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Do You Dojo?
Finding the Right Martial Arts School for Your Child
By Tenna Perry
Tomaselli recommends parents of his students hold off on buying gis and sparring gear until a student shows he or she will stick to the program. It is very easy to drop $30 to $60 for a gi and almost $100 in sparring gear only to have the child lose interest a week later. Occasionally the child and the instructor will have a personality conflict so the student will leave to find a new school. He is going to feel very out of place in a new school if his gi has the old school's patches and logos on it. Some schools won't even allow the other gi to be worn in class. That means the parent is out all the costs.
"A beginner student can learn just as well with a T-shirt and a pair of loose-fitting stretch pants," says Tomaselli. "Once past the beginning stages and when a student wants to begin going to tournaments, then buy the uniform, since tournaments require proper attire and equipment for competition."Wayne Schultz of Kingwood, Texas, is a black belt and an ex-tournament competitor. These days, he is his 10-year-old son's tournament coach and cheering squad. Schultz sees martial arts and his son's tournaments as a positive influence.
"Tournaments are great moral boosters," he says. "They help to raise the self-confidence of the child, encourage the spirit of team sports, are non-sexist and definitely teach respect. Win or lose, the competitor learns to do it with dignity. These matches allow my son to interact with people who practice various styles of martial arts from all over the state. These are people he normally wouldn't meet. When students in a dojo spar regularly against each other, they will soon learn to anticipat the other's moves. Tournaments give him a chance to practice his skills in a controlled environment against a wide variety of people."
