other used as a defense against a weapon, even if that weapon is an open hand. Knowing
this you will realize that the reasons for students entering sword training are often very similar to
the reasons students get into any martial art. However, there are some reasons unique to the
sword.
Generic Reasons Students Want Sword Instruction
There are some generic reasons students are interested in learning iaido, kendo, adult kombat
kenjutsu, youth chanbara or battodo. This category contains reasons that do not seem to be
related to gender, age or other specific cross-section of society.
1) Many people train in the sword arts for the physical exercise.
Iaido and battodo attract
individuals who want lower-impact exercise. The more aerobic and physically challenging
arts of kombat kenjutsu, chanbara and kendo attract students who want a more intense form
of exercise.
Although not overwhelmingly so, kendo usually sees more male students
because of the more physical nature of the fighting, whereas chanbara attracts a wider
variety of participants.
2) The recent popularity of movies involving the sword has caused a slight increase in new
students. This phenomenon is cyclic in nature. In other words, any time a movie on martial
arts is released and becomes popular, the base nature of humans is to fantasize about being
able to perform as they see the actors on the screen perform. Most of these students don’t
stay, but a few may become dedicated students. Those that stay may be acting on a dream
they’ve always had. Use encouragement to keep them involved; i.e., help them to overcome
their self-doubt.
3) As with any martial art, the sword arts can be used as a medium to learn about oneself.
Difficulties in learning the sword are just reflections of the difficulties or set patterns you have
in everyday life. Training with the sword can help provide the student with another avenue to
discover those things (unconscious or otherwise) that hold them back from achieving even
more in life.
4) The sword has its attractiveness as a thing of beauty.
Some students join iaido after
watching a well-performed demonstration. These students want to be able to perform the
beauty of iaido.
Iaido had the advantage of not being an intimidating sword art relative to
kendo or chanbara. In other words, potential students who observe a class or tournament of
enthusiastic young people engage in a heavy battle in kendo, kombat kenjutsu or chanbara,
may be nervous about learning the sword. Drawing and sheathing the sword (iaido) removes
the fear of competition and injury that can result in the more intense sword forms.
5) Word of mouth is one of your biggest forms of advertisement. Currently enrolled students
simply bragging about their latest chanbara or kombat kenjutsu match will attract attention.
Potential students will hear the truth: engaging in chanbara and kombat kenjutsu is fun and
exciting.
6) Your current sword students may be encouraged to expand their knowledge to be more wellrounded swordsmen by taking instruction in other sword arts.
For example, your kendo
students can expand from their knowledge beyond kendo (what to do with a sword once it is
drawn) by learning iaido (drawing and sheathing the sword), or they can learn more sword
strikes through instruction in chanbara.
Conversely, skills learned in battodo or through
kendo can be employed in chanbara without the fear of being hurt.
7) Many people who watch chanbara or kombat kenjutsu at tournaments or demonstrations see
first hand the enjoyment students get out of the sport and will approach your dojo to find out
more.
8) People join kombat kenjutsu and chanbara because it’s fun and, due to the use of soft
weaponry, it is not as injury-prone as the more intense martial arts or sports (kendo, judo,
etc). In other words, many people do not want to do open hand combat for fear of injury, but
they will work with the soft weaponry.
9) Many people don’t want to study self defense, but they certainly enjoy practicing the sword,
just as the hundreds of generations of people before them.
10) People with substance abuse issues train to hopefully replace an addiction they are trying to
overcome, such as alcoholism, food or drugs.
NOTE: Dealing with anyone trying to kick a habit as strong as alcohol or drugs takes special skill
and a true time commitment. My experience with this type of student leads me to offer this advice
to you: don’t be discouraged if you lose these students. The rate of recovery from any addiction
is low, without a commitment to martial arts. The addict may find martial arts can help as a
distraction or a replacement for the addiction, but it always comes down to one thing: are they
able to overcome the unbelievably intense desire their individual addiction causes. Helping this
special student takes a lot of extra time and support from you personally. You must decide if you
can afford to take this time and expend the energy without negatively affecting your other
students.
Gender Specifics
Men, women, girls and boys often join martial arts classes for very different reasons. These
general reasons are presented here as a guide to help you figure out why a student has come to
your school for instruction.
The list below is a compilation from my own experiences, the
experiences of other instructors and verbal feedback from students.
NOTE: Although it is true that everyone has a unique reason for being there, there are some
general, gender-specific reasons for practicing martial arts. At this point I issue a caution, as with
any generalization, there are cases where these reasons will not apply or may apply to the
opposite sex from where the reason is listed.
You must use your own experience, training and gut instinct to decide for yourself if these apply.
If you feel comfortable enough with a student, it is acceptable to ask why thy have come to train
with the sword. Be aware that some students will not tell you the real reason. This can be
because they are embarrassed to admit the reason or they simply may not know why they are
really there. Unfortunately this makes your job even harder. Imagine how frustrating to think that
your student has come to your class to get more exercise, you work with him/her to be sure that
they are getting plenty of exercise, only to find out that their real reason is something completely
different…so they leave your class because it was too strenuous! Constantly check yourself to
be sure that the stated reason for your students’ attendance is truly the reason they are there.
The best advice is simply to be yourself….and be human. Very few people will fault you for trying
if you stay committed to working with them. Those that do fault you are not ready for teaching
anyway.
Adult Men
Most common reasons adult men join the sword arts are:
1) Men have been attracted to the sword for centuries. This fact has not changed even in
modern times.
2) Fathers join classes with their sons to spend quality father-son time.
3) Often men have studied open hand martial arts and want to add weapons to their repertoire.
The bo staff is interesting, but as mentioned in item 1 above, the sword has its unique,
attractive qualities.
4) Men, youth and teens always play “snap towel” in the bathroom. It’s not a far stretch to find
them wanting to upgrade to sparring with a weapon.
Adult Women
Most common reasons adult women join the sword arts are:
1) Mothers join with their sons or daughters to spend quality mother-son or mother-daughter
time. This is seen less frequently as a reason for women than with men because of the
aggressive nature of the fighting sword arts like kendo, kombat kenjutsu and chanbara.
2) The sword offers women a way to work with men, especially teenage boys. Men and boys
are by nature more physical. They relate to each other through taps, jabs and pokes. It is
not easy for most women to wrestle or punch with boys or men, but the use of a sword, such
as the bamboo sword or shinai in kendo or the choken or long sword in kombat kenjutsu and
chanbara, tends to balance the scale and equalize differences in size or strength.
3) Although the sword is not often seen as a weapon of self-defense in modern times, some
women will be attracted by the ability to improve their physical strength and/or increase their
skill with weapons.
4) Some women find the lower-impact nature of iaido or battodo as a way to engage in less
strenuous exercise, while still gaining skill and knowledge of the sword.
5) Introverted women join to increase their presence in the world outside the dojo. Corporate
women who want to increase their ability to play in the mostly male-dominated businesses
have found the skills taught in sword can be transferred to the business world. An example
of this is the use of kiai or chi in class transformed to a louder voice or more presence in the
boardroom at work. The confidence that is gained from finding your own voice will show in
and outside of the dojo.
6) Kombat kenjutsu and chanbara are great replacements for pillow fights, and who doesn’t
enjoy engaging in one of those!
Teenage Boys
1) In general, teenage boys join the more physical sword arts. They are young enough and are
convinced they are invincible enough, to be able to participate in the more physically
demanding kendo, kombat kenjutsu and chanbara. This age group is found experimenting
with many different physical activities, such as football, wrestling, soccer or basketball. The
competitive nature of young men is surging during the teenage years since boys are trying to
establish themselves as men. It is not a far stretch to see why kendo and chanbara also
make the list of activities to try since they offer competition and a good workout. It may be
that schools are a big influencer to the surge of physical activities at this age up to about 21.
After that, most young men get caught up in the world of making money or they may be ready
to raise a family.
Baseball or softball then become the most accessible and, therefore,
attractive physical activities.
Knowing that the competition of outside activities will always be there, it becomes even more
important to provide regular positive feedback and recognition to keep students coming to
your school. Refer to the section Growing the Business for further tips in this area.
2) Teenage boys have long been attracted to knives and swords. Training in the sword arts
gives these young men permission to have swords of their own in a safe environment in
which parents can feel comfortable. Be sure to get yourself enough training on knives and
swords to be conversant. Parents will gain confidence that their son or daughter is in good
hands for instruction if they see and hear that you know what you are talking about. Fathers
are especially notorious for testing your blade knowledge. Be prepared. You don’t want to
lose a student because you didn’t have basic knowledge on swords. Please refer to the
Sword XXXXXX (Jon’s book) for further information and education.
3) Learning sword skills provides young men with a uniqueness others don’t have. In other
words, most sports rely on only the most skilled to participate on a regular basis.
For
example, to be part of the football team requires tryouts to even make the team. Once on the
team, there can be only one quarterback and maybe a backup or two on the second string.
Unless the young man is very good, his chances of being the quarterback are pretty slim.
The sword is an individual “sport”. You are able to participate and learn even if you aren’t
good enough to be the quarterback.
4) The existence of video games has a huge impact on the number of students coming to get
sword training. It is still more likely to find the teenage males playing games that involve
swords (relative to teenage girls). The reaction times of the teenage students is already fast,
due to their age, it is even more noticeable when they have been engaging in the play of
video games. I find it fascinating to watch the finesse and style students have with the sword
when they have played a lot of video games that involve swords.
5) Testosterone – enough said.
Teenage Girls
1) Teenage girls are becoming more predominant in martial arts in general. The sword arts
allow them to be able to participate without having to become directly physically in contact
with a sparring partner. Often these young women are developing and maturing, leaving
them self-conscious. The addition of a bamboo sword or chanbara sword between them and
a sparring partner often encourages their continued participation in martial arts. You might
consider having students switch from the more direct-contact arts, such as judo or karate, to
chanbara or kendo rather than lose them altogether during this tender maturing process. In
addition, young women may also prefer the non-sparring arts of iaido or battodo. These
sword venues do not require any sparring and can thus altogether alleviate any concerns of
developing girls.
In any case, be sure to either carry for their use or know where to obtain beast protection. At
a minimum suggest the girls wear a sports bra.
The sports bra will both provide more
protection than a regular bra when sparring and will keep the tender breast tissue from
jostling around, which is often a source of tenderness.
2) Teenage girls want to learn sword skills because they have witnessed women swordsmen
that they see as a roll model. Women who have spent considerable time learning to work
with the sword, as with most martial arts, become more confident in themselves and exude a
sense of power that attracts others.
3) Consciously or unconsciously, young girls begin to see that they are valued by their looks
alone.
Consider the number of magazine advertisements, popular songs or television
commercials that dwell on the female appearance or how the female is expected to act.
Many young women are encouraged by their parents and teachers to break this mold. As
mentioned for adult women, using a sword, such as the bamboo sword (shinai) in kendo or
the choken or long sword in kombat kenjutsu and chanbara, tends to balance the scale and
equalize differences in size or strength between men/boys and women/girls.
This
equalization then allows girls the chance to build their self-confidence to become something
other than what the media suggests.
Children
1) Parents often require their children to engage in a martial art. The obvious reasons are for
their desire is to help their children learn respect, self-confidence and control. In addition
they are looking for alternative avenues for physical development in areas such as
coordination.
2) Many parents were involved in some form of martial art training when they were younger and
want their children to have some knowledge of the training that is available to them. It is not
unusual to find that parents are trying a variety of activities and martial arts to find the one or
two that spark their child’s interest.
3) Children who enter sword classes by their own choice are almost always there because they
have seen someone wielding a sword in a way that sparked their imagination. They can see
themselves using the sword and want to learn how it is done. Video games play a large role
in sparking the young students’ imaginations.
Be prepared to feed the children’s
imaginations while keeping them in check long enough to actually teach them something.
Age Specifics
Many of the different reasons students of different ages become interested in sword arts were
addressed in the Gender Specifics section. This section on Age Specifics will go into more detail
through a more in-depth break down of students by specific age. Again, these are generally true
scenarios based on my own experiences and the experiences of other teachers.
exceptions that you will need to consider.
There are
Ages 1 to 2
Students this age are only in the class by choice of the parent(s). It is not recommended that
children of this age group participate in classes specific to the sword. The best thing for this age
group to learn is how to properly fall and roll. Tumbling and learning how to roll will prepare them
for any participation in any martial art.
Ages 3 to 6
Children in the 3 to 6 year range are most likely in the class because the parent placed them
there. There are rare occasions where the 5 or 6 year old may have chosen to learn the sword
because of something they’ve seen, such as a video game or movie, that sparked their interest.
Culture may come into play here. In other words, it would not be out of the ordinary for a young
Japanese child to be in sword instruction, even a more intensive class like kendo.
The 3 to 6 year olds are looking for your attention and approval. Small class sizes for these age
groups is suggested to help give each student personal attention.
Only the short sword is
recommended for the 3 to 6 year olds. Unless modified for these children’s size, longer weapons,
such as the bo staff or long sword, are too hard for the children to control. These weapons tend
to be heavier, possibly causing injury to small wrists. These weapons are also longer. Young
students are not always conscious of parts of the weapon they can not see (such as the part of
the bo that is behind them), which can increase potential injury to other children in range.
Three to 6 year olds can be instructed in basic safety. They should be taught not to hit someone
outside of class with the swords. I have learned the hard way that horseplay around the house
with the chanbara equipment, even with adults who have a lot of control, usually ends up with
someone getting their eyes watered, or their nose literally “out of joint.” You certainly don’t want
Johnny going home and beating away on his sister with his newfound sword techniques. The 3
to 6 year old children can also be taught to hit another student only when that student has put on
a protective helmet and gloves.
Good safety behavior can be rewarded with small prizes.
Because children of this age group have fairly short attention spans, the rewards will need to be
given as soon as the good behavior appears in order to be properly related in their minds.
Another reward can be assigning someone to be the “safety monitor”, such as the child who best
exemplifies safe behavior. You can also rotate the assignment of safety monitor for each class,
which also helps to instill the safety message.
Optimally, children in this age range can be taught the proper basic grip of the sword and the 4
basic strikes: head, wrist, body and legs. These strikes should be the simple 12-to-6 o’clock
technique; i.e., raise the sword above the head and swing straight down. The techniques may be
sloppy, but the beginnings of understanding how to swing and where to strike can be understood.
The strikes can be practiced using a dummy.
Another method of teaching the strikes is to use an x-ray picture as a target, or something that
makes a lot of noise when hit. For example, to teach striking the head, have the kids line up all
facing forward. Hold the x-ray in one hand and walk quickly down the line, holding the x-ray at
the students’ head height. Instruct each child to hit the x-ray as you walk by. The advantage of
the x-ray is that it produces a noise when struck, something the kids seem to enjoy. You can vary
the height of the x-ray to teach wrist, body and leg strikes also. Additional advantages of this
simple technique are:
•
patience (the student must learn to wait his or her turn to strike the x-ray)
•
accurate striking distance (correct distance produces a better, louder sound)
•
awareness (both timing awareness from hitting in sequence and awareness of the
location of other students so as not to strike the student next to them).
Ages 7 to 9
Once you get into these ages, you will find more are in sword classes because they have
convinced their parents, who insist on martial arts training, that this is what they want. Many have
seen chanbara and want to engage in it themselves. Young boys in this age range have played
all sorts of games involving mock fighting, such as cowboys and Indians, and will be attracted to
the chance to hit each other with adult permission.
Ages 7 to 9 are still best kept to the short sword. These students have better muscle control than
the 3 to 6 year olds, but can still be prone to forgetting to be careful about accidentally hitting
someone. They still need to stay aware that someone might be standing beside or in back of
them while they are swinging the sword. These children’s wrists, from a strength perspective,
may still be a concern. Be sure to continually remind the students that a strike does not have to
be made with extreme force to be effective.
The ability of the individual student must be taken into account. The chanbara bo staff may be
introduced, especially for the students that have studied the bo outside of sword class. If longer
weaponry or nunchaku are allowed, caution the students to temper the strength they use in their
strikes. The 7 to 9 year olds don’t always realize how hard they are hitting one another.
Because 7 to 9 year olds are able to stay more conscious about safety, the reward system will
need to change. This age group is able to concentrate on one thing longer than the 3 to 6 year
olds and can relate reward issued at the end of class to their behavior during the class. For
example, rewards can be tickets or points that can be saved up and turned in for prizes.
This age group can improve on the basic techniques (head, wrist, body and leg strikes) by adding
diagonal strikes. For the head this would mean strikes to just above the temple area (obviously
while wearing a helmet). For the body, the strikes would be from just under the arm across the
body and down to the waist. Simple blocking techniques can also begin to be taught. The 7 to 9
year old has good reactions and teaching blocking will help to improve their reaction time. It will
also start to teach them to recognize what strikes being made on their body by an opponent look
like. This training starts to prepare them for evasive maneuvers.
A simple game for this age group is “capture the flag”. Place a red flag on one side of the deck.
Place a white flag on the other side of the deck. Divide the kids into two teams of equal size and
ability. The white team must protect the red flag from capture while trying to obtain their white
flag from the red team. Conversely, the red team must protect the white flag from being captured
while trying to obtain their red flag from the white team. Each student has one sword each. If
struck in the arm, they must put that arm behind their back. If struck in the leg, they must drop
down onto that leg (and, thus, can’t move around the deck). If they are struck in the head or
body, they are “dead” and need to get off to one side. The first team to get their team’s flag is the
winner.
Ages 10 to 13
These pre-teens are often found to have approached their parents about joining the sword
classes on their own. They may have friends already enrolled. Most of this age group will be
interested in the softer weapons found in chanbara. Although they find iaido and battodo to be
“cool”, it is rare to find anyone this young who wants to put in the long hours of tedious training to
become proficient.
The 10 to 13 year olds are able to adjust all the strikes. Their attention spans have increased,
thus allowing longer practice sessions on any one technique. This age range also seems to
enjoy one-on-one combat. It is a good time to introduce using two weapons (one in each hand).
