Children’s programs from home – the best secrets to true success
Online extracurricular programs and classes for home-based learning have become a new norm for many children, however, there are several crucial pieces you need to make the most of their experience and education. We’ve listed the top ten that will ensure their best results! And the best part of online home-based programs is you can now come home from a long workday and actually see what your child has learned for video-based online classes.
Here are some crucial tips that have popularized our own online martial arts class program for children around the world that we can share for big success:
1. Always ask about real life examples to relate to the topic or lesson at hand. The more you personalize it, the more it matters in everyday life, the more of their brain shifts attention towards the activity of class and not distractions. Children have the capacity for laser-like focus if they are convinced something is worth their time.
Our example: We show importance of a class lesson by reminding students that paying attention today pays off for life in general. When we learn reflex moves to dodge strikes; someday that could be a ball coming right at your child’s head in sports. When we learn how to properly fall backwards if we lose balance; we remind your child people slip and fall all the time from accidents and falling properly can really prevent injuries.
2. Focus on strengths while sprinkling in work on weaknesses. It’s very tough to ask anyone to work on a weakness all the time. During preparation for my own board certifications as a medical provider, many of us in school focused on studying our strengths. I was a cardiology and emergency medicine guy. One of my friends was excellent with OBGYN, which I was weaker in. We love showing what we know well to reaffirm confidence in ourselves. After showing off a strength, you’ll be more willing to focus on some weaknesses.
Our example: Some children excel in the physical fitness aspect of our martial arts online classes, others in soft fluid forms and others in self-defense combinations. In some of our online classes students get a choice of their favorite form or combination to work on during specific parts of class – their strength. Then after this, we ask them to work a few minutes on something they know they are weak in.
3. Celebrate new understandings as small accomplishments. Children need positive reinforcement. Show some praise for small accomplishments of learning a new concept they demonstrate they know. Celebrate ne understanding of concepts and ideas by allowing an extra snack or letting them stay up a few minutes later that night. You can build onto this by doing “causal descriptions” too by emphasizing the “why” to guide them in trying to understand (or do) the activity at hand – boring raw descriptions are a fast way to let them lose interest.
Our example: Our children’s classes include some difficult martial and physical fitness concepts. While your child will attempt new or difficult things, the real importance is they do not give up and they can explain why they’re doing what they’re doing, For example, you shadow box in the air leaving a slight arm bend of an “S” curve when striking to protect your elbow from excess ligament and tendon strain. After we review the “why” of tougher concepts, we may throw in a fun game at the end of class.
4. Use fun games to drive important concepts in the program. Games are an excellent disguise to enforce repetition and good practice. Practice doesn’t make perfect – rather perfect practice makes perfect.
Our example: Our program incorporates physical fitness games into many of our children’s classes. We hit core concepts of twisting the hips to put power into strikes by punching with good form using speed drills, target striking (hitting a rolled piece of paper into a ball) or balance drills, doing the same strike, the same idea.
5. Actually take part in what your child is doing. Show you care by asking questions or taking part if the activity allows so. We like to be noticed when others reflect on our activities and how we are doing in them.
Our example: Our online classes are very open to parent participation, if for nothing else, other than the physical fitness portion lets parents or siblings workout exercising together as binding time. Or perhaps some of our slower forms and moving meditations. This has been very rewarding for our students online.
6. Set boundaries. This is a balance both ways for a class, program or extracurricular activity. If a child struggles or loses some motivation during parts of a class or program, they need to be reminded everyone has good and bad days with anything they do. Likewise, if they love it, they cannot “take it for granted” and need to remember this program or activity is a treat and privilege that can be taken away for bad behavior.
Our example: Our online martial arts and fitness children’s program is expected to be done in accordance with priorities set forth by parents – children must be working hard on homework, schoolwork, house chores and treating others with respect. You can withhold an online class from your child if you have to.
7. Set a schedule for the activity or program. If the activity or program is not already pre-scheduled in general, then create a time for it specifically day-to-day. Children need structure. Having an idea of when and where they are expected to do things is crucial. The actual time may change a little but have a general pattern.
Our example: The simplest implementation for most family schedules is afterschool once homework is completed, your child gets to do our online martial arts and fitness program (all our classes are recorded too).
8. Ask them to teach you one big thing they learned today using all the “learning styles”. The big three:
*Verbally: have them explain the thing to you the best thing or new thing they learned
*Physically or Visually: have them show it to you physically (if able to do so for sports, martial arts, etc.) or visually if it’s an education concept in a written example or drawing (i.e. English or mathematics)
*Logical: make them explain the concept or thing they show you physically, as is why, when and where to do it
Our example: We often ask your child to teach “the big three” for the martial arts focus of the day. For example, sidekicks: explain how to do it verbally, show the physical kick, then the logic behind why it’s used.
9. Create intrinsic motivation. Nothing beats intrinsic drive. Remind them daily that good effort and hard work blows away the results; also be curious in general by asking your own open-ended questions about things.
Our example: In physical games, we create a basic definition of “success” (i.e. 60 kicks in 60 seconds), but at the end, we actually ask your child students to think about how hard they really tried, not the number they got.
10. Have them volunteer to teach or show it to a friend who would be interested in learning. This also builds intrinsic motivation, when you see the power of training and showing someone else. Just make sure the family member or friend is willing ahead of time to learn and try the activity. If no one else, it can even be you!
Our example: We invite students to teach someone who you feel would want to learn a piece of the day’s class.