Crosswind117
White Belt
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2022
- Messages
- 17
- Reaction score
- 16
Hello everybody,
I'm a parent with two sons that have just completed over a month of BJJ (2 lessons per week); they will be be 9 and 6 years old this year. I do not have any martial arts or combat background.
My younger son is more athletically-inclined and was totally into it; he also had the benefit of a relatively level playing field as most of the other kids had, at most, just an extra year of experience over him.
My older son is currently quite timid by nature, and after watching his first few classes, it was clear he would be the "runt of the litter" for a while.
My philosophy going into this is that I would not comment, coach, or push my sons in any way and to allow them to grow themselves into the sport as they see fit and without bias. My younger son didn't need any convincing at the start as he seemed to fit right in, always bouncing on his toes. However, I had reservations about my older son because of his gentle nature, but he still wanted to join even though he says that he was scared. The one thing I did tell my sons is that they should treat the BJJ lessons the same as if they were going to school; sometimes you have good days and sometimes you have bad days, but you still need to attend classes and complete your schoolwork regardless.
Then one day two new kids joined my older son's class and they were essentially UFC wannabees. I, on other hand, have never shown my sons any videos of combat sports, partially because I didn't want them to get any misconceptions or preconceived notions. Not surprisingly, my son, despite being taller and heavier, couldn't handle the more aggressive newbies. My son didn't complain and nor did I; he simply mentioned to me on the drive home that everybody was so aggressive. And I just mentioned that BJJ is a combat sport and sometimes you need to be aggressive and, of course, I complimented him on his effort as he always leaves class a little winded and red-faced.
My question is this: Should I continue as is and remain hands-off? and allow my older son to discovered and determine his own mindset over time? Or should I be taking a more pro-active and involved approach, exposing him more to the competitive mentality? Would either of the above approaches be considered a disservice to a child participating in martial arts lessons?
Sorry if these sound like dumb questions, but I'm just somebody that knows very little.
Appreciate any and all advice this forum has to offer.
Kind regards,
I'm a parent with two sons that have just completed over a month of BJJ (2 lessons per week); they will be be 9 and 6 years old this year. I do not have any martial arts or combat background.
My younger son is more athletically-inclined and was totally into it; he also had the benefit of a relatively level playing field as most of the other kids had, at most, just an extra year of experience over him.
My older son is currently quite timid by nature, and after watching his first few classes, it was clear he would be the "runt of the litter" for a while.
My philosophy going into this is that I would not comment, coach, or push my sons in any way and to allow them to grow themselves into the sport as they see fit and without bias. My younger son didn't need any convincing at the start as he seemed to fit right in, always bouncing on his toes. However, I had reservations about my older son because of his gentle nature, but he still wanted to join even though he says that he was scared. The one thing I did tell my sons is that they should treat the BJJ lessons the same as if they were going to school; sometimes you have good days and sometimes you have bad days, but you still need to attend classes and complete your schoolwork regardless.
Then one day two new kids joined my older son's class and they were essentially UFC wannabees. I, on other hand, have never shown my sons any videos of combat sports, partially because I didn't want them to get any misconceptions or preconceived notions. Not surprisingly, my son, despite being taller and heavier, couldn't handle the more aggressive newbies. My son didn't complain and nor did I; he simply mentioned to me on the drive home that everybody was so aggressive. And I just mentioned that BJJ is a combat sport and sometimes you need to be aggressive and, of course, I complimented him on his effort as he always leaves class a little winded and red-faced.
My question is this: Should I continue as is and remain hands-off? and allow my older son to discovered and determine his own mindset over time? Or should I be taking a more pro-active and involved approach, exposing him more to the competitive mentality? Would either of the above approaches be considered a disservice to a child participating in martial arts lessons?
Sorry if these sound like dumb questions, but I'm just somebody that knows very little.
Appreciate any and all advice this forum has to offer.
Kind regards,