Simple games can include contests similar to “King of the Hill.”
This game is conducted by
having the students line up. The first two students in line battle until the first strike occurs. The
loser gets zero points. The winner gets one point and continues on to fight the next student in
line. Again, the winner gets one point, and the loser gets zero. This continues until you reach the
end of the line. At the end, the student with the most points wins. In case of a tie, the students
with the same number of points then battle until a winner is determined.
Generally speaking, at thirteen, students are physically ready to train more intensively, however,
it is important to decide whether they are mentally ready for this jump as well. The instructor
must judge whether they are large enough in stature and mature enough in demeanor to do so.
Ages 14 to 21
As mentioned previously, many in this age group are interested in physical activities. Most of this
age group will have made their own choice to study the sword. Reasons they choose sword are
listed below.
1) The video games available to this age group include many that involve fighting with swords.
These students want to take the experience off the video screen and on to the next level. Be
aware that their reaction times are often quicker than students who do not play video games,
but the down side is that they may have less muscle strength, depending on how much time
they spent playing games versus participating in physical activities.
2) Movies are another big contributor to students of this age deciding to study the sword. They
are still impressionable enough that the action they see on screen seems quite real. Their
ability to fantasize is usually still in tact, depending on the environment they grew up in. It
can be to your advantage to allow these students to do some role playing in class. For
example, let them act out certain characters while sparring in chanbara. They enjoy this
freedom and will lose some of the natural inhibitions they are starting to have at this age.
Ages 21 to 35
The reasons stated for men and women training in the art of the sword apply to this age group.
Individuals who want to learn the sword in this age range are usually serious students. Sword
classes, like any other martial art, lose students when they go to college out of town. Once
students have graduated, they are usually starting jobs or families and do not return until later in
life if at all. The serious student will come back even if a hiatus is taken for college study.
Try to schedule class times that will work within this age group’s availability. In other words,
evening classes may be helpful for these students so that they can work and go to school during
the day. Weekend classes may also be attractive to the working or school student.
Ages 36 and beyond
Students in this age category start training with the sword for only a few reasons.
1) As mentioned in both the men and women categories, they may join classes to be with their
children as they study. Because kombat kenjutsu, chanbara and kendo tend to be more
grueling, challenging and physically demanding (relative to a sport like softball), this is not the
overwhelming reason over-36 year olds join. They would watch on the side rather than
participate in these intense trainings.
2) The sword may be an art in addition to those the student has already studied. The student
may have been involved in open hand martial arts or has only used non-sword weapons.
They may be wishing to expand their knowledge base for purely personal growth reasons, or
they may be considering teaching martial arts and realize that any lesson from any martial art
form can be transferred to another form.
3) Martial arts, specifically the sword, may have been among the things these students always
wanted to try. Children, jobs, family, etc may have prevented them from participating earlier
in life. Many older students who have not studied another martial art or who have been away
from it for some time, find the sword a good match for them. They can practice outside of
class on their own schedule and are usually able to move through the ranking faster because
of their maturity. The sense of accomplishment from learning the sword techniques is also
attractive to most people.
Look at Dawn Barnes information
does it coincide (she’s a big name and well respected)?
Melanie Shuman. Big names
Other Factors that Define the Student
Once you put on a helmet who can tell where you are from and what your background or religious
affiliation is? Although the art of the sword can transcend all political and cultural aspects (e.g., a
Caucasian can fight just as well as someone of Hispanic descent), we are still dealing with people
who always carry their biases with them.
There are a number of biases or factors that affect the behaviors of students. You need to be
conscious of such behaviors to avoid embarrassing situations, increase your ability to positively
affect students’ learning and acceptance of those unlike themselves or prevent loss of students.
Religious Beliefs
Be considerate of the many different religious beliefs that exist in today’s world. There are times
you need to back off from requiring student participation in class activities. For instance, you will
find some religions do not consider meditation practice acceptable. An idea of how to handle this
is to say something like this, “I am about to lead you in a meditation where I will ask you to close
your eyes. For those of you who do not wish to participate, please just close your eyes and sit
quietly until we are finished.” This gives permission for students to participate or not while also
not embarrassing the students who can’t or don’t want to participate. Since you’ve asked all of
your students to close their eyes, no one knows who is or who is not engaging in the meditation.
Generally speaking, religion does not come up in martial arts classes. Be aware that religion, like
politics, can result in heated debates. Keeping these types of subjects off the mat is important.
Debates can escalate to brawls – certainly not the kind of behavior you hope to be teaching!
Cultural Backgrounds
The United States has always been known as the melting pot for many cultures of the world.
Location of your school will play a big roll as to whether or not you are going to be faced with a
wide range of cultural differences in your school. For instance, a dojo in or near a large city
certainly may see more background differences than one located in more secluded rural area.
I’m sure you are aware of the different cultures present in your area. Because the martial arts
business deals with the public, you will actively engage with all kinds of people. Remember that
you have both the opportunity to affect positive change through your example on the deck and
the ability to turn students away from your school by your attitude toward these differences.
Simply consider the complications that can occur just by having two students with different ethnic
backgrounds whose roots tie them to homelands that may be at war. Or think about the polite,
young female Japanese student who is paired up with the six-foot five, testosterone-ridden
twenty-one year old.
Some solutions to the more difficult cultural differences may be the extreme of placing the
students in separate classes or assuring that they are closely monitored when in the same class.
This puts more pressure on you as an instructor, but the ability to effect change is part of your
job. What an opportunity to make the world a better place!
Problems with Parents
The best way to avoid problems with parents is to develop a relationship with them. Obviously
this suggestion applies to younger students (under age 18) whose tuition is being paid by mom
and/or dad. Most often a good parental relationship leads to success for the student and for you.
It is close to impossible to teach the way of life through the sword without touching on areas the
student needs to develop in their life outside of class. We all know that this affects the student’s
ability in class. A good example is the shy student. Although they are often focused in their
practice, sparring becomes a real challenge. Working with the shy student to increase their
presence (stronger perceived presence by those around them), inevitably spills over into the
student’s way of being outside of class.
Others, including the attentive parent, will notice a
change like this, no matter how subtle. It is a good idea to let the parent know that you are
working with their child on a particular aspect that most likely will result in changes in their child
outside of class. Letting the parents know what you are doing and why usually results in a
supportive parent.
When you are in business and dealing with the public, there always comes a time when the
customer (i.e., the parent) and you do not see eye-to-eye. The number of reasons this occurs is
innumerable and impossible to address completely here. We can, however, touch on the most
common problems and suggestions of how to handle these issues.
1) Money. The parents are paying for the classes and no one likes parting with their money.
You must be comfortable with what you are charging and remember that you worked long
and hard to be an instructor and school owner – you deserve to be paid for the service.
Parents may not connect your instruction in class with all the benefits the child is getting
outside of class, such as respect or improved health.
Charge appropriately and let the
complaining parent leave. It is sad to have lost the chance to teach the child, but the fee is
the fee. Some parents will complain about the cost, but they keep sending their child and
paying. Okay…let them complain. Don’t stress about it. We all complain about money.
(Fees will be discussed more in the section Pricing Classes).
2) Ranking. It’s a hard thing to get through the American mind that ranking is not important –
skill is. Adding ranks such as “blue belt, 1 stripe” in between ranks allows you to “promote”
students without having to give rank away. Be creative. You can stick as many stripes
between ranks as you want. Another solution is to give badges for specific achievements
between ranks. These methods tend to appease parents and your students.
3) Instruction.
Some parents have expectations about what their child should be learning
versus what you are teaching them. In some cases the parent has had their own training and
expects all teachers to be the same. A good conversation about what you are teaching and
why will help. Again, most parents are reasonable people. If this is the unique case of an
unreasonable parent, it’s possible they will take their child elsewhere.
The constantly
questioning or meddling parent in regards to your teaching is best going somewhere else
anyway. The amount of time you spend trying to please this parent only takes away from
what you could have been teaching their child or someone else’s child.
LESSON PLANS
Lesson plans are helpful to all instructors and some students. Lesson plans simply record the
techniques in the order in which they will be learned. For the instructor, it is a good guide for
knowing and reminding you of all the information about a technique that must be taught to the
student before the student is ready to go on to another technique. The sword striking techniques
build on knowledge from those previously taught. For example, the strike to the head is taught
first. Once this strike is understood and executed well by the student, you would next teach a
strike to the wrist. The technique for the wrist strike, including how the sword is lifted up, swung
down and stopped, is built upon the knowledge the student gained in learning to strike the head.
Lesson plans also help give the instructor approximate time frames the student will need to
practice in order to correctly perform a technique. This is helpful in determining promotions for
rank. Refer to the Ranking Manuals for the specific sword art you are teaching.
In general, students will be content for you to introduce the next technique when you think they
are ready if you periodically remind or show them what else there is to learn. Doing this prevents
the students from either thinking there is no end in sight or thinking they know it all. Occasionally
a student comes along who wants to know the whole plan from start (white belt) to finish (x
degree of black belt). Giving these students a Lesson Plan tailored for them (considering age,
physical ability, etc), will help keep them engaged. The caution here is that this type of student
can benefit personally (i.e., a life lesson) by not feeding their every need for a plan. In other
words, they don’t need to know exactly what you will be teaching at class that day before you
even begin class. Refer to the Class Manuals for specific lesson plans.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Please note that this section is termed “Personal Development Plan” not “Lesson Plans”. The
point here is to engage the student in their studies of the sword in a holistic sense, rather than
just concentrating on the techniques associated with the sword. Not all students will want or need
Special or Personal Development Plans within the curriculum.
Of course the main reason students have come to the sword instruction classes is to learn sword
techniques – or so they think. The reality is that students should be there to learn technique,
etiquette, respect, and history as they apply to the sword and to their lives. This concept may be
foreign to many of your western-raised students. (It would seem ordinary to most students whose
heritage or teachings are Eastern based).
The Personal Development Plan is designed
specifically for this type of student; i.e., one who is self-focused or not conscious of the bigger
world around him/her and their effect and responsibility for it. This Personal Development Plan
also applies to students who have shown that they require special development planning.
Specific reasons for engaging a student in a Plan include, but are not limited to:
1) Age. Older students are allowed to progress through rank at a faster pace than younger
students.
This is because the older student comes to the class with many more world
experiences than the youth. Remember, the Personal Development Plan is looking at the
student in a holistic sense; world experience gives the older student a leg up.
Another
reason for older students to have a Personal Development Plan is because of their doubt that
they will “make” black belt. They often think it’s too late for such a goal, especially if this is
the first martial art training in their life. Laying out a plan that they can see and agree to will
do two things:
help them obtain their goal (black belt) and keep them coming to class
(retention).
2) Doubt. Obtaining a black belt may seem like an unobtainable goal for some students. For
instance, some younger students or shy students may not be able to see a clear path to get
to the highly coveted black belt and that is why there are so many black belt clubs which keep
retention. They get discouraged and may consider leaving class. For example, in a typical
class situation of attending two times a week, it takes the average American student four
years to achieve a black belt in kendo. For students in this society, that seems like a very
long time. The Personal Development Plan helps to put focus on the art itself rather than the
rank. In most sword arts in Japan, it’s pretty simple – you are either a black belt or you’re
not. Ranking, as will be discussed later, is mostly in place for the goal-oriented, American
mind.
3) Overcoming personal issues.
Some students may come to the class because they are
searching to understand themselves better to overcome a personal issue, such as a chronic
weight problem. It is helpful to create a Personal Development Plan with these students to
give them goals to reach in both technique and maintenance of a weight plan. Remember to
celebrate the achievements. Celebrations keep students motivated and coming back.
4) Addictions. Students who join the class to overcome or replace a less-desirable addiction,
such as drugs, will need to be place on a Personal Development Plan. This Plan will help
you to understand more of what these special students need. Most importantly the Plan
gives recovering addicts something positive to focus on. The evidence that exists to support
the benefits of exercise and martial art training to mental attitude is overwhelming. Giving the
addict specific techniques and homework assignments to work on then rewarding them for
their successes, no matter how small, may make the difference between recovery and
relapse. One example of a homework assignment is to have the student practice a specific
striking technique and then write down the benefits of practicing this particular technique.
Encourage responses that go beyond the physical exercise. This type of homework gets the
student exercising and gets them thinking about themselves in a positive way.
literacy rate is second to none due to the use of this philosophy.
Japan’s
NOTE:
From a legal perspective, unless you have received specific training, you are not a
certified counselor or psychologist. You have plenty to offer in your area of expertise and just as
a fellow human being who has had your own personal issues to overcome. Be cautious not to go
beyond what you are qualified to do or get over involved. The student has a responsibility to him
or herself to learn their own life lessons.
5) Hyperactive students (ADD or ADHD). Training with the sword works really well for persons
that are hyperactive. It is a great way to channel the energy that these students posses into
something positive. They can be the best students in the more freeform arts of kombat
kenjutsu and chanbara. Their energy level and the creativity level that usually accompanies
this energy give them an advantage over most students. Personal Development Plans can
be used to help focus the hyperactive student on areas they need help with while taking into
consideration the lack of a long attention span.
There is great value in providing these
students with a heavy dose of positive feedback. Refrain from criticism – they get enough of
that in every day life. Moreover, the kids will sleep better and be more respectful. This
equates to happy parents that keep coming back.
HINT: The hyperactive person does not worry about thinking through their next move – they just
do it. This makes them much more intense and unpredictable fighters. They generally are harder
to beat than most students. Help these students by not worrying about their lack of technique,
but, instead focus on their creative movements when sparring. Learn from their movements and
see how you can apply them yourself. Remind their parents that their hyperactive kids will sleep
really well at night after an intense chanbara class!
6) Handicaps (mental and physical).
Use of the softer weaponry in chanbara and kombat
kenjutsu allows students that are mentally or physically challenged to participate in a physical
activity where they can go full out without the fear or risk of hurting someone.
Person
Development Plans can be created to address the special needs of these students. For
instance, someone who is wheelchair bound will not need to work on proper foot stance. An
exercise involving motion with the wheelchair could be substituted in the Personal
Development Plan. You may also consider giving a group of these students their own class
or club, such as the Special Dragons.
What is a Personal Development Plan?
A Personal Development Plan will vary from student to student according to individual needs. An
example Personal Development Plan can be found in Appendix A. The format of the Plan is not
as important as the information it contains.
The most important aspect of the Plan is the
conversation that it invokes between you, your student and the student’s parents. You will learn
what the student really wants to learn and why they are in your class. Refer back to “Knowing
and Understanding the Student” to guide you in your discussion with the student, especially if
they are not forthcoming with their reasons for being in your class. Remember, it’s hard to keep a
student coming back to class if you don’t know why they are there in the first place!
Contents
A Personal Development Plan contains both the techniques you would like the student to
concentrate on and specific non-technique areas on which to focus (see Appendix A for more
detail). For example, a student may be having trouble keeping up their grades in school. You
can help keep the student coming to your class, and get buy-in from the parent(s), if you can find
a way to help impact the student’s grades. The Personal Development Plan would address
commitment to practicing sword skills and would require a particular number of hours of study
and a commitment to achieving a certain grade level. The student has to sign the Personal
Development Plan to show that he/she is making an acknowledged commitment. You will also
sign the Personal Development Plan. You and the student (and the parent if they desire) sit
down once per week to review progress to the Personal Development Plan. If the student has
met any of the commitments specified on the plan, such as practicing 20 minutes 3 times per
week, then they are rewarded. The reward can be as simple as verbal recognition for their
achievement or as elaborate as a prize (patch, toy, etc). The reward should be relative in size to
the achievement. In other words, practicing might receive praise and achieving a better grade in
Chemistry might warrant something as simple as lunch at their favorite pizza place.
In the example Personal Development Plan (Appendix A), you will see that items outside of the
dojo are included. This is because your position in the community gives you opportunity to shape
individuals that go beyond the walls of your school. Personal Development Plans that include
community service or charity work help to build the reputation of your school in the community.
Not only is this the right thing to do, but it also provides your school with free advertising.
A more detailed explanation and an example Personal Development Plan is included in Appendix
A.
GROWING THE BUSINESS
One of the most important aspects of growing your business is to first understand and be able to
keep the business you have. A good, solid student base provides you with the stability you must
have before you can grow. Having regular clientele usually leads to more business in and of
itself. Satisfied, happy students will tell others about their experience. What better advertisement
is there than word-of-mouth?
A strong, positive recommendation your students give to their
contacts is a recommendation from someone that that person trusts.
That kind of trusted
advertisement goes a long way.
Conversely, students who have bad experiences at your dojo or in your classes will be vocal
about it.
Humans love to complain, and they do so loudly.
You certainly don’t want them
complaining loudly about your business.
Keeping the Students You Have
It can not be stressed enough that the most important thing about keeping the students you have
is to know why they are there and be able to feed that need. Any of the issues mentioned under
“Problems with Parents” can also be problems with adult students. Avoiding an issue before it
occurs is the best solution. For example, addressing the fee structure right up front by saying
something like, “For this price, you are getting detailed instruction in sword technique, lessons
tailored to your specific needs, learning plans to address your specific concerns or goals, terrific
exercise, a cardiovascular workout, and a safe environment in which you can learn. Not bad for
the money!”
It is okay to treat students differently. In other words, students who are dedicated as shown by
how much they are practicing outside of class deserve to be promoted faster than students who
are not practicing. Publicly recognizing these students for their achievements is appropriate.
An easy trap to get into is spending more time with the wrong students. Students who are
disrespectful or unruly in class may end up getting more of your attention. Be careful not to get
caught in this trap. Don’t short the “good” student to try to “fix” the bad student. Some people
thrive on negative attention just as much as others thrive on positive attention. Try to find ways to
encourage the proper behaviors and give attention to those instead of always trying to correct the
bad. Focus on what result you want to with these students. Is it rewarding the bad behavior by
providing negative attention or is sometimes ignoring the inappropriate behavior and encouraging
the proper behavior patterns?
