Is Karate Good for Kids? (Main Benefits and Potential Concerns You Need to Know)

What does Karate teach a child? Far more than you might expect if you’ve never delved into the martial arts world before. 

Parents have various reasons for considering self-defense classes for kids. They can range from simply wanting them to be able to defend themselves to helping to manage behavioral issues or work through a traumatic experience.

But, is Karate good for kids? 

Absolutely! While there are pros and cons to everything, there are a plethora of benefits of Karate for kids that parents should know if they are considering enrolling their child in martial arts.

Karate for Kids

Karate is the ideal sport for kids for building self-confidence, balance, co-ordination, discipline and courtesy, while learning basic self-defence skills. Children may start training in SHIM BU KAI karate as young as 5 years of age.

Classes for Kids

SHIM BU KAI’s classes provide a warm, friendly and encouraging atmosphere and all instructors are fully accredited. Children may train in regular classes (alongside people of all ages including other family members) or train in special kids classes.

These classes run for one hour and consist of basic training as well as many karate associated games.

Karate Provides a Win / Win Environment

With most sports, either winning or losing in a competition is your feedback on yourself. As karate is a non-competitive sport the only competitor is yourself. Therefore, as you continue to improve, you only always win, which serves to build self-esteem.

Goals and Your Child

Karate offers a coloured belt system where all students start at White belt and work up through different colours. This serves not only to measure a child’s progress but also provides a journey. Children are encouraged to set goals for these belts, which teaches them life skills of setting a target and working towards achieving it.

Will My Child Misuse Karate?

Karate is to develop character, students also learn basic self-defence skills. SHIM BU KAI promotes that children MUST NOT misuse their karate under any circumstances. Should any child misuse their karate (either at home or at school), we ask the parents to notify us of this so together we can speak with the child about their behaviour.

Bullying and Karate

Bullying is a serious issue with children as the affects can last for years after it stops, even throughout their adulthood. Karate helps children who are bullied and to those children who are bullies.

Karate’s History and Children

Karate was first developed to teach children to become people of high character, with self-defence being a secondary focus. The character these children exhibited was so impressive, in 1902, karate was formally introduced into the Okinawa Primary School system so all Okinawa children would benefits from its teachings. When karate moved to Japan in the 1920’s, within a few short years the Japanese Government were so impressed with the values it promoted, it too introduced karate into it’s education system. This still exists today where every school in Japan has karate as a subject all students must study.

Karate for Teens

Karate is the ideal sport for teenagers for building self-confidence, fitness, flexibility, discipline, co-ordination, and courtesy, while learning basic self-defence skills.

Fitness and Teens

Karate is a rare activity in that it uses every muscle and bone in the body, creating a full-body workout. Considering teens come in all shapes, sizes and fitness levels, it is an ideal activity because each person may go at his or her own pace.