HINT: Inappropriate behaviors that can sometimes be ignored include talking out of turn or taking
longer than it should to line up at the end or beginning of class. Always pointing these out to the
student is possibly a way this student gets attention. Taking the attention away often results in a
change in behavior. Try strong, positive reinforcement when the student does not talk out of turn
or readies him/herself for class in a timely manner. Students who regularly receive only negative
feedback are often those categorized as having “Attention Deficit /Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
These students respond very well to receiving praise instead of constant correction.
Again, the key to keeping your students coming back is to understand why they are there and
make sure their needs are being met. In addition, every student needs to get some personal
attention from you (or from your instructors) in every class. It sounds tough, especially in large
classes, but you will find your student base stays more stable if you can find a way to do this.
One method is to take five or ten minutes and address every student individually at the end of
class when the students are lined up to bow out. For example, you could tell each student how
they did during class that day (positive feedback and constructive criticism) or give them some
particular skill to work on for the next class. On days that you are unable to spend time during the
class with a student, address them at the end of class by saying, “Johnny, I am sorry that I didn’t
get to work with you during class today. Is there anything in particular you need help with?” Even
if Johnny says, “No”, he at least knows you thought of him and offered him personal attention.
Reasons Students Leave
There are some reasons students leave that you can not control. Some of these reasons are:
1) The student is moving out of town.
2) The student, or in the case of younger students the parent, is no longer able to afford the
classes (loss of job, change in marital status, etc.).
3) The student is graduating high school and is focusing on college (sometimes this is the cause
of another reason for leaving; i.e., could be a move out of town or an affordability issue).
In the cases where the student or the parent is unable to afford the classes due to a change in
marital status or loss of job, you may choose to work with them on a reduced rate to keep the
student rather than losing them altogether. For example, you could have a policy that provides a
“grace period” for someone whose financial situation changes. This grace period would be a
specific length of time that the student can pay a reduced rate. After the grace period ends, the
rate returns to the normal rate paid by the other students.
HINT: Offering discounts needs to be managed. In other words, parents talk to each other. You
should consider a policy on giving discounts before the need arises.
This helps prevent a
situation where two students in the same class with similar financial situations are paying two
different amounts – and the parents talk. The parent paying the higher amount is probably not
going to be happy. If you have taken the time up front to create a policy, you will be able to justify
your actions and be more likely to satisfy them.
Be cautious about offering too many discounts or allowing people to slide on paying on time. As
much as you’d like to be helpful, you can end up going out of business be being too generous.
Then you’re a help to no one. This book can offer you guidance, but only you can decide how to
keep the balance that you and your business can live with.
HINT: Giving back to the community where your business is located is a must. Not only is it
good advertising for your school, but it is the right, humanitarian thing to do. Giving back can be
done in many forms.
Examples are providing free instruction to disadvantage kids, making
donations to local charities, providing scholarships to kids with good grades, donating proceeds
from tournaments to hospital charities, or sponsoring food drives at your school.
Other reasons students leave are in your power to change, if you choose to do so. These
reasons and some suggestions to address them include:
1) Needs are not being met. Remember, students came to a particular class for a reason. You
must know what that is and work to meet that need. See the section addressing this subject,
“Knowing and Understanding the Student”.
2) Not enough personal attention. Students are paying for your time (or your instructors’ time).
They expect that you will be there to teach them, help them and answer their questions.
They will expect it every class. As mentioned in above, find a way to create a reminder to
yourself to do this. It can be as suggested earlier, leave time at the end of class to say
something to every student.
3) Class times are too late or mistimed. It is unusual to hear this complaint unless you have a
class that begins late in the evening and you have students who have to get up the next day
for class or work. Most people have less energy to apply to martial arts in the later hours of
the evening, so it’s good to avoid truly late classes. Classes that end beyond nine o’clock at
night are not recommended.
4) Class times are too long.
If you are keeping the classes balanced between controlled
enough to teach and relaxed enough to enjoy, the participants will not even realize the class
time has expired. Hearing this complaint should cause you to examine the class structure
and material. Is it possible you are not keeping the pace up and your students are bored?
Are you pushing them so hard that they don’t have enough energy to last the entire class?
Are you a task master and not giving the students some time to digest the material?
5) Classes are only held on weekdays or during work hours. Working adults might come if the
classes were held during non-work hours. For classes where you are targeting the adult
market, be conscious to hold some of the classes in the evenings or on weekends. Although
not all adults work outside of the home, many do.
6) Money. The classes are priced too high. Approach this one with caution. Remember, no
one likes parting with his/her money. If you clientele is remaining steady, and you are not
losing a large number of students for this reason, then let them complain.
Keep you
competitions’ pricing in mind.
7) Lack of dedication. Martial arts require practice and time to become proficient. Some people
are more attracted to the idea of being a martial artist and are not willing to put in what it
takes to really become one. Face it: you will lose these people sooner or later. Decide how
much time you are willing to invest to try to get them to change. Once you’re past that point,
let them go.
8) Irritation with other students. Some students want a strict class and some do not. When both
types are in one class you are left with balancing the class time with enough structure to keep
the strict type engaged and enough fun to keep the less formal involved. If possible, suggest
to one of these students that you have another class available that is more appropriate for
their learning style.
If the problem is that some students are just not getting along, you will have to question them
independently to find out what the problem is. Try working with each student alone to correct
the situation. If that does not work you may have to involve the parents (if applicable) or
meet with the students that are not getting along to work it out. It would be great if you could
just teach martial arts, but when people are involved it’s just not that simple.
9) Interference from parents during class. Every once in awhile you will run across a parent
who can’t keep quiet on the sideline and watch. We’ve all seen the over-energetic soccer
dad who just can’t let the coach do their job. Unfortunately, these parents can drive students
in the class (or other observing parents) to leave. Deal with these parents immediately, but
courteously (as much as possible). Ask them to step into your office (or outside if you don’t
have a separate office) and let them know that they can not interfere with your instruction. If
they are unwilling to comply, ask them to leave. The price to pay for not taking the situation
in hand right away could be the remaining students in the class.
10) Injuries. When a student sustains an injury, try to find ways they can continue to participate
in class until they are healed. If a student is gone from class for a long time, they may be
embarrassed to come back because of fear of loss of skill. Keeping them engaged at some
level will help them in the healing process and keep them coming.
Too many injuries may also be a result of bigger or more aggressive students sparring or
practicing without regard to their effect on smaller or less aggressive classmates. Keep an
eye out for this and take steps immediately to correct the situation.
Teach the more
aggressive students to adjust the energy they put into their strikes to match the person they
are practicing or sparring with. Let them know it is an opportunity for them to learn control
and be a better martial artist.
There are times when you will have a student that likes
knowing he/she is aggressive and intimidating to the other students. They are focused on
themselves and come across as if proud of their behavior.
These students are seldom
conscious of how they are affecting their fellow classmates. Because most people do not
want to purposely hurt their classmates, they will be willing to comply with modifying their
techniques. Remind them that they will have no one to practice with if everyone is afraid of
being hurt by them.
The first two reasons cited (needs are not being met and not enough personal attention) will
affect you in ways you may not have considered. For example, your student retention rate, as
well as the number of students you will be able to attract to your school, is often dictated by the
programs in the local grade, junior and senior high schools. Public schools that offer a wide
range of extracurricular activities will encourage the students’ participation.
This student
population is the same population you are targeting for attendance at your schools. Because the
public school has immediate and daily access to these kids, they can easily advertise and use
peer pressure to increase attendance in their extracurricular activities. Public schools in the
United States place a lot of prestige on the basketball or baseball star, but not much on the kendo
brown belt.
The public schools’ extracurricular sports and club programs are one of the biggest contributors
to students leaving your school.
I know of countless school owners that expect reduced
attendance during wrestling and soccer seasons.
Many martial arts schools don’t have the
assets, the time, the expertise or the desire to create a well-rounded program which keeps
students in their classes and away from the other electives available to them. It takes energy on
your part to keep your students feeling both fulfilled and recognized. Fulfillment in a program
creates well-rounded students and results in higher retention rates.
As a school owner you must think of your school as a business and no different (in a business
sense) than a successful restaurant, barber shop or hair salon. The most profitable restaurants,
barber shops and hair salons have owners/operators who know that their business depends on
their charismatic ability and the services offered by their businesses. They know that every
patron must be made to feel special and important. This attitude keeps their clients loyal and
coming back over and over, resulting in revenue they can count on. Whether it is you, your head
instructor or your office help who personally interfaces with students and parents, it all comes
back to you – it all affects your business. Choose your instructors and employees with this in
mind: charismatic teachers keep students and bad office help can lose students. Classes lose
students because the instructor lacks charisma and parents leave if your office staff is not easy
and helpful to deal with.
Remember, you can’t please everyone and someone will always be unhappy.
suggesting that you become a slave to your students’ desires.
I am not
I am suggesting that some
changes may be beneficial to both you students and your school.
Listen to the feedback and “hall” talk before and after class. Many students may not confront you
with their desires, but they will talk to their fellow students. Either keep you own ears open or ask
someone you trust to listen for the feedback you need to make things better for your students.
You can use a suggestion box, but most people won’t take the time to write their requests down.
Verbal feedback needs to be given attention.
HINT: If you take nothing else away from this section, take this: the key to keeping your students
coming back is to provide instruction that addresses why they are there and every student needs
to get some personal attention from you (or from your instructors) in every class.
Increasing the Student Base
Growing the business requires either adding more students or adding more classes that attract
your current students to spend more money at your school.
Adding More Students
Getting more students means that you have to reach them with the news that your school exists
in the first place. That means advertising. There are many ways to advertise. A few are:
newspaper, telephone book, local throw away papers, throw away value cards (the kind that are
mass mailed), flyers, posters, coupons, business cards, bulletin boards, internet forums, mass
mailings, door to door, billboards, radio, local television stations, networking (through school,
church, businesses & other organizations), and clubs.
Advertising can be quite expensive. The least expensive form of advertising is your current
student base. As mentioned before, happy, energized students talk about their experiences at
your school. Arm them with “buddy passes” to give to their friends and fellow students or coworkers for a week’s worth of free classes.
To try to avoid overspending on advertising, be sure to keep track of the source your new
students use to find you. Spend your money on only those sources that really pay off. Stay local.
Advertising beyond the distance where students will be willing to drive to get to your school is a
waste of money. In small towns or regions the local paper may be an attractive way to advertise.
In a large city, target the newspaper(s) that will be read in your immediate area – again, within the
distance where your clientele is willing to drive to your school. Posters hung at local schools or in
local businesses also help. Billboards can be pricey, but often pay off.
Another way to inform potential clients of your school is to perform demonstrations. Get your
students involved to do the demonstrations. These can be done at schools, at movie theaters
(especially when martial arts movies are being released), in the malls or just out front of your
school. Consider having the local radio station there, on air, giving away free classes.
Allowing the public to be spectators at your tournaments is a good way to both make money for
the school (from small admission fees) and to advertise. You never know what potential student
is sitting in the audience.
Whatever form of advertising you decide on, you must put out effort to keep the business
growing. That means either you must do it yourself or you must pay someone to do it. Basically
it comes down to this: the more personal time you put into advertising, the less money you will
put out. However, the more of your time you put into advertising the less time you have available
to dedicate to teaching and working with your clientele. The bottom line is that you will have to
dedicate 10 to 20% of your time to advertising your school or establishment. Whether the time is
spent writing, designing an advertisement, creating a poster or visiting a local school to do a
demonstration, you will need at least this much time to do it well and make it pay off.
For planning purposes use these figures are provided as guideline:
1) The average martial arts periodical costs between $1500 to $3000 per full-page ad.
2) Yellow page advertisements the size of a business card run between $600 and $1000 per
month.
3) Radio advertisements that air 24 times and are of 30 to 60 seconds duration cost $1800 per
week.
If you can’t afford this type of advertising, it is wise to stay in smaller, throw away papers (flyers
and local papers).
Adding More Classes
Adding more classes can be done in a few different ways. One way is to add more class times
for the classes you already have. These additional classes allow more students to attend the
school and may even hit on a time when a potential student can now make a class where they
previously had a time conflict. Additional class times may also attract your current students’
attention. In other words, students who are currently enrolled in Karate at the same time you are
conducting the chanbara class may find the additional times allow them to attend both.
The only bad thing about adding more classes is your time frame will be more involved in
teaching the class instead of dedicating your time to advertising (growing the school), unless you
delegate to your senior instructors. If you don’t have any senior instructors then you don’t have
much choice but to put in the time; i.e., you must wear many hats to become known in your
community.
HINT:
Although you may not charge extra for students to attend multiple classes, their
attendance in more than one class or martial art tends to keep them more interested and,
therefore, they stay at your school for longer. In fact, most people really like the idea of paying
one price and being able to attend more than one class. They feel like you are giving them a gift,
and they will tell other potential clients about your school.
Another way to add classes is to add curriculums you don’t currently offer. For example, if you
offer chanbara, you could add iaido or kendo. Another option is to offer a sword forms class,
which is a basic class in how to hold and swing the sword. It is a simple class to teach and can
be done by anyone without much physical exertion. This could draw in clientele that might not
otherwise be interested in sword study.
Additional classes serve two purposes: students out of your current base are encouraged to
attend and students you don’t even have yet are attracted to your school.
HINT: The benefit of new students is more than just the dues they bring in. It expands to the
people they come in contact with (advertising) who will now be exposed to the fact your school
exists and the revenue that they will bring in.
Adding an advanced class that is by invitation only can also be beneficial. Refer to the discussion
on “Advanced Classes” in the next section.
HINT: If you have a small school and you want it to pay for itself, you must bring in lots of
students.
Be careful not to limit yourself by picking creating a school that is too small to
accommodate larger class sizes, choose a location that is not easy to find or easy to access, or
too far away from the main core of the community or communities where your students live.
STRUCTURING CLASSES
There are many aspects to structuring your classes. You must decide on how you want to
structure:
1) Class length
2) Group classes
3) Advanced classes
4) Individual training classes
5) Pricing
Class Length
The length of classes is generally dependent on three things: the art being taught, the age of the
students and the level (rank) of the students. A good rule of thumb is 50 minutes per class. This
timing allows you to host one class an hour with 10 minutes in between to interface with parents,
get a rest room break or return phone calls. As you can see below, the 50-minute timeframe will
often need to be increased to allow enough time for the students to really engage in their study or
simply to answer the desire of students to spend more time working together.
Dependency on the Art
Class times vary by school and the school’s style and teaching system. A class in Japan will be
1.5 to 2 hours. However, in Japan the sword studies are a way of life, not a business. The
classes are often taught with no money exchanging hands. In North America martial arts are a
business and have to adhere to more rigid schedules and require payment. So it is suggested
that you keep your classes shorter, roughly 50 minutes. This allows you to fit more classes in
and to recover between classes.
kendo, due to its use of bogu (armor) and the length of time it takes the average person to
correctly learn the techniques, will require longer class times. By the time you properly warm the
students up and they get their bogu on, a good 15 to 20 minutes of class time is gone.
kombat kenjutsu and youth chanbara is so enjoyed by the students and so active that participants
don’t even realize how much time has passed. Many people don’t want the class to be over!
These students often request longer class times. Consider holding these classes at the end of
the day so that you can extend the class times.
Tameshigiri requires lots of time, a slow pace and your undivided attention due to its dangerous
nature. Providing longer class times gives you the chance to attend to everyone properly. In
addition, the actual cutting should take place outside, so you may need more time to get to the
proper location.
Dependency on Students’ Age
Younger students have shorter attention spans and will need to be in classes of shorter duration.
The older, more mature students will be able to tolerate (or even request) longer class times.
Students under the age of 13 should continue to take the standard, 50-minute class. Even in
these shorter-length classes, you will need to change subject matter and activities about every 15
to 20 minutes. In other words a 50-minute class with young students will need three to four
different activities planned. For example in a chanbara class, you could start the class with an
exercise that involved jumping back and forth across the practice surface (warms up lower body
and works on strengthening the leg muscles), next have the students practice a strike to the head
while watching themselves in the mirror (instructs where to stop the strike to successfully hit the
head; the mirror provides immediate feedback), then use the kodachi or short sword to hit a
stationary practice dummy (teaches strikes while in motion), and end class with sparring (allows
students to practice the techniques in a “real” situation).
Students over 13 years of age should be given class instruction on blocking training and strike
training (kendo, chanbara) or techniques training (kendo, chanbara, iaido, Tameshigiri) in the
standard 50-minute class. Longer class times should be added when sparring (kendo, chanbara)
or cutting (Tameshigiri) is involved. Lengthier classes can also be used to work on correcting
techniques periodically. It is not suggested to use class time to do this on a weekly basis. There
is no reason to tie yourself up in lengthy classes just to watch and correct the students as they
practice. They need to take the responsibility to correct themselves and not always look to you to
do it for them.
Longer classes can be as short as one and one-half hours to 3 or more hours in length. Having
classes of these longer durations should be held either once a week or less to avoid student
burnout. There is enough finesse involved in any of the sword arts that time outside of class to
perfect techniques is required.
HINT: Teaching too much too quickly does not help the student learn better. In fact it usually
results in a lot of poor technique that needs to be corrected. Unlearning techniques that have set
into muscle memory is difficult. It is better to take the time to learn things right the first time.
Dependency on Students’ Rank
As students become more proficient and more advance in rank, you should consider adding a
class every week or every other week of longer duration. The longer class gives you time to
focus on your most dependable students (those who have been with you long enough to be the
advanced students). Longer classes also allow you to get the time to practice with each and
every student individually. They will appreciate the extra personal attention. This can prevent
students who might have been thinking of leaving to stay. It also gives them a status that the
less-experienced students do not have. This will both honor your more advanced students and
give the lower-ranking students something to strive for.
Use the longer duration classes for the higher ranks to work on their understanding of the more
advanced techniques. You can also use these classes to begin to instruct them how to teach
others. Hints or tricks you have learned that help you instruct can be passed down. Begin to see
which of them may be interested in becoming an instructor.
HINT: Learn from these students. This is a golden opportunity to find out why students stay with
you and your school. Why are they here? What about this particular martial art attracts them?
But remember take it all with a grain of salt since everybody likes to complain. What do they like
about your school (or how you teach) most? What would they change? Use the information you
gain from these students to keep the other clientele and to grow your business.
Group Classes
More difficult studies, such as kendo, tend to attract fewer students. Iaido, until some of the more
advanced states are reached, can also entertain different skills levels in the same class. It may
be impractical for you to have a separate class for each rank, even small groupings of ranks, or
each age group. When attendance is small it is more practical to group several levels of students
in one class.
Having many different ranks in one class puts more strain on you. The more varied the levels in
one class, the more organized you will need to be. Keeping track of what each student’s rank is,
what they should be working on and making sure everyone in the class gets the instruction they
need are just a few of the stresses mixed classes will put on you.
Although it is true that there are issues with mixed classes, there are advantages also. For
example, you can engage the more advanced students to teach the newer students. This has
several advantages:
1) The new students are being taught the basics (how to bow, how to stand, how to hold a
sword, etc) without taking a lot of your time. This frees you up to help perfect the basics
rather than teaching them from scratch.
2) You can observe how well the advanced students learned the basics, and we all know how
important the basics are, helping you to see where you need to spend more time with the
advanced students to correct anything they may have missed. This also helps you to see
where you might have “holes” in your teaching. In other words, if several of your students are
either missing some information on a technique or are displaying the technique consistently
wrong, you may need to modify how you’ve been instructing that particular technique.
3) With both you and your students instructing, you are providing more instruction coverage
since you and your more advanced students are teaching simultaneously.
In some classes grouping is not significant. For example, chanbara can have several different
skills in one class. Chanbara is the great equalizer. Barring extremes (i.e., 6 foot 6 inch, 21 year
old guy versus 5 foot, 50 year old women) it doesn’t matter what sword art is your specialty, what
age you are or what gender.
Chanbara helps to even out the differences.
Even extreme
differences can be more equalized, but not totally removed. For this reason it is acceptable to
mix various levels in one chanbara class. The advantage to the better students is the chance to
work on their control (not hitting as hard) and an opportunity to instruct. The advantage to the
less experience or less proficient students is the chance to spar with someone more skilled
(sparring with someone better than you pushes you to be better) as well as providing an
opportunity to learn more techniques from a wide variety of people and styles.
Advanced Classes
Even in small class sizes, it is a good idea to hold separate classes for the more advanced
students. As mentioned earlier, giving these students personal attention is quite important. They
have stayed dedicated to you, your school and themselves enough to reach the advanced level.
So many students leave after a short period of time, having taken from you and not remained
loyal. This bunch deserves to be rewarded with a little more of your attention
Holding a separate class for only the advanced students gives them some prestige. It gives the
students who are just coming up in rank another thing to strive for. It is a great reward for a
student, who has been working hard and coming regularly to class, he/she is invited to attend the
advanced class.
HINT: Even if you have enough clientele to support multiple levels of classes, holding the special
advanced class that the student can only attend by invitation (versus obtaining a certain rank) will
give the advanced class special status.
Individual or Private Classes
Offering private classes is always a good idea. So often in the larger classes you feel you are
almost wasting your time because you know which students are just checking things out and are
not serious enough to stay for long. The students who request private lessons are your most
serious, dedicated students. They can’t get enough and are willing to pay for more time with you
as their sole student. The only exceptions to this are the young student that is forced into private
lessons by mom or dad and those who don’t think you’re giving them the lessons fast enough.
Be leery of these students. There’s not much you can do about Sally’s parents wanting her in
private lessons (besides trying to talk the parents out of it), but you have more than just the
techniques to worry about with the student who isn’t feeling satisfied by the “normal” class
structure. This student may want to know more faster, but not be taking the time to truly learn
and become proficient at what he already has been taught.
HINT: Don’t be afraid to be blunt with the student who thinks he/she should be given more
knowledge faster. They need to learn how important mastery of the basics is. All techniques are
variations on the basic strikes (head, wrist, body, and legs) and the one thrust. To not take the
time to perfect these techniques means that the student will have a weak foundation. Anything
learned on a weak foundation is also weak. Give the visual example of building a weak house
foundation. The walls built on this weak foundation can be made of the best material out there,
but they are no more stable than the foundation.
Pricing Classes
There are many fee structures that you can use. The biggest factor when establishing prices is to
know what your local market can bear.
In other words, prices that work in down town Los
Angeles may not be affordable in rural Kansas.
The second factor to know is what your
competition is charging. Unless you are providing some additional service, special service or if
you are exceptionally better than other instructors and schools in your area, you will need to keep
your prices compatible with your competition.
Fees for group classes can be charged by the class, by the month, for six months, or by the year.
It’s your choice, but consider discounts for paying up front for the year or even six months.
Offering discount for payments up front encourages your students to pay in advance. Once paid
for, most students will be more likely to attend the classes regularly. Of course this gives you
many advantages such as knowing who to expect for class (makes establishing lesson plans
easier) or providing revenue up front (improves cash flow or it can be invested).
Generally
speaking, at the time of this printing, 50-minute classes taught two to three times per week in a
city area should not be priced any higher than $100 per month.
HINT: Charging less for classes makes the classes available (financially speaking) to a wider
range of income levels. More people attending, even if they are paying less per person, will result
in higher revenues in the long run. Consider the side benefits, word of mouth advertising (more
people telling more people how great the lessons are) or the fact that lower prices will keep them
coming longer (retention). On the contrary, if you charge more for the lessons, then your class
size may decrease. However, you can balance out the lost revenue by adding different clubs
(e.g., the black belt club, advanced class program, Little Ninja programs, etc.) and charging fees
for membership in these clubs or programs.
You decide which works best for you after
considering what the local market demands are.
Group classes should be priced lower than individual, private lessons.
Private lesson rates can
be applied when you are teaching one or two students at a time. These can range anywhere
from $30 per hour to $100 per hour or more. Again, you need to know what the market will bear.
If you are the only expert in your area in a certain skill, you will be able to charge more than if you
are one of many with the same expertise. One system actually bases the hourly rate on the
degree of black belt teaching the class. In other words, a fifth degree charges $50 per hour, a
sixth degree charges $60 per hour and so on.
Remember the revenue you receive from teaching classes is not pure profit. Much of the income
will need to be rolled back into your business for advertising, paying taxes, equipment and paying
bills (electric bill, phone bill, etc). It is a good idea to take a class to learn about running your own
business or hire an accountant who can advise you. Hiring an accountant is cheaper in the long
run and much less frustrating during tax time. You should know what records to keep and in what
form. Neither the local or federal governments are very forgiving when it comes to paying your
taxes on time! If you are not organized either learn to be or get someone to help you.
If you need help to keep your financial records in order and your billing done accurately, consider
either hiring an accountant (if you can afford one) or investing in the many financial systems
(Tommy Lee has a highly advertised billing service) that exist on the market to educate yourself.
ATTIRE
The standard attire for people who are learning and practicing sword arts is generally called a
kendogi. The word “dogi” comes from a combination of two words: “dojo” and “gi”. In other
words, dogi is like saying dojo’s wear. Dogi is often referred to as keikogi or practice (keiko) wear
(gi). However, keikogi is not the most proper verbiage, but it is the common term for practice
wear. The terms that are most used by professional martial artists are Uagi (oo-aah gee, which is
the top and hakama, which are the pants. When you break down the complete dogi. The dogi or
uagi is the top. The uagi looks very similar to the standard gi top used for karate, except it is
usually thicker and longer. The hakama or pants are often mistaken for a long skirt because the
pant legs are quite wide. The attire is often called simply as “hakama” when referring to wearing
the entire outfit (uagi and hakama). Refer to the sections “Uagi” and “Hakama” for more detailed
information.
HINT:
Belts that signify rank are not worn with the hakama.
This would be like wearing
suspenders and a belt – one is redundant. Remember, in most of the sword arts in the Orient,
you are either a black belt or you’re not.
For a period of time (one to six months) consider allowing new students to wear loose clothing in
class.
Until students make a long-term commitment to the martial arts, investing in a gi or
hakama may just be a waste of money. The important thing in the beginning is that the clothing is
loose enough to allow the student to move freely. Watch the length of the pants students wear so
they don’t come to class with long pant legs that they can easily trip over. For the shirts, suggest
either t-shirts or something out of similar material that is no more than ¾ length in the sleeve.
Anything longer just gets in the way or, when using weapons, caught by the handle.
After no more than six months, request that the students purchase the proper attire.
It is
respectful for the students to purchase the clothing through your school. This allows you to set
the standard on the clothing your students wear. Inside your own school consider how your
classes look when someone comes to visit. Doesn’t it make a better impression if everyone is
dressed similarly instead of a mixture of sweats and torn t-shirts?
Outside the school your
students are a representation of both you and your school. You want that impression to be a
good advertisement for both.
If you are going to provide uniforms, you need to locate a good, reliable source. This is important
for getting consistent service from your uniform supplier. You want to know that you are getting
the best quality you can for a reasonable price as well as know that your clothing orders are going
to arrive when you expect them to arrive. Once students decide to purchase the proper class
attire, you don’t want to keep them waiting for days or weeks on end. Remember, your reliable
source should sell to you wholesale. You sell to your customers retail and are responsible for
paying the taxes on the sales. Again, good record keeping will make things much easier on you.
HINT: Selling clothing through your school provides an additional source of revenue for you.
However, you should not place a heavy mark up on the wholesale cost. If you do, your students
may decide to purchase attire somewhere else. This results in inconsistent clothing being worn
by your students and loss of potential revenue.
Considerations for Youths
You may want to make an exception to the policy regarding attire for the younger students.
Although a gi can be purchased fairly inexpensively, sword students will need a hakama and
uagi. This attire can cost anywhere from $130 to over $500. For students who are still growing,
this price may seem steep to parents. Allowing the younger, growing students to where a plain gi
should be acceptable. Serious students, event youths, often will convince their parents to invest
in the gi or pay for it themselves just so they can conform to what the other students are wearing.
There are definite plusses to wearing the hakama (hiding the sword, hiding your leg position and,
therefore, your next move) that everyone wants to take advantage of!!!
Considerations for Students from Other Martial Arts
When students are taking the sword as a way to expand on their martial arts knowledge, they will
be coming to your class already equipped with a gi. If they intend to take up the sword study for a
long period of time (versus just dappling the art to see what they can apply to their area of
expertise), ask them to get the uagi and hakama.
Wearing Belts that Signify Kyu
When students are wearing a gi to class, it is acceptable for them to wear a belt that they have
acquired from some other martial art. If they are wearing a gi as a stop gap until they purchase a
uagi and hakama, then it is also acceptable for the student to wear a belt to show rank. However,
most students who are regularly earning belts should be encouraged (if not required) to wear a
hakama.
When the student is dressed in the hakama, they will not wear any belt for rank. As will be
discussed later in the section on ranking, rank below black belt in sword arts is irrelevant.
KEIKOGI aka UAGI
Uagi and hakama are made out of many different kinds of materials and come in different sizes.
Personnel taste always plays a role in picking the attire that is right for you. In other words, some
people have preferences in color and some in type of material.
HINT: Both color and material affect how you feel and, consequently, how you look in your
uniform. It is a well-documented fact that people who are most comfortable with their appearance
outperform those who do not feel good about how they look. The last thing you or your students
want to be worried about is how they look. All thought should be on technique and sizing up our
opponent, not distracted with your lack of confidence in how you look!! Keep this in mind when
selecting the uniform standard(s) for your school.
Sizing the Uagi
The uagi should not fit too snug, much the same as the gi worn when practicing the majority of
martial arts. The uagi should come down to around the middle of your thigh (approximately
where your fingers touch your thigh when your arms are relaxed by your side). This is because
the sides of the hakama are open and the uagi is all that comes between your bare upper leg and
the eyes of the entire world on your leg. The arms of the uagi should come down to just below
your elbow to 5 or 6 inches above your wrist. Keeping these measurements (overall top and
length of the sleeve) in mind, the height and weight of the person must also be considered. In
other words, a tall thin person may wear the same size as someone who is shorter and stockier.
The uagi would come down further on the shorter, stockier person’s thigh than it would on the
taller, thinner person.
Since the uagi needs to be loose enough to move freely but fit enough to have too much extra
material to tuck into the hakama, it is best to pick a uagi that is sized by number rather than sized
as small, medium or large. It is true that the small, medium and large sized uagi will cost less, but
they are usually of lower quality material and don’t fit as well. Since you will have a variety of
student sizes in your classes, you are better off spending a little more and getting uagi that fit
better. Your students will be happier in the long run.
Most numbering systems for uagi range from size 0 to size 6, with 0 being the smallest. As a
rough guide, most people will require a size 3, 4 or 5. These sizes handle most people from 5
feet 5 inches to 6 feet and 125 to 185 pounds. ***check sizes
Uagi Materials
Uagi are usually made from cotton or cotton blends. They are often double layered, with the
inner layer made to get absorb the sweat and transfer it away from your body. The more modern
uagi are now designed with synthetics for the inner layer to improve sweat absorption.
The
thickness of the uagi is often more than the standard gi worn for karate. This extra thickness is
actually an advantage when sparring as it provides a little bit more protection to the skin when
struck with a choken or shinai. The price of the uagi will be determined by layering (single or
double) and type of material. Expect to pay about $90 to $200 retail.
Putting on the Uagi
The uagi may come with one or two set of strings, which are used to secure the uagi on your
body. The uagi is to be worn with the left side on top of the right side because that is how it’s
been done for centuries. The wear is certainly not a fashion statement; it is practical wear.
1) Hold the uagi by placing your hands on the collar. Take the uagi and shake it out. Lift it up it
front of you.
2) Put the uagi on so that it is open in the front by putting your right arm in first then your left
(like your putting on a coat).
3) Grab the right front collar and fold the right side across your stomach. If there is a string
attached, tie it to the string that will be found on the inside seam on your left side. A simple
bow is good.
4) Lay the left side on top of the right side by bringing it across your chest. Tie the string on the
left side with the one found on the upper chest on the right side. Again, a simple bow is
good.
5) Make sure the top is log enough. As mentioned before, when your arms are relaxed at your
sides, your fingertips should touch the bottom of the uagi.
Colors and Significance
Throughout the world of martial arts there are many cultures that dictate their own types of attire,
styles and techniques. For example, in Western society people find it disrespectful to wear white
to a funeral, but you would quite possibly see white at funerals in the Orient or in the Middle East.
Today when Westerners practice martial arts, they might wear outfits and practice techniques that
their Eastern counterparts could never do. This is due to the capitalistic ways Westerners market
their products to the people. For example there is not as much rigidity concerning the colors and
styles of martial arts clothing when it comes to dealing with Americans. Just take a look at any
martial arts catalogue in the United States and you will see colorful and flashy attire. In Los
Angeles there are some martial artists who wear capes to tournaments!
In traditional kenjutsu, kendo and other combative sword arts, the basic colors are deep navy
blue, black and white. This holds true with traditional swording attire like the uagi. However, in
the United States the uagi color is dependent on what is on the today’s eclectic market or in the
catalog. In the sword art of iaido the color of the uagi or keikogi is often dependent on personal
preference. For example, the uagi or keikogi may be green, black or multi-colored.
It is more common to see color variations with the hakama more so than the uagi.
HINT: If you were to practice your art in another country, you would follow the colors dictated by
that country. Be conscious of the colors you wear. For instance, in feudal Japan, wearing all
white (uagi and hakama), meant that you were preparing to commit Sepuku.
Washing
For the optional, colorful uagi that are on the market today, follow the washing instructions that
come with the uagi. For the traditional navy blue kendo uagi, you will want to wash it by itself.
The dye used to achieve the deep navy blue color runs unbelievably. The best thing to do is to
add about a ¼ cup of salt to the water when washing the navy blue uagi for the first time. This
actually helps to set the dye and keep the color from running as much. Beware, the uagi will run
for several washings.
HINT: Beware that most of the uagi and keikogi are prone to shrinkage since they are usually
made from cotton materials. It is best to avoid the dryer! Let your attire air dry. In more humid
climates you may need to set the attire outside (avoid direct sunlight to prevent fading) to speed
up the drying process. The more expensive uagi and keikogi are thick and can sour (like an old
dish rag used in the kitchen) if left to dry too slowly. It is very difficult to remove the sour smell.
HAKAMA
Hakama, like uagi, should also be sized to fit the person. A person’s height and leg length will
drive the length of the hakama. Their weight and waist size will also be factors.
Sizing the Hakama
The hakama should come down to between mid-calf level and the top of the ankle bone.
Anything longer is a trip hazard. Anything shorter does not adequately hide the feet and leg
position, something that can give an opponent a clue as to your next move. If the hakama is too
long, a seamstress can hem the hakama for around $15 or $20.
Hakama are sized by number or as small, medium and large. As with uagi, it is suggested that
those that can be obtained as a size are the better option. This allows a person’s height and
weight to come into the equation. Just like the uagi, the sizes usually range from 0 to 6. Largewaisted individuals may have to order a larger size and have the hakama hemmed. Often the
hakama and uawgi come as a package deal. So the size of the hakama will be the same as the
uagi.
Hakama Materials
Materials such as polyester/rayon blends are used for the least expensive hakama. Better quality
hakama are from cotton (higher thread count cotton like 10,000 per inch), cotton blends and
denim. There are some newer materials coming on the market for hakama. Until they have been
around long enough to know, the functionality of these synthetics is questionable. As with any
new item, they will most likely improve with time.
Putting on the Hakama
1) The front of the hakama has several pleats. The back of the hakama has one large pleat in
the center. Hold the hakama in front of you like you would hold a pair of jeans out in front of
you before you put them on. Grab the wide straps off the front waistband and step into the
hakama with your left foot, then your right foot. Adjust the uagi such that it stays flat against
your body, like you’re tucking in a shirt tail. Pull up the hakama until the waistband rests just
below you navel.
HINT: Because people have a wide variety of waist sizes, the exact placement of the hakama will
vary from person to person for proper fit.
2) Continuing to hold the wide straps on either side of the front waistband, being careful to not
twist them, lay the straps against your waist and pull them around to the back of your body.
3) Cross them at the center of your back. Continue to lay them against your waist, pull the
strings around until they cross in front of your navel or slightly to the side of the front. They
should cross such that they form an “x”. Pull the straps firmly against your body and then pull
the straps up and back. Take them back behind you until they are at the center of your back
and tie them in a bow at the center of your back.
The bigger the bow the more the volume
you get in the back (like a bustle). This helps to give the hakama the correct lines. As a
general rule, the straps on the side of your waist should lie on top of each other so that they
look like one strap. The example below shows straps that are improperly placed.
These straps are not lying on top of each other to make one line
Bow at the back (center lower part of the back)
4) Pick up the back of the hakama by grasping the wide straps. If the hakama has a tang, place
it inside of the bow.
This keeps the hakama in place even if the strings were to come
undone.
5) Place the stiff backboard of the hakama (the koshiita) above and resting on the knot you
made in step 3. Make sure the koshiita feels snuggly pressed against your lower back. Use
the straps that are attached to the back waistband to pull it against you. The snug fit helps to
force you to stand more upright.
6) Pull the straps forward so that they are at the front of your navel.
7) Push the right strap down underneath and adjacent to the previous cross section (the “x”) and
pull it down and through. Repeat this with the left strap on the left side of the “x”. This is
done to make sure that the hakama stays on even if the straps come untied.
8) Pull the straps so that the waistband is taut, and make a square knot with the straps.
HINT: Up to now all the steps are common to all styles and regions in Japan. The following
steps denote which tie is used depending on the part of the country you are in.
9)
Center the straps in front of your navel. Several methods to tie the straps are acceptable. A
simple knot or a complex bow is allowed. If a knot is used, remember to place the remaining
straps along the waist in line with all the other straps. Tuck the remaining straps in behind
the back of the hakama so they can not be seen.
In the following steps a simple bow is demonstrated. Remember there are an endless numbers
of bows.
1)
Grasp the left strap and fold the end back toward you. The fold should be about equal to the
width of two straps.
2) Keep folding the strap toward you until you run out of strap.
3) Flatten the rolled strap against you in front of the center of your navel and on top of the right
strap. The rolled strap should be horizontal.
4) Grasp the right strap and pull it up and over the top of the left, rolled strap.
5) Tuck the right strap in behind the rolled strap.
Pull it through until it comes out from
underneath the rolled strap.
6) Do this one more time. Place the end under the rolled strap.
HINT: If an obi (the belt to hold scabbards) is to be worn, it is put on before (underneath) the
hakama. Note: If you wear an obi, the knot should be placed in the back. If you want to learn
more about the obi, refer to the iaido Manual.
Colors and Significance
As discussed in the section on uagi, there are many cultures that dictate their own types of attire,
styles and techniques. As westerners, you might choose a more colorful hakama, dependent on
what’s on the market today.
In traditional kenjutsu, kendo and other combative sword arts, the basic color is deep navy blue.
For example all kendo students in Japan who are not women or children wear the navy blue
because it is consistent with the art.
Anything else would be seen as out of place (non-
traditional).
In iaido there is less pressure to conform to drab colors since the iaido organizations are smaller
and not run by the stringent guidelines of the Japanese Department of Education and the All
Japan kendo Federation. They have their own styles, which have been around for centuries. In
many of the iaido styles colorful attire is as important as their sword.
HINT: Remember to be conscious of other country’s or region’s color preference. “When in
Rome do as the Romans do.”
Washing the Hakama
In order to maintain the pleats, turn the hakama inside out, place it in a wash bag or pillow case,
and throw the hakama in the washer. In Japan if you do not do this, the pleats may lose the
sharp lines they have when first purchased because their washing machines are not as delicate
as those found in the United States. In America pull the hakama out of the washer, stretch it out
to reshape it (like a sweater), adjust the pleats, let it air dry, and, if needed, iron it.
HINT: Like the uagi, most of the hakama are prone to shrinkage since they are made from cotton
materials. It is best to avoid the dryer! Allow the hakama to air dry by hanging it up from the
waistband. This also helps to let the pleats fall back into place. If you intend to use the dryer,
buy a larger size. After the first couple of washings & dryings, it will have shrunk all it is going to.
CAPITAL INVESTMENTS
To start your own school you will need to determine and find a location as well as fund the
location and purchase of some equipment, supplies and services. These include a building or
room to teach in, gear used in your classes and operating supplies for the business.
Space
The most obvious capital investment is the building you will need in order to teach.
Many
business owners decide to lease instead of purchasing their own building to house their school.
There are advantages to leasing or renting, such as not being responsible for the upkeep of the
building, the ability to move when you outgrow a place or some tax write-offs. There are also
advantages to buying your own place. These include not having to deal with a landlord and
increased rents. There are also disadvantages to both. Leasing means you are not able to make
major changes to the layout of the space. When you own your own space you are responsible for
all of the upkeep. For example, if you do buy your own building then 20 years down the road
when you retire, you will have an asset to sell.
Your personal financial situation must be taken into consideration. It is best to work with a trusted
accountant, financial advisor or tax consultant before making the decision to lease, rent or buy.
Even doctors after all their years of schooling and training may not necessarily have the
knowledge or understanding to run a business. They will take classes before setting up their own
practices.
Flooring
Regardless of which martial art you are instructing at your school, the type of flooring you choose
is important. There are several companies out there with many floor covering choices. You can
stick with the basic thick mat, the mats that simulate tatami (Japanese floor covering) or keep a
wood floor. In North America most students will not be receptive to the traditional Japanese wood
floor for practice, so you will probably opt for some type of thick mat. Also, using mats allows you
to instruct other martial arts that employ extensive floor work, such as judo or karate.
Moreover a hard floor covering will offer you higher insurance rates whereas mats will show proof
that if someone slips or falls they will not crack a bone on the hard flooring.
Equipment
Relative to sword instruction, the capital outlay is for the type of sword(s) you will be instructing
and its protective gear. It is best to have a few bokutou, shinai, choken, or whatever type of
sword is applicable to your school available for new students to use. Otherwise, the students
who choose to stay in training should purchase their own equipment for practice. One exception
is the shinken or katana. You will only need to keep a couple of these on hand for Tameshigiri. It
is suggested that you purchase a practical and a practical plus katana for about $250 to $400
each. Any and all students that are ready for Tameshigiri can use these swords until they are
ready to purchase their own. Be aware that good katana will run upwards of $800 to way more
than $1500.
Depending on your expected class size, you will want to have enough swords for the entire class,
just in case. It will not be easy to convince someone how much they enjoy the sword if you can’t
put one in their hands to try. Therefore it is wise to have a large selection of wooden bokutou on
hand which are relatively inexpensive. This puts a sword in the student’s hand immediately.
For protective gear, kombat kenjutsu and chanbara will need to have gear readily available.
Enough sets of helmets and gloves for a standard class size is recommended. Again, regularly
attending students should purchase their own gear and stop sharing sweat with the other
students!
Students of kendo will need to obtain their own protective equipment. It is not suggested that you
purchase more than one set that will fit the majority of adults and one that will fit the majority of
juniors. Don’t buy the high-end gear; stick with a set of $300-$500 bogu. This will allow students
to try the gear on before they invest in their own. As discussed in the section on kendo protective
gear, there is no way to prevent sweat and bacteria from being deposited on the mein or kote.
Students who study kendo long enough to be ready to fight with armor will naturally purchase
their own armor (bogu).
Targets such as the fake upper body mounted on a sturdy base (known in the industry as “Bob”)
or a kickboxing target (these are usually bulky and don’t work as well) make strike training
exercises easier. If you can’t afford this investment, you can use an old tire hung from the ceiling
as a target.
Mirrors are optional. You may prefer mirrors covering the walls so that the students can see
themselves and make adjustments to their form. Some instructors don’t like mirrors because they
are seen as a crutch; i.e., take the mirror away and the student has no idea how to make
adjustments to their technique. Just as a side note, these arts have their roots in Japan where
they do not use mirrors regularly for training.
Medical Supplies
You will also need to invest in some medical supplies to keep on hand.
Usually you can
purchase a first aid kit or “medical box” specially made for sports clubs that has the standard
medical supplies you will need. These kits medical boxes should include, but are not limited to:
•
Band aids and bandages
•
Ace bandages
•
Alcohol (to sterilize scissors, etc)
•
Scissors
•
Peroxide or equivalent to wash out cuts before bandaging
•
Ibuprofen or aspirin for swelling (be sure to get parent’s permission before administering
any medication and check with your local laws to be sure there is no potential violation).
Never give any medication before checking the Registration Form for allergies to
medications.
•
Small splints (for the rare sprained finger or toe)
•
Medical tape
•
Salve or ointment
•
Cotton balls
•
Gauze
Record Keeping
For your accounting and student records you should seriously consider a computer. You can
keep these records the old fashion way, paper and file cabinets, but a computer will make the
accounting and record keeping job so much easier and efficient especially during tax season.
There are a number of programs on the market that can be downloaded to your computer to
handle the business. Pick up any martial arts magazine and you will find a bunch of software that
has been created specifically for the martial arts school owner.
There are always new
applications coming on the market. Decide what your requirements are before you buy. Do you
need or want to do all your bills and banking on line? How much information do you need to store
for each student? Do you need user friendly, straight forward software or do you want to have
the ability to customize things? How many people do you want to have access to the records?
Do you want automatic backups run? Once you decide on your needs and requirements, your
best bet is to get a demonstration of the software and hardware you are considering purchasing
to be sure you are getting what you need. Talk to other school owners to see what they like and
don’t like in a product. Before you purchase be sure to do your homework and ask questions to
make an informed business decision.
In addition, you will need to consider providing a water fountain. Phones are a must. Benches,
chairs, ads on the windows, tables for computers and phones. Punching bags, lighting (correct),
showers, toilets, towels, toilet paper.
Waiting area, pick up area. Parking, easy drop off,
accessible school. File cabinets, some place to store gear (storage space), changing areas,
lokers, window coverings, shoe racks or boxes, rugs, retail display case, cash register.
Appointment books student attendance systems, bill collecting systems (aps systems), payment
systems. Posters or other wall hangings will make your school more attractive. Observation area,
concession area, coke machine, snacks, proximity to lunch, freeway
PROTECTIVE GEAR
You will need to decide what protective gear you will require your students to wear and which
gear is optional. Headgear is a must. Even though many senior students and instructors don’t
use protective gear, beginning and intermediate students can not fully protect their ears, eyes,
mouth or other soft tissues areas of the face. Therefore, protective headgear is important for the
safety of you, your students and your school.
HINT: Some students will complain that the protective gear negatively affects their ability to
perform. Although this is somewhat true for some of the equipment on the market, it is not true
for all of the equipment. Proper protective gear does not block the person’s view enough to alter
their performance, prevent them from changing hands with their weapon nor affect their
movement. In fact for some students they will perform better because wearing protective gear
removes fear about being hurt.
Be conscious of the female students in your classes. Many hits to the body can painful. In kendo
the Bogu (armor) will not completely cover the breast area and in chanbara there is no armor. At
a minimum, suggest wearing a good sports bra. Not only do sports bras keep breast movement
to a minimum for more comfort while working out, but they also protect the breasts better than
normal bras.
There are breast protectors available on the market. These are made of plastics,
some more comfortable to wear than others. Young females in their formative years should be
encouraged to protect themselves as best as possible. Although rare, a strike taken in the chest
can alter breast development if the tissue is sufficiently damaged. Again, this rarely occurs, and
can be prevented with the correct protective gear.
Male students should be encouraged to wear a cup. It is very unlikely that a strike will be made
to the genital area in kendo (leg hits are no longer used in kendo), but a misplaced strike in adult
kombat kenjutsu could occur.
PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT FOR KENDO
The protective gear or armor used in kendo is called bogu. Bogu consists of a helmet, a body
protector or do, a lower body protector and gloves. Bogu is made from a variety of materials and
can cost anywhere from $300 dollars to several thousand dollars. Students who are buying their
first set of bogu should stay in the $400 to $600 range. Once they’ve owned their first set of
equipment, they will learn what they like and don’t like, in terms of sizing, materials, string length,
etc. Later, after they have advanced into higher black belt ranks, they may wish to purchase
more expensive, custom-made equipment.
Bogu can weigh as much as ten pounds. Students will need to have built up their endurance
before attempting to wear the bogu for practicing and sparring. In other words, students of kendo
do not wear protective gear from day one. They will practice techniques for a long time and build
their strength and endurance before being required to wear the armor.
Protective Lower Body Gear (Tare)
The cloth protection that is made for the lower body and thigh area is called tare (pronounced tahray, where the “r” is a rolling “r” like in a Spanish pronunciation). The tare is fabricated from cloth
with a board inside, like the back of the hakama.
As with the other cloth in the bogu, the
thickness varies. More expensive bogu tend to have thicker materials. This piece of the armor is
made up of five flaps that overlap to provide protection to the stomach, kidneys, thighs and
reproductive organs. These flaps range from 3 mm to 6 mm in thickness.
HINT: You may see measurements done in units called “Bu”. These are the measurements for
the thickest and highest priced bogu. They will most likely be hand-stitched. Those measured in
millimeters are usually machine-stitched.
Two of the flaps are against your body and the other three are layered on top of these. They are
connected at the top to a wide band (approximately 2 to 4 inches) that is tied around the waist.
Longer bands provide more flexibility and forgiveness for changes in waist size as you mature.
HINT: In ancient Japan the Tare was used as the “cup” is used by males today.
Putting on the Tare
1) Sit down (seiza).
2) Place the tare such that the waistband is laid on top of the waistband of the hakama. The
side with two flaps should be against your lower body.
3) Take the strap that extends from the right side in your right hand and the strap that extends
from the left side in your left hand. Pull the straps to the back of your body, behind your
waist. Keeping the straps from twisting, cross the straps at the center of the back of your
waist so that they form an “x”.
4) Bring the straps around to the front. Again, keep the straps from twisting.
5) Run the straps over the top of the outer two flaps, just under the waistband.
6) Lift the center flap and tie the straps under the flap. Tie the straps using a regular bow like
you would use to tie your shoes. Be sure to pull the straps snuggly around your body so that
the tare remains flush with your body.
7) Drop the flap down. The tare is now on.
Protective Body Gear (Do)
The body or do is protected by a separate piece of armor which is usually made of leather or
plastic.
HINT: A long time ago much of the body armor was made of large turtle shells. These were
readily available to the ancient Japanese.
The body protector is also called do. The do is quite thick and absorbs almost all of the blow of
the strikes made to the body. This piece of the armor is held on by two sets of strings. One set is
crisscrossed behind the back and tied at the top of the armor. These strings determine where
(how high or low) on the chest the piece will rest. The other set of strings is tied behind your back
and keeps the armor securely against your body.
HINT: The length of the strings plays an important role in determining how well the bogu fit you.
Longer strings are better because they provide more flexibility in the fit. A good string length for
the do is 2 to 2½ feet for the top strings and 1½ feet for the lower strings. Beware that some of
the lower end, less expensive bogu come with shorter strings.
Because it is made to not interfere with arm motion, the do leaves a space open under the arm to
approximately the center of the breast on each side. A strike made by an opponent to your do
can cause injury if they happen to strike too high and get this open area.
Putting on the Do
1) Remaining in seiza after putting on the tare, place the do in front of you on the floor. The
inside should be facing you (the do is slightly rounded, the curve will go away from your
body).
2) Pick up the do and place it against your chest. The bottom of the do will slightly overlap the
tare.
3) Grab the top string on the right side of the do and lay it across your back diagonally such that
it comes over the left shoulder.
4) Pull the string down and to the inside of the loop on the top right side of the do. Wrap the
string completely around the loop and under the string.
Direction
of motion
Top view. Wrap the
string around the
loop and back under
the string
Loop
5) Bring the string out in front of the loop on the do, form a loop with the string and tuck it inside
the loop.
Loop on
the string
Loop on
the do
Side view. Tuck the
loop in the string
inside the loop on
the do
Front view. Form a
loop with the string
6) Adjust the size of the loop in the string such that the loop and the string are of equal length.
Loop on the
string
A
Remaining
string
B
Front view. The length of
the loop on the string (A)
and the length of the string
(B) should be the same
7) Pull the string that is wrapped around the loop on the do up while pulling the string down to
lock the string in place.
Pull remaining
string down
Pull up the loop of the
string that is around the
loop on the do
8) Repeat steps 3 through 7 for the string on the upper left side of the do. The strings will cross
diagonally on your back.
9) Tie the lower strings behind your back in a simple bow. The do is now securely in place.
HINT: The first several times you tie and adjust the do strings, they will feel stiff and uneven. But
like a pair of shoestrings, after tying them in the same place over and over, you will eventually
create wear marks or patterns that allow the strings to be tied the same every time (same place,
same knot, etc).
Protective Headgear (Mein)
Usually a cloth bandana or tenugui (pronounced tay-new-goo-eee) is wrapped around the top of
the head before putting on the headgear. The tenugi is used to absorb sweat and keep lice out of
everybody’s hair!! Remember these items were created back when people did not wash every
day like they do in modern Western society. It was not unusual for the hair to have an abundant
amount of dermal oils and parasites. The tenugui offered the protection between the mein and
the skull to keep the mein cleaner.
HINT: Tenugui often have sayings printed on them with Chinese characters. The sayings usually
are some belief or encouragement. There are no rules or governing documents regarding the
phrases on the tenugui. It is acceptable to have writing on the tenugui or not as long as the
saying is not disrespectful.
The helmet or mein is constructed with a metal facemask to keep the face, eyes, nose and mouth
completely safe for sparring. The metal facemask is attached to a thick cloth that covers the
head and extends out over the shoulders. The thickness of this cloth varies from 3 to 8 mm
***check this measurement. The more expensive bogu and mein have thicker material. A “flap”
hangs down from the chin area in front of the throat. This is to protect you from a thrust to the
throat.
HINT: The flap in front of the throat is not very wide. Most instructors will not allow thrusts to be
made until students are advanced enough to land the thrust accurately. A missed thrust to the
throat can result in severe injury. This is why students of kendo in Japan can not perform the
thrust to the throat (tsuki) until they are eighteen years old. All Japan high school kendo disallows
a tsuki to the throat.
The back of the head gear is open since strikes are made when facing an opponent, thus strikes
are not meant to hit the back of the head.
Putting on Tenugui
1) Sit down (seiza).
2) Place the tenugui on the ground directly in front of you so that it faces you (i.e., you can read
the phrase written on it, if it has one).
3) Reach down with your right hand and grab the corner of the tenugui closest to your right.
Simultaneously reach down with your left hand and grab the corner closest to your left.
4) Pick up the tenugui so that it is in front of your face. The writing, if applicable, will be upside
down and facing away from you.
5) Move your hands toward your face until the top edge of the tenugui is touching your
forehead. Slide the tenugui onto the top of your head. Do this by keeping it placed against
your head and moving your hands up and back. The tenugui is now passing over the top of
your head, and slides down to the back of the head to where the back of the skull meets the
spinal column, which is called the occipital area. The edge will be at the back of your head.
Refer to the picture for clarification.
Tenugui is slid on top of the head
6) When the tenugui is in the correct position, the edge will wrap around just above your
eyebrows when you bring your hands (still holding the tenugui) forward.
a) Wrap the side in your right hand forward. Hold it flush against your forehead with your
right thumb or fingers, keeping the edge taut.
b) Continue to hold the right side in place while folding the left side over the top of the right
side. Pull the left side over as far as possible before removing your right hand.
c) The left side should be held tight enough against the right side and your temple such that
the tenugui stays in place.
7) Continue to hold onto the side which is now on your right temple, and use your right hand to
grab the flaps that are hanging in front of your face. Flip these flaps up onto the top of your
head. You can now safely remove your left hand and the tenugui will stay in place.
HINT: In the junior high schools in Japan, most can’t afford to purchase the full bogu for the
elective physical education class of kendo. However, all kendo students have tenugui. These
students share the bogu that is owned by the schools.
The tenugui becomes necessary to
protect each student from the other students’ sweat or bacteria.
Putting on the Mein
1) You should still be in seiza after putting on the tenugui. Place the mein directly in front of you
with the back or open side up
2) Pull out the crisscrossed strings so that you can insert your head into the mein.
3) Place your chin on the thick chin guard at the bottom of the mask and pull on the mein.
4) Reach up with both hands and grab the right string with the right hand and the left string with
the left hand. Start pulling these strings out to tighten the mein on your head.
5) Alternate pushing the mein back (grab the metal mask and push it toward you) and pulling
the strings tighter.
HINT: The tighter the mein is on the head, the less the strikes to the head will hurt. It is normal
for the mein to flatten the ears down against your head which sometimes feels uncomfortable
when it is on securely enough.
6) When the mein is tight enough, move the strings to the back of the head by running them
along the side of the mein. The strings should be tied in a bow (like you would tie your
shoes) at the nape of the neck.
Hold the strings such that you are tying the bow in a
horizontal direction. Be sure to not let the strings loosen during the process of tying them.
When you are done tying the strings, give the strings a couple of good strong tugs. This will
assure the mein is on your head securely and that there is no slack in any of the strings.
HINT: The strings should not have any twists in them. Both sets (those going around the mein
and those used to tighten the mein) should be parallel and lay flat against the sides of the mein.
7) Pull the bow out until the length of the bow and the length of the dangling strings are equal.
According to the formal kendo regulations, the length of the strings should be 40 cm or about
15.74 in from the knot.
Bow
Dangling string
8) Make sure the strings are hanging behind your back (i.e., not over your shoulders).
Front view
Side view
9) Reach around the back of your head and push the tenugui material (flaps) up into the top of
your mein. This will give you a little extra protection from strikes and it looks neater.
Back of the mein before the tenugi flaps are tucked in
Back of the mein after the tenugi flaps are tucked in
Protective Hand Gear or Gloves (Kote)
If you invest in nothing else, invest in a good pair of gloves for kendo. Strikes to the wrist are
probably the second most common strike in kendo (strikes to the head are first). The human
wrist is fragile. Cheap gloves do not adequately protect the wrist or hand from injury or even
breakage. A good pair of gloves can run you upwards of $300. However, the average pair is a
little over $100.
Putting on Kote
Be sure that the kote strings are adjusted to fit your hands. The strings need to be pulled taut
enough that the kote remains flush against your hands and wrists. The kote should not move
when you have them on. When the kote are not securely in place and are allowed to move, the
chance for injury greatly increases.
1) Pick up the kote for the right hand. Place your right hand in the glove just like you are putting
on a mitten.
2) Adjust the strings by undoing the knot or tie and pulling the strings out. This adjustment is
the same as you use when adjusting the strings on your tennis shoes. When done tightening
the strings, re-knot them.
3) Tuck the loose ends of the strings down inside your glove. This keeps them out of the way
and, if they are very long, prevents you from becoming tangled in them with your sword.
Colors and Significance
The average traditional adult kendo bogu is usually deep navy blue with a black do. The juniors
or women may wear white bogu, but usually they will also wear the average blue and black bogu.
The more money you are willing to invest in your bogu, the more colors and designs (embroidery)
are available to you. Most of these colors are seen on the mein, tare and kote. The embroidered
designs are found on the top of the do.
In the All Japan kendo Federation most all kendoists wear the average black and blue bogu. In
smaller kendo circles whose members are more elite or well to do, you will see a variety of colors
and designs.
Caring for Your kendo Bogu
Bogu can not be washed in the traditional sense. A damp cloth can be used, but the best way to
keep your sweaty gear somewhat “clean” is to be sure to set it outside in the fresh air and
sunshine periodically and wear a tenugui. It is best to get a bag to carry the bogu in to keep it
from getting lost and ease of transport. There are several kinds of carrying equipment on the
market. Everything from cloth to synthetic bags are available. Let personal preference prevail,
but consider how much you will be traveling with the bogu (you might want bag that can use a
lock), how you will be traveling (on a bike might dictate a bag with a long enough string that it can
be balanced on the end of a shinai) or if the bag will see any weather (a plastic bag may be more
useful than a cloth bag).
Monitor the strings for ripping or tearing. They are not usually sown into the material, but are tied
on so they can be removed and replaced as required. You can order the “real” ties through
various companies that sell bogu on the internet or by mail. Another option is to use heavy duty
shoe strings to repair torn strings or strings that are too short.
PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT FOR KOMBAT KENJUTSU AND CHANBARA
There is less protective gear required for kombat kenjutsu and chanbara since these arts have
weapons that are designed to reduce the possibility of injury, as compared to traditional kendo.
Since the protective gear does not need to be as robust or as extensive as the armor used for
kendo there is much less expense involved. In fact, for the price of one kendo bogu, uagi and
hakama, you can outfit an entire school for kombat kenjutsu!
HINT: Many schools want to incorporate kendo into their curriculums, but the significant cost of
equipment keeps students and instructors from pursuing the art.
Using modern combative
equipment allows you to experience the speed and rigidity of the combative sword without
tremendous money and physical investments. Therefore many schools now use the technically
advanced softer combative weaponry to introduce the student to the way of the sword at a
fraction of the cost. This results in a larger retention rate and also allows students to make
informed decisions regarding how intensely they want to pursue the sword.
Because of the softer weaponry involved, kombat kenjutsu and chanbara do not use or need
body protectors (do or tare). Only protective head gear is needed. Protective hand gear is
optional.
NOTE: There are occasions when you have a physically or mentally challenged student who
may require extra body protection.
Protective Headgear
The helmet is constructed with a hard, plastic facemask to keep the face, eyes, nose and mouth
completely safe for sparring. The facemask is made from a plastic instead of metal since the
weapons are softer than those used in kendo. The facemask may be solid or may be a series of
plastic bars that run across your face, similar to a catcher’s mask for baseball. The solid face
mask is prone to steaming up once you get sparring and a loud kiai is muted and reverberates in
the helmet, which can result in ear damage. The plastic bars can sometimes obstruct your view
when fighting up close, but the kiai is not muffled. Which of these styles you choose is a matter
of personal preference.
The soft plastic or leather material that makes up the rest of the helmet protects the top and sides
of the head, especially for protecting the ears. The helmet may or may not be constructed to
cover the back of the head. It is suggested that you elect to use the helmets that do cover the
back of the head to assure extra safety. A good helmet will cost around $80 retail.
NOTE: Be very particular and cautious when selecting protective headgear. All protective gear
will advertise and appear to safely protect the user. Helmets made in different parts of the world
with different materials might show the same seal of approval.
However, it is of utmost
importance that you personally test and evaluate the protective equipment before using it in your
school or recommending its purchase to your students.
A helmet that does not protect the soft
tissues areas of the head and face can lead to serious injury. Always choose headgear that
protects the combatant’s ears, eyes, nose, and mouth.
Because the protective gear is so
important for your students’ safety, consider carrying these items to sell to your students. Then
you are in control of the quality of the protective equipment and can be sure that your students
are getting quality, safe head protection.
Protective Hand Gear or Gloves
Gloves can be an optional item. We advise that you require your students to wear gloves or other
hand protection. Kendo gloves (kote) are very hard and thick which offers the kendoist the
protection that is required for sparring and training with the shinai. For kombat kenjutsu and
chanbara hand protection is optional depending on the intensity of the training. For example
students that are practicing techniques at half speed don’t really need hand protection. However,
when the students engage in intense sparring and testosterone is running wild, they will definitely
want to wear heavier hand protection to avoid possible injury.
HINT: Lightweight or cotton gloves offer students an economical protection from blisters and
broken nails. This is true when training with swords such as the bokutouu, choken or shinai.
Many students complain that they lose dexterity when wearing heavier gloves. This was once
true, but now there are exceptional gloves available that allow you to maintain tremendous
dexterity while offering excellent hand protection.
kombat kenjutsu and chanbara gloves are made from cloth, leather and plastics. They are quite
durable. A good pair of gloves will cost around $50 retail.
HINT: Students can use hockey or lacrosse gloves instead of the gloves made specifically for
kombat kenjutsu or chanbara. These gloves may be less expensive than those made specifically
for kombat kenjutsu or chanbara, but they will not provide you with as much dexterity as those
gloves that are intended for these sword venues.
Caring for Your kombat kenjutsu or chanbara Gear
Since the headgear is made from plastics, it can be washed with mild soap and water and left to
air dry.
In between washings, use a moist towelette (there are several on the market) or
commercial spray made especially for killing the bacteria found in helmets.
The gloves are usually lined with cloth or leather and cannot be washed easily. The finger
protectors don’t dry very well and can mildew. The best care for the gloves is to occasionally set
them outside in the fresh air.
PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT FOR IAIDO AND TAMESHIGIRI
Kombat kenjutsu, chanbara and kendo are sparring arts that require you to be protected from
injury when attacked or attacking your opponent. Protective equipment is not needed for iaido or
Tameshigiri. It is not that these practices are not dangerous, but iaido and Tameshigiri are
usually performed alone or in two person katas where there is no contact make (kumitachi).
These arts are used to perfect your techniques, your presence and your demeanor.
THE OBI
The obi is a belt used to keep the sheath and the sword firmly in place. In kendo there is no
sheath. The shinai is already drawn; therefore the obi has no real significance to the sport of
kendo. For sword arts which carry a sword on the side for drawing purposes, the obi is often
used in addition to the hakama straps that wrap around the waist. Iaido, Tameshigiri, battodo all
may use the obi.
NOTE: The obi might have significance to an individual with spiritual beliefs, like a lucky charm.
For others it helps remind them to stand up straight and to keep strong presence.
RANK (KYU)
Most martial arts that are taught in North America use ranking systems. In Japan there is no
visual belt ranking within the sword arts. Anyone below the level of Black Belt (dan) is called a
kyu. There are ten kyus. The kyus range from ten kyu, which denotes a beginner, up to one kyu,
which is the highest ranking colored belt (like a brown belt). Black belt or dan also has ten levels
but they are opposite of the kyu. In other words, a first degree black belt (one dan or shodan) is
lower in rank than a second or third degree black belt, whereas a one kyu is higher in rank that a
two kyu.
Here in America we have been taught to be goal-oriented, and achievement is given great
importance. Because you are teaching in America and not in Japan, your students (and their
parents) will expect that there is a ranking system, even for the sword arts. Because of this, we
suggest you provide a ranking system to give your students something to work toward.
Ranking Systems
Ranking systems are as unique as the schools that use them. You may choose a pure color
system (white, yellow, green, blue, etc) or a system that includes belts with stripes (white, white
with one stripe, advanced white, advanced white with one stripe, advanced white with two stripes,
etc) to increase the number of promotions a person can get. This results in more revenue from
promotions (although we suggest you charge less per promotion if you go this route) and
increased retention (easier to achieve, “baby-step” goals).
As discussed in the section Growing Your Business, when students do not get their needs met
or goals fulfilled, they leave. A little extra marketing, such as a ranking system that uses stripes
between major belts, provides students with more frequent recognition. This helps to provide
alternate avenues to help to fulfill the student rather than have then leave for soccer or some
other sport where they feel they are getting recognition.
Another reason to use a striped-belt ranking system for your sword classes is because the sword
takes many year of practice to be proficient. Your students will not advance through the ranks as
quickly as they might in another, open-hand martial art, such as karate. Providing “interim” belts
(e.g., yellow belt with one stripe) recognizes the students’ accomplishments along the way.
Another possibility, if you don’t like the striped-belt system, is to provide certificates of recognition
for certain accomplishments. Examples are certifications for learning the correct pronunciation
for the Japanese terms used in kendo or the demonstration of the proper care for an Iaito.
Suggested Time in Rank
As in any martial art, progressing through the lower belt ranks is accomplished at a faster pace
than the higher kyu or dan. The exact time in grade will vary from student to student and be a
direct result of how much practice the student does outside of class and/or the natural talent a
student possesses.
Practice is key for your students. They will expect promotions even if they do not practice. Be
clear on your expectations, but realize that it will be a balancing act. If you withhold promotions
for lack of practice, you risk losing the student. However if you promote students prematurely,
that is not teaching them anything about working to obtain a goal. You may find that the less
natural talent a student has, the more he/she will want to practice. The more naturally talented
students will tend not practice as much. Except in rare instances, this will eventually catch up to
them; the students who didn’t have innate ability will often work harder to be as good as those to
whom it comes naturally. Encourage all students to practice outside of class.
NOTE: You can tell who is practicing and who is not. Consider publicly recognizing those who do
practice. You can do something as simple as verbal recognition when the students have lined up
to begin class or something as elaborate as having the students record the hours they practice
and provide a certificate for each one hundred hours of practice.
Age also plays a factor. Students who are forty years of age and up should not be required to
spend as much time in grade as those under forty. This is because the way of the sword is
teaching a way of being, not just technique. Older students have learned many of the lessons
from simply living life. For example, successful working adults have learned respect through their
jobs. This respect is shown by arriving up to work on time and listening to their boss. Younger,
less experienced students need to be instructed on this type of non-technical skill.
Below are listed approximate times in rank along with the suggested number of hours of practice
outside of class. These suggested times in rank have been adjusted to fit the American lifestyle.
There are many more hours of practice inside and outside of class to achieve similar kyu in
Japan. You will need to adjust the time in rank based on natural talent, previous experience the
student has and hours of practice.
Rank
Suggested Time
Suggested Minimum Hours of
Derivation of Hours of
in Rank
Practice to Achieve Next Kyu
Practice to Achieve Next Kyu
10 Kyu
1 month
20 hours
5 hours per week x 4 weeks
9 Kyu
2 months
40 hours
5 hours per week x 8 weeks
8 Kyu
2 months
40 hours
5 hours per week x 8 weeks
7 Kyu
2 months
50 hours
6 hours per week x 8 weeks
6 Kyu
3 months
100 hours
8 hours per week x 12 weeks
5 Kyu
3 months
100 hours
8 hours per week x 12 weeks
4 Kyu
4 months
125 hours
8 hours per week x 16 weeks
3 Kyu
4 months
125 hours
8 hours per week x 16 weeks
2 Kyu
6 months
250 hours
10 hours per week x 24 weeks
1 Kyu
1 year
500 hours
10 hours per week x 50 weeks
Totals
3 years 3 months
1350 hours
As you can see, your students will need between 1300 and 1500 hours of practice outside of
st
class to achieve their 1 Dan (Shodan). Remember to give consideration to working adults and
those students who are raising families. They will need to have very focused practices and
remain focused in class to meet the requirements when they can not devote as much time to their
individual practice.
For further information on ranking for a particular sword art, refer to the Ranking and Class
Manuals in this series.
OTHER BUSINESS CONSIDERATIONS
One thing you must always remember when you own a martial arts school (dojo) is that you are a
business. As much as you would like to just be an instructor, the minute you start your own
school those days are gone. Once you are the owner/operator of your own school you are a
business person first and an instructor somewhere lower on the list. If you are lucky enough to
grow bigger, you may find that you seldom if ever get the chance to instruct. The bigger you get
the more business you will have to attend to, but don’t become an armchair instructor.
Employing Others
One thing all business owners have learned is that no one does it quite the way you would. But,
unless you want to do everything yourself, which you may need to in the beginning when you
can’t afford to do anything otherwise, you will have to hire help. Always, always, always hire only
the best people on your staff. This fact cannot be emphasized enough. Your instructors and
office help can make or break your business. As tough as it is, you have to be very picky about
who you hire. It is hard to do when you have friends in the martial arts business, especially
friends who are struggling to keep their own business alive. If your business is successful you
may be approached by “friends” and colleagues wanting to be a part of your team. Choose
wisely. Did their business fail because of something they did or didn’t do? For instance, are they
not a very charismatic teacher and turned all their students off? Is this who you want on your
staff and representing your school? It may be that they were just bad in business, but great at
instructing. Terrific! Then don’t put them in charge of your books, but certainly put them in front
of the students.
When you are lucky enough to have grown enough that you need to bring on extra help, you will
find that a whole raft of other necessities come along with them. You will need to consider
whether you will bring people on half time or full time.
Each has their advantages and
disadvantages. Half time employees don’t need to be offered the same benefits as full time
employees. Things like health insurance, matching social security benefits and vacation pay can
come into play. However, part time employees usually have a higher turnover rate resulting in
you needing to constantly retrain. Full time employees, when treated right, tend to stay with you
longer. Beware that the generation entering the working marketplace today do not come with the
loyal work ethic that our fathers had. Today’s world has taught them that they don’t need to
specialize in anything because it is a world of free information flow. If you don’t believe that, then
take an hour on the internet.
Insurance
A necessary evil of being in a business where people are bound to get injured is insurance. Don’t
expect it to be cheap or even reasonable. Insurance companies will consider your line of work
“high risk” and will charge you accordingly. Make sure you get good advice from someone who
knows what he/she is talking about when it comes to insurance for your school.
Insurance is like the stock market you never know when it will change. Unlike the stock market
you have your ups and downs. Whereas insurance rates, as we all well know, continue to raise
even is not used.
If you’ve ever used your insurance for even something as simple as a
overflowed toilet insurance companies can put you on the mat and have you screaming for uncle
turning a little toilet tyrate into a major water issue, which raises your insurance price even more.
Always remember that the insurance companies are NOT your friends. They are also a business
and will always be looking for ways to profit from your misfortunes.
There are different types of insurances that can be found in any martial arts trade manual. They
usually offer insurance to cover liability, medical, school contents and tournaments.
Not to
mention renter’s insurance, which covers water, fire, theft….if you paid for these services. In this
day and age don’t be surprised if you have to have million dollar plus coverages in order to rent
the building.
You will also have to consider separate insurance for tournaments or
demonstrations.
NOTE: Unless your business is incorporated, you can be personally liable for any accident or
injury that occurs in your school. Get advice from a good lawyer who will most likely say, “It’s
cheaper to pay the insurance premiums now than to spend $100,000 on a lawyer’s services
later!”
Registration Forms
Always have students or, in the case of under age students, their parents, fill out a registration
form. The information that should be collected includes:
•
Student’s name
•
Parents’ names (for under age students, which is under age 18 in most states)
•
Phone numbers and emergency contact information. Preferable get a home, business
and cell phone numbers.
•
Address (actual street address, not post office box). If you need to locate the student or
parent for some reason, such as not paying their bill, you will need the actual street
address. Although it is possible to obtain the street address from a post office box, it is a
hassle to get it.
•
Medical information. Make sure the information is complete. You will need to read over
and, based on the information they provide, clearly understand what instruction the
student will not be able to fully participate in. Also have the student and parent, where
applicable, fill out and sign a medical release form. See the section Medical Release
Form for more information.
•
Allergies, especially those to medications (allergies make you aware of reduced
performance or even attendance that can occur during allergy season; allergies to
medications, although you may never use the information, can be a life saver if
something happens to a student in class that requires immediate medical treatment).
•
The specific sword art is the student signing up for and their desired outcome (optional).
As discussed in the section Why Students Leave, one of the biggest reasons for students
leaving the school is because they are not getting their needs met. If you can find out
early, i.e., from the Registration Form, why they might be there, you will have a better
chance of retaining them.
Medical Release Form
This is the one most important form that you must have everyone sign before participating in any
class. This form should be reviewed and approved by a lawyer in your particular state. This form
may help to protect you if an injury occurs. Unless the injury is due to extreme negligence on
your part, the Medical Release Form reduces your chances of being liable for the injury. This
means that the student’s insurance may have to pay for medical treatments instead of yours. It
also means that you will have some written proof that you identified the dangerous nature of the
martial art the student is signing up for. Documentation that demonstrates you both informed the
student and/or parent, as well as any proof of safety programs you conduct, reduces your
chances of being liable for an injury that a student sustains as a participant in your class.
The types of information required on a Medical Release Form are the student’s full name, the
parents’ names (if the student is not of legal age) and their signature(s) attesting to the fact that
they have read the form, understand the form and agree to the terms of the form. Words to this
effect should be part of the form. Have an attorney familiar with the laws and statutes of your
particular area review and approve the Medical Release Form.
Injuries
In many cases, especially when you have older students in your classes, you will find that your
clientele will come with all sorts of physical limitations due to previous injuries. Their Registration
Form should help to provide you with information regarding existing conditions. It is appropriate
to ask your students to elaborate on their injuries to help you to modify exercises and instruction
in a way that prevents the students from being re-injured or injured further while still being able to
provide them with sword instruction.
NOTE: Make sure the students learn to be responsible for their own bodies. In other words
remind them to not succumb to the perceived pressure that may feel when they cannot perform
some warm up exercise, skill or technique that other students can. Remember that they may also
put pressure on themselves to do things that may put them in jeopardy in an attempt to please
you. You must constantly remind them that they are responsible for their own bodies and their
limits. Of course you will have to balance when the student is using their injury as a crutch or
excuse to be lazy and when they really are having an issue. When in doubt, it is better to be safe
than sorry. You don’t want to have to deal with the guilt, lawsuit or insurance agent when a
student is unnecessarily injured.
Since there are innumerable injuries, it is impossible to address them all here. So, we will touch
on a few of the major areas of the body.
Existing Head Injuries
Prior injuries to the head, such as mild concussions or surface cuts that have healed may not
affect the student at all in terms of learning the sword. If the injury is recent be sure that the
student has obtained a doctor’s permission to participate in classes. Some head injuries will
permanently affect a person’s ability to learn in the same way as they did prior to injury. For
instance, a concussion can permanently change a student’s ability to recall information that would
normally, prior to their concussion, be easy for them to remember. You will need to compensate
for their difficulty in remembering by both being patient when they can’t remember something that
may seem easy for most people to recall, and not call on them in front of the rest of the class to
save them from embarrassment or humiliation.
Other cautions with head injuries are to be careful to not put the student in a position where they
are susceptible to re-injury. This may mean they are removed from sparring requirements. You
can have the student with the head injury practice techniques by themselves or with another
student, excusing them both from sparring.
Existing Back Injuries
The back is the most likely area of prior injury you will see in your career. From my experience in
the corporate world and in the world of martial arts, I personally believe that there is a direct
correlation between stress and the back problems we see today. Whether I’m right or wrong the
fact is that many people suffer from back pain, whether or not it is a direct result of an injury.
Encourage the students to work to strengthen their back muscles to take the pressure of their
shoulders, upper and lower back, hips, and spine. Whether it’s properly executing a cut with a
sword, shinai or bokutou, the upper back muscles get involved. Lifting small weights can also
help strengthen back muscles.
This is best done using a workout machine that has a bar
suspended above the head. The bar has a string attached in the middle which is attached to a
series of weights. Instruct the student to grasp the bar and pull the bar down behind his/her
head. Make sure they start with light weights (10 pounds or less) and gradually increase the
weights as they gain in strength. As even easier method is to have the students do pull ups.
Also caution students who have back injuries to be careful when doing sit ups. A proper sit up
uses the stomach muscles, but if the stomach muscles are weak there will be pressure for the
back muscles to compensate.
Existing Heart Conditions
Heart conditions you will encounter can be as mild as a heart murmur to as extreme as a past
stroke or heart attack. Be absolutely sure that these students have been cleared by their doctor
for any form of exercise. If they are going to participate in the more strenuous sword arts of
kombat kenjutsu, kendo or chanbara, it is a good idea to have them check with their doctor being
specific about the type of exercise they intend to embark on.
The less physical art of iaido can be suggested for students who have had or currently have
serious heart trouble. Most people who have had any kind of heart trouble are fairly aware of
their limitations. Take time to listen to their concerns and be mindful of them during class. This is
not easy in a large class with many distractions, but it is a necessary requirement to put on
yourself to avoid any serious consequences for these students.
Since the heart is a muscle, it will benefit from mild exercise, as long as it has not been too
severely damaged. One possibility is to start the student in a less stressful environment, such as
iaido, and have them move to more strenuous sword form when they are comfortable to do so
(and so are you and their doctor).
Existing Knee Injuries
Knees are one of the most vulnerable areas of the human body. They take an incredible amount
of beating in our every day lives through the pounding they take from walking on hard surfaces
and the stress put on a bent knee for sitting. The tendons and the cartilage are often destroyed
or badly beat up from sports played in our teenage and college days. The muscles of the upper
leg (the quadriceps) can be strengthened with some simple exercises, which will help take some
pressure off the knees. However, if the cartilage is gone, as is sometimes the case, no amount of
exercise will help. Students with cartilage problems should be encouraged to get advice from
their doctor on their ability to participate in any sport or martial art. The strenuous sport of kendo
relies heavily on strong leg muscles to move forward and backward to attack and retreat. Weak
knees can be worked around, but will hinder the student from optimum performance. Caution the
student with weak knees to pay attention to any grinding or cracking noises they hear when
working out. In particular, deep knee bends are not suggested.
Existing breathing conditions
Asthma and other breathing problems can affect your students’ performance.
Most asthma
sufferers are well aware of how to take care of their breathing. The main thing to be cautious of is
the occasional student who is worried about impressing you or his/her fellow classmates and
forgets to monitor themselves. A gentle, private reminder is often all it takes. Because the ability
to breath deeply and productively directly affects how well your muscles respond and operate,
people with breathing problems may not be able to perform as quickly or as well as other
students. Help these students to identify some other advantage they may have, such as their
height or their reach. The Japanese have understood breathing conditions for centuries. That is
why in the heat of combative training all instructors suggest that students employ very loud kiais,
which open up all the breathing passages, increase their metabolism and reduces fatigue.
Of lesser concern are allergies. Depending on where you live allergies can crop up and affect the
breathing patterns most people normally experience. Remind your students that large amounts
of water in addition to over the counter remedies will help to alleviate the interference allergies
can have on your practice routine. Everyone is bothered by that sniffle after they’ve put on their
helmet for sparring!
Disabilities
Anyone who has spent any time at all around people that have a disability knows not to
underestimate what a disabled person is capable of. If someone has had a disability for any
length of time, they have learned to compensate exceptionally well. Ask your disabled students if
they need any special accommodations (ramps, bars, etc), then treat them as you would anyone
else. In other words, expect full participation in all class activities and drills. You may need to
make a slight alteration for the disabled person so be prepared to adjust. For example, let’s say
you are doing a drill which involves students running forward, hitting a target and running back to
the end of the line to do it again. A wheelchair-bound student may either need someone to push
them through the drill or you can allow them to stop just before the target, strike and then
continue on with their goal to be able to do this by slowing down as little as possible. Another
example is a student that is unable to use one arm due to a stroke. The two handed weapons
such as the choken, bokutou or shinai may be difficult for them to control as a beginning student.
Compensate by allowing the student to “choke up” on the handle like you would with a baseball
bat.
You may decide to hold a separate class, for example with only wheelchair bound students,
which is fine, but be aware that most people with disabilities want to be treated just like you would
treat any non- disabled student
Can you prevent injuries?
Many people will argue that injuries happen and you are powerless to do anything to stop them.
They would be wrong. Study after study has proven that simply raising people’s awareness will
reduce the injury rate. Before you can raise the awareness regarding injuries, you must first
understand their source.
Injuries from exerting too much force
You can raise awareness regarding too much force by talking with your students, reminding them
that to make a good strike does not require the exertion of a ton of force. A strike with a real
sword using extreme force would result in a broken blade or a blade that is lodged too deep into
the person struck that you might not get your blade back. Even if you did, the few seconds it
would cost you to retrieve the blade might be enough to cost you your life.
However, we all see it. The testosterone ridden 6 foot plus male teenager or the thirty something
colored belt who is ready to take on the world….in your school. It only takes a couple of times
receiving a strike from one of these young males before no one in the class wants to play with
them any more. Most of the time these guys aren’t bad people, they just don’t see the affect they
are having on those around them. Yes, you will occasionally run across someone who likes the
feeling their brutality gives them. As you know it is your job to get them to see that this is not a
good thing.
The best solution I’ve found to curb this behavior is to demand their gentle
participation throughout the class and then, when class is about over, pair these guys up with
each other and let them go at it. The next best thing, if you can call it that, is when they injure
themselves with a bashed finger or a bruised forearm. It is a hard lesson, but one they won’t tend
to forget.
Injuries from horseplay
The younger students are not different in class than at home (once they get comfortable).
Horseplay while you are distracted working with another student or talking with a parent will
occur. Set rules against it and follow through with appropriate punishments (“no candy for you
today, Timmy”) to eliminate it as much as possible.
Although not as prevalent with the teens and adults, horseplay does occasionally happen.
Because you don’t always expect this type of behavior from an older clientele, you aren’t as
conscious of it taking place. Although you have to expect the older students to be responsible for
their own behavior, they will be seen by other students and may think it’s okay to misbehave
themselves. You’d expect that logic and a simple talking to would work, but it doesn’t always.
The most effective remedies are pairing up the culprits for some controlled sparring. This allows
them to constructively get their extra energy out. It also gets you back in control of the situation.
Injuries from lack of knowledge
New students tend to get injured more often than students with more experience. This is both
due to the fact that the newer students have not yet learned how to protect themselves, and it is
also a result of lack of knowledge on how to handle the sword. For example, it takes time to build
up wrist strength.
Overuse will cause muscle stress and can lead to potential sprains.
Encourage the students to work on building up their wrist strength outside of class. Some simple
lifting of light weights helps. Filling an empty wine bottle with sand works well because the neck
of the bottle is close to the size of a shinai or choken handle. Suggest that the student put the
time they spend in front of the television to good work by lifting the bottle straight up in down
(from in front of their navel to over the top of the crown of their head) one hundred times. In other
words, in this multi-tasking society, it is easy to both watch the television and lift the bottle to
promote muscle memory and smoothness instead of watching television and using the same
muscles to just eat popcorn.
Basically it takes time inside and outside of class practicing with the sword to get more proficient
and leave the student less susceptible to injury. Practicing the blocking sets (refer to the TachiIai Training Manual) for kombat kenjutsu or chanbara or practicing zenshin kotai mein (refer to
the Kendo Training Manual) for kendo will also help the student to increase their reaction times
and learn to be able to protect themselves or attack faster and first.
Cautioning the more experienced students to “cut them (the new students) a break” by striking
more gently and being more defensive rather than always being the attacker. This keeps the new
students from becoming too discouraged and teaches the more experienced students to learn
control. Remember the old Japanese saying, “I am the teacher, and you are the student. If you
can’t strike me correctly, who are you going to strike correctly?” As an instructor it is imperative
that your students know how to manipulate the sword instead of just bludgeoning like they are
using a baseball bat to keep rats at bay in New York’s Central Park.
Injuries from improper use of a weapon
When students are experimenting with different weapons during kombat kenjutsu and chanbara
sparring, they need to be cautioned on each weapon’s good and bad points. Some weapons are
more forgiving than others. In other words, nunchaku are fun to use, but strikes from this weapon
are more painful relative to a strike from a choken. Take a little time to teach the students that
the speed at which the end of the nunchaku is moving is much faster than the same strike made
with a choken and, therefore, much more powerful. This instruction issued with a caution will help
to reduce the injury rate.
Other chanbara weapons may also be new to your students. For instance, the knife, bo staff or
spear could be included in your classes. Injuries from knife fighting usually result from throws to
the ground that occur in close-in fighting. To prevent this type of injury be sure that your students
receive instruction on how to properly fall. Be sure that the students know to stab with the knife
not punch their opponent. Potential injuries from the bo staff can be a result of a smaller student
wielding this large weapon when they don’t have enough strength to do so with control. The most
prevalent injury with the bo staff and the spear or naginata are a result of people striking when
they are too close to their opponent. They will strike their rival with the handle instead of the end
or meat of the weapon.
Injuries from falling
When students have not had any prior martial arts training, they may be entering your class
without any knowledge of how to properly fall and avoid injury. Although the sword arts do not
purposely involve throws to the ground, it is a natural reaction to engage in hand to hand combat
if the fight gets to close. You can put a ban on this type of activity in your classes, and it is
suggested that you do if your students don’t know how to fall without sustaining injury.
If you do not know how to fall, find someone who does and get yourself educated. My own
experience has found me in a position where I was winning a kombat kenjutsu sparring against a
larger student. He also sensed it and something base in him took over. He charged me and
threw me to the ground in a last ditch attempt to prove he could win. Not knowing how to fall can
leave you injured temporarily or even for life.
Even though you plan on only teaching sword arts, you will run into students who have had other
training. Although it is rare there may come a time, especially if you stay in business for any
length of time or if you are a woman, that one of your students will want to challenge your ability.
Besides being somewhat human nature, a student may be looking to see if you really do have
anything to teach them or they may be trying to prove something to themselves, such as their
own self worth, that causes them to engage you. It is wise to protect yourself from potential harm
by knowing how to fall correctly. Again, the philosophy is, “I am the teacher, and you are the
student. If you can’t strike me correctly, who are you going to strike correctly?” When they do
strike you correctly you say, “Great. Do it again!” That way they will not feel like they have the
upper hand.
Injuries from fighting too close
In the excitement of battle it is not unusual for students to strike when they are too close. Their
natural reaction is to protect themselves and they throw a strike. In kombat kenjutsu or chanbara
this unfortunate mistake often results in the opposing student being struck by the handle of the
weapon, leaving a bruise. On rare occasions, if the handle comes in contact with a smaller,
weaker bone (e.g., finger or wrist) a deep bruise can occur. Striking an opponent when too close
can be more devastating in the sport of kendo. Most of the fighting action is accomplished at a
very fast pace and most strikes are over in the blink of an eye. Being too close when striking the
head can leave one with a bad headache. The end of the shinai is smaller and more flexible than
the parts of the shinai that are closer to the handle.
Constant reminders to the students are necessary to keep them conscious of their proximity to
their opponent.
Exercises that require students to be conscious of the distance from their
opponent should be repeated often until each student knows his/her most effective distance for
attack (maai). One example exercise is to have students face a partner while holding the shinai,
bokutou or choken in chudan (holding the tip of the sword so that it is pointed at the other
person’s throat). Have them take a distance such that their swords cross at about 1 to 3 inches
from the tip. Designate one as the leader and the other as the follower. The leader will move
forward, backward and sideways. The follower must move to stay in front of the leader and must
maintain the same distance or maai between them. After several minutes of this practice, switch
the roles of leader and follower. A more advanced practice is to designate two students as a pair.
Have the students run around in a circle with their sword (shinai, bokutou or choken) in hand. On
your command (a clap of the hands, for instance) the pair of students must face each other and
obtain the correct maai. Practices such as these help to shorten the students’ learning curve in
regards to proper distance from their opponent to successfully and safely execute a strike.
Monitor your classes for repeat injuries. If a particular injury is recurring, spend time to discover
the reason. Is it the same student being injured in the same way? Then maybe they need
special instruction to help them prevent re-injury since they are most likely not performing a block,
strike, etc correctly and are becoming injured. It’s also possible that they are not fully healed from
a prior injury and, thus, more susceptible to re-injury. Modify their level of class participation, and
suggest they do the same for their practice outside of class, until the injury has had proper time to
heal.
Is the injury often the result of sparring with a particular student? Maybe they are striking too
hard or too close. Observe them and help initiate the correction. If they tend to fight too close,
give them exercises to work on identifying their correct maai. If they are striking too hard, you will
need to constantly remind them of the results of their force (other’s injuries). Give them a nonhuman target to practice different degrees of striking force. Insist that they can control their
weapon appropriately and adjust their level of force to match their opponent.
An easy way to prevent injury once someone has already been hurt is to assure the student gets
modified training exercises until they can fully heal. Starting in at full speed and force before the
body is ready and recovered from injury is just asking for another injury to occur. Whether the
body is compensating to protect the already injured area or the bruised area itself is involved,
injury can be prevented by allowing the healing to occur.
Remember that several factors affect healing time. Among the most prevalent factors are: age,
physical condition, presence of diabetes, nutrition, genetic traits and family history.
NOTE:
When you correctly use, spar and train with quality weapons, the above mentioned
injuries will not occur.
undivided attention.
Most injuries occur when you don’t give the situation your complete,
Procedure When the Injury Occurs at Your School
As soon as an injury occurs you must assess whether or not the student should continue to
participate in class. Often adrenaline from sparring prevents a person from knowing how bad
they are really injured or they may be embarrassed that they got hurt and won’t acknowledge it at
all.
The strict instruction of a sport like kendo almost expects that any injury will not be
acknowledged. It is good for your students to be able to go on if the wound is a simple bruise or
flesh wound. Serious kendo competitors would only take advantage of this perceived “weakness”
during a competition, and your students need to know what is expected of them in tournaments.
Kombat kenjutsu and chanbara are not as injury-prone due to the softer weaponry involved, but
the same theory applies. It is far better for you to be tough on the students -- in fact it is your job - in the safe environment of your school rather than have the go to a tournament or out to the real
world unprepared to continue if they receive a slight injury. However, because you are the owner
of a business and want to stay in business you will have to balance this lesson with empathy. Err
on the side of caution unless you want to be having a lot of discussions with angry parents.
As soon as possible after an injury occurs, make a written record of the injury. The record should
include who was hurt, how they sustained injury and when it occurred. You may also want to
record witnesses to the accident. You may need this for your insurance or in the unlikely event
any legal actions that result.
Know where the nearest hospital is and how to get an ambulance to your school. Hopefully you
will never need either, but when you do need them you don’t want to have to take time then to
discover where the hospital is or fumble through dialing 911. It is a good idea to have some basic
knowledge in first aid. Application of band aids, proper use of an ace bandage for support,
cleaning minor cuts and scratches, and what to do if someone faints will come in handy.
Because the workouts associated with kendo, kombat kenjutsu and chanbara can cause your
students to perspire heavily, be sure to either provide them with water breaks or remind them that
they are responsible for their own bodies and to get water when they need it.
Appendix A
Personal Development Plan Example
Instructions for filling out the Personal Development Plan
You may know as soon as the student approaches you for training that their needs are going to
go beyond learning about the sword. It may be that a parent has told you about this student’s
special needs (bad grades, poor or improper behavior, etc) or the student may tell you up front
that they are trying to conquer some particular problem (weight, smoking, lack of exercise, etc).
This Personal Development Plan is designed especially for. Use this to personalize the Personal
Development Plan to the specific student by filling their name in the blank.
Skills (check those that are to be practiced). The two skills listed on the sample plan are by no
means all inclusive. They are provided to give you a couple of simple ideas on how to use the
section on skills.
Holding the sword. This skill is included to address mostly beginning students. Since
learning to hold the sword is one of the first things a student learns, the Personal
Development Plan can be applied right away, if necessary, knowing that there is at least
one item that is applicable to beginning students.
Holding the sword can also be used for more advance students. It may be that the
student has forgotten the importance of the basics. They may not remember why the
wrists need to be turned in or which hand is the power hand versus the steering hand.
The more advanced student may also be ready to work on different ways to hold the
sword that are specific to the type of weapon they are using. For example, they may be
ready to learn the difference between holding the long sword as compared to the short
sword or the wooden sword versus the shinai.
Caring for the sword. Similar to the skill of holding the sword, learning to care for the
sword can apply to both beginning students as well as more advance students.
Beginning students can work on the basics, such as how to take apart their shinai for
kendo or how to oil the blade for iaido. Similarly, more advanced students can work on
how to remove splinters or check for problems with their own or another student’s shinai
or they can learn to sharpen a live blade. Since the Personal Development Plan is about
something other than skill, provide the student with a skill to work on that is commiserate
with their area of need. One example is to give the student who has an issue with
respect the task of caring for the sword. This task is appropriate because taking care of
the sword is not just about the sword. It is about respecting others. How? Well, a loose
handle on a shinken could allow the blade to fly out and kill someone or a splinter on a
shinai can fly into another student’s eye and render him/her blind.
Techniques (check those that are to be practiced).
Select one or two techniques that are
appropriate for the students rank or kyu. The example Personal Development Plan was designed
for kombat kenjutsu or chanbara, but it can easily be modified for use with kendo, battodo or
iaido. Provide specific instruction and give them very specific goals to work toward on these
techniques. Give them the basic technique to master. Once they understand the basics, add a
subtlety or two to that technique. Once they have a good grasp of these subtleties, then add
more details. Again, remember to stay conscious of their kyu and not try to give the student more
than they can handle or need at that level.
Remember, the main reason you are giving the student techniques on the Personal Development
Plan is to provide a focus for their mind. The focus gives them a chance to obtain success on a
tangible item. The other elements of the Personal Development Plan are not as concrete, nor are
they intended to be. The rest of the Plan is the true focus; the real “meat” of what the student
needs to work on.
NOTE: If the student only needs to learn technique(s), then place them on a Lesson Plan not a
Personal Development Plan. The Lesson Plan addresses techniques, only.
Stances. Stances look easy to your students on first blush, but, as you now, there are a number
of subtleties that can take a lifetime to master. You can have the student practice an individual
stance, multiple stances or even a series of stances that are performed one after the other. The
newer students should stick with associating the names of the stances with the basics of how to
perform them.
The more advanced students should be instructed to work on details and
perfecting a stance or they should be given the task of moving from one stance to another
seamlessly.
Strikes. Just like the stances, strikes are a lifetime work. It is said that it takes at least a year to
learn how to properly strike the head in the more regimented sport of kendo. Even in kombat
kenjutsu strikes that are properly executed and the ability to connect with your opponent take a
long time to perfect. Pick a stance or stances that are appropriate to the student’s kyu. As with
any of the techniques in the Personal Development Plan, the main focus is on non-sword issues.
However, it is still important that you pick a technique that can be connected to the issue the
student needs to work through. For instance, a student who is having difficultly with the ability to
stay focused may be assigned the strike to the head to perform 50 times in a row. The main
purpose is really about the repetition to work on focus, but the student is given the focus of 50
strikes to the head.
Blocking. There are many blocking sets that can be given to the student to practice. Only the
first three are listed in the example Personal Development Plan, but do not let that stop you from
adding more sets or different sets as you deem appropriate. The blocking sets are most easily
practiced with two people. However, you can assign an individual to work on the blocking set(s)
independently. Again the need of the student is to be taken into consideration. If the student’s
need is to be better able to get along with others, than assigning them the task of working on the
sets with another person is most appropriate. If the student’s need is to encourage weight loss,
then the blocking sets can be practiced alone just for the exercise they provide.
Training. The training sets are similar to the blocking sets in that they are easier to practice with
two participants. As with the blocking sets, you may decide that individual or two person training
is best dependent on the student’s need.
Practice outside of class. Assigning all students to practice outside of class is imperative. Any
student of the sword must be taught that they will only master the sword after many long hours of
concentrated practice. It has been the experience of many an instructor and school owner that
the majority of students do not practice much, if any, outside of class. The serious students will
practice without being told or encouraged to do so, but the committed student is in the minority.
Students who you have decided need a special Personal Development Plan must be given
instruction to practice outside of class. As mentioned earlier, the skills, techniques, blocking sets,
and training sets are given to the student to provide an area of focus while you are targeting a
much deeper, more meaningful issue. If a student has been placed on a Personal Development
Plan by your choice not theirs, they will need some encouragement to continue on the Plan or to
stay in class at all.
If they think you are attempting to “fix” them versus help them to help
themselves, you will most likely lose them. No one wants to feel as if they need to be fixed, no
matter how constructive the change may be.
Special Study. Younger students (those under age 13 or so) may not be as open to committing
to community service or the study of a particular kanji (refer to the discussion on Special Study
below). Including a couple of techniques in the Personal Development Plan that are chosen
specifically as areas of concentration helps give the student something concrete on which to
focus. The mind needs this. Giving a student a specific technique or techniques to practice will
help them by providing something tangible they can practice and see progress and
accomplishment. The areas of Special Study from the example Personal Development Plan are
discussed individually below. These are suggestions you may want to use. There are numerous
other alternatives that you can employ. Be creative.
Japanese terms. Some students may have difficulty memorizing the terms associated
with sword study or any martial art, for that matter. Asking the student to memorize a few
terms at a time and having them use them in class repeatedly is one effective way of
getting them to associate the term with the action or stance. Assigning a student who is
having self respect issues the task of learning some Japanese terms is a good idea if you
know they are good at memorization. They will learn the terms and will gain a sense of
accomplishment that could be the first baby step to feeling better about themselves.
Kanji study. I once had a teacher who assigned everyone in the class a kanji that was
meant only for them. The kanji was chosen after the instructor had observed the class
for some time. He picked kanji that represented each student’s greatest strength, which
was of course also their greatest weakness or area of vulnerability. The students were
not told what their kanji meant. They were asked to find out on their own and then
explain how it applied to them. These kanji will be a source of lifelong search for clarity.
This technique works better with more mature students. Be careful to make sure the
student does the search for the meaning of the kanji, both literally and figuratively, on
their own or it will detract from the purpose of this exercise.
Commitment to give up ___ for ____days /weeks / months. The commitment to give up
something is generally effective for all age groups. This is usually used when a student is
having weight loss problems, a smoking habit, bad grades or an addiction. It is often best
to have the student commit to giving up something that is not directly connected to the
specific issue they are trying to address. This is easier applied to someone who is having
trouble achieving good grades than to someone who is suffering under an addiction. For
bad grades, you may assign the student to commit to giving up television for two weeks.
Although not the specific problem, time away from the television can be better spent
studying or in some other more healthy manner. Another example is to ask a smoker to
give up alcohol for a month. Although not the specific addiction, it can be related to or
have an effect on the student’s smoking habit. Giving up something that is not addictive
to the person will help to build their confidence. Hopefully this will lead to a positive end
result.
NOTE:
Addictions to alcohol, food and drugs are not easy to break.
In fact these
addictions may seem impossible to conquer to the addicted individual. Unless you have
specific training in these areas, do not lead the student into thinking that you can help
them. You can be a supporter and a contributor to their commitment to be free on the
addictive substance, but only they can actually break the habit.
Giving up something is a simple technique to teach discipline. This can be used with
young students. For instance, you could ask the high energy 5 year old to not pull his
sister’s hair for a week. Parents can be full of information that will lead you to the right
item to have the student give up. Engaging them in the Personal Development Plan may
even help to assure that the student complies by his/her commitment.
Commitment to come to class ___ times in a row. Asking them to consistently attend
gives you the opportunity to work with the student more often, which offers you the
opportunity to have more one on one time to influence their behaviors. However, this will
take commitment on your part also. If the student follows through and comes regularly,
they will most likely be expecting something in return from you. So…give it to them.
Provide one on one training on a particular technique, be sure their commitment has a
direct effect on their promotions or put aside time before of after class to discuss their
progress on the Personal Development Plan. The difficult student will always want to
know, “what’s in it for me?”
Community service. A good way to have the students make a commitment that benefits
everyone is to include some time doing community service. This can be as easy as
spending a couple of hours reading to children at the local library to organizing a yard
sale whose benefits go completely to the food bank. Take advantage of this type of
commitment. It provides a much needed service to the community while building self
worth for your student. Talk it up in the community. Mention your school and your
student by name. It’s great free advertising were everybody wins!
Service at the dojo for ____ hours. Asking the students to perform a service at the dojo
is not something you should feel strange about. There is always something around the
dojo that needs attention. Helping to keep the dojo in good condition benefits everyone.
Having the students assist in keeping the dojo in top condition helps them to take some
pride of ownership that can be applied to other things in their life. A parallel illustration is
the younger student’s room at home. Although he/she doesn’t own the home (just like
they don’t own the dojo), their room should still be kept in reasonable condition out of
respect for their parents and themselves (just like respect for the dojo and their sensei).
Examples of things you can ask the student to do at the dojo are to fix a loose mirror or to
clean the mats. If you have a tournament scheduled at a location other than your dojo,
have the student (or multiple students) help set up and tear down as a way of meeting
their Personal Development Plan commitment for Service.
HINT: Any of the types of service commitments can be rewarded and recognized with a
certificate.
With the computing power available today, these are easy to create.
Presenting the certificate at the beginning of class is an easy way to publicly recognize
the student for accomplishing their commitments. This positive reward system does not
take much effort on your part and it provides a sense of pride for the student.
Charity work. Sometimes there is only a little impetus needed to get someone to donate
some of their time to one of the many worthy causes that exist. Having this option on the
Personal Development Plan provides a way for a student to support a local charity while
giving them a way to feel good about themselves. Who doesn’t feel good after helping
someone in need? Use this option with students who are in need of a boost in their self
esteem.
Perhaps the student who is trying to lose a little extra weight or who is a
struggling, awkward teen in need of some self confidence.
Commitment to achieve a grade of ___ in ___or a grade point average of. Obviously the
target group for this selection is school students.
You can choose this option for
someone who is having difficult in one class (e.g., commitment to achieve a grade of B in
Chemistry) or someone who is having overall difficulty (e.g., commitment to a grade point
average of 2.5). Knowing that the school, the parents and the dojo are all watching the
grades can help give encouragement to achieve the grade. In today’s world where there
are often more children than the teacher can watch over appropriately, it is helpful to
have other adults step in as role models and supporters.
Daily affirmation. Daily affirmations have been successfully used by people to achieve
everything from financial freedom to better exercise regimens. A daily affirmation is a
sentence or phrase you repeat to yourself, either silently or out loud, every day. The
affirmation is constructed in a positive tone. It contains the end state you are striving to
achieve.
For example, someone looking to be free of debt from loans might say to
themselves, “I am debt free.” or “I have the money I need to do what I need.” Statements
like this that are made in the positive, present state are very powerful. Notice that the
statement did not say, “Someday I will be debt free.” It was instead stated in the most
positive sense and phrased as if it was true right now at this very moment.
The
affirmations will not work any where near as well if they are not said in the present and
positive manner. Your mind and psyche must believe them to be true in order to make
them true. Other examples of daily affirmations that can be applied by your students are:
•
“I am intelligent” or “I do my homework on time” for use by someone who is
having a hard time in school
•
“I like the way I look” for use by someone who self esteem problems
•
“I am successful in my weight loss program” can be temporarily used by a person
who is trying to drop a few pounds (they will outgrow this once the weight is
gone)
•
“I come to class consistently” to encourage students to be mindful about being at
class every time.
Other. This category is provided for you to add whatever other particular, specific thing your
student may need to work on. It can be used to record commitments the student is making to
himself or to you. It may contain the student’s goal or goals. For instance, a troublesome student
who wants to someday own his/her own dojo can use this space to record their goal. This goal
can be used to remind the person that small steps and accomplishments will someday lead to
achievement of the goal if the student is wiling to dedicate him/herself.