St. George Karate Club - City of St. George

St. George Karate Club
Dojo News Letter – February & March 2012
M W M W M W M W M W M W
20
(Pres. Day)
February
22 27 29
Test
5 7 12 14
Ninja
Night
March
Next Scheduled Tests – February 29 th & March 28 th 2012
“The Importance of Respect”
19 21 26 28
Test
One of the key priorities in learning martial arts is learning the importance of respect. How we get
along in our lives will depend very much on our attitudes. Learning proper respect will help you in
your everyday life and attitude. Respect is something that involves all of the people you come in
contact with. In your karate class you learn that it is important to be polite and respectful to your
Sensei (Instructor), Sempai (Assistant Instructor), and other adult leaders that are helping you. You
are taught that it is important that you be respectful to your karate classmates. At school respect
should be shown to teachers and other school employees. In your family you need to have respect for
your parents, grandparents, relatives, brothers, ands sisters. But does everyone you meet
automatically receive respect? Not necessarily, we need to be polite, but people need to earn our trust
and respect by their actions. Talk with your family if you have concerns about someone. Do you have
to respect a stranger? Not necessarily. Remember you can be polite and still watch out for your own
safety. Respect is a positive behavior. Politeness is also a positive behavior. We can respect people
and entities (such as a nation, religion, laws, etc.), but we can also do it while being cautious in our
surroundings. Know that the opposite of being respectful is to be disrespectful. A good karate
student must learn never be intentionally disrespectful, never be rude in your talk or actions. If we
wish to be treated well and respected by others, we must learn to be respectful and helpful to them.
Learn to follow a positive code of ethics. Be helpful, be kind, listen to others, and yet, be safe!
Available Handouts
Available Handouts
White Belts
Yellow Belts
Introductory Handout
Basic Pattern of Hands (1 st stripe)
Basic Pattern of Kicks (2 nd stripe)
Kata – Taikyoku Shodan (3 rd stripe)
Dojo Kun
SGKC Karateka (home) schedule
Japanese numbers
Japanese colors
Orange Belts
9 th Kyu requirements sheet
Kata – Heian Nidan
8 th Kyu requirements sheet
Kata – Heian Sandan
Green/ White & above
See Sensei or Sempai

St. George Karate Club (SGKC)
Belt Rankings
No Name
1 Rain Green/White – 1 st S
2 Zoey Green/White – 1 st S
3 Gabby Orange- 3 rd S
4 Avron Orange - 3 rd S
5 Aaron (Jr) Orange – 3 rd S
6 Dakota F. Orange – 3 rd S
7 Austin Orange – 3 rd S
8 Breccan F. Yellow – 3 rd S
9 Hunter V. Yellow – 3 rd S
10 Gabe Yellow – 3 rd S
11 Dakota M. Yellow – 3 rd S
12 ‘J.R.’ Yellow – 3 rd S
13 Nicholas Yellow – 2 nd S
14 Amanda Yellow – 2 nd S
15 Adrian Yellow – 2 nd S
16 Jeremias Yellow – 2 nd S
17 Javiera Yellow – 2 nd S
18 Myah White – 3 rd S (Y – MA)
19 Eli White – 3 rd S
20 Ethan White – 3 rd S
21 Byron White – 3 rd S
22 Cooper W-1 st S & B - MA
23 Jasper White – 3 rd S
24 Bryan L. White – 3 rd S
25 Peytan White – 1 st S
26 Logan White
No
Name
27 Mekhi White – 2 nd S
28 O-cean White
29 Deveny White
30 Kila White
31 Kamen White
32 Tray White
33 Aden White
34 Braxton F. White
35 Ben White
36 Donovan White
37 Matthew White
38 Ty
39 Jarod Yellow-3 rd S
40 Jessica Orange
Sensei:
Black Belt (Shotokan)
Brown Belt (Shorin-Ryu)(USKO)
Yellow Belt (Kung Fu San Soo)
White Belt (Judo)
Sempai:
Blue Belt (Sho-Ryn-Ru)
Blue Belt + 2 nd S (SGKC)
Adult Rankings
Aaron (Sr.) Orange + 3 rd S
Michael Orange + 3 rd S
Casey Orange+3 rd S
Neil Yellow + 2 nd Stripe
Karalee – White + 1 st S
Joanna – White + 1 st S
Elliott – White
Jacob - White

St. George Karate Club (SGKC)
What is Ninja Night?
Once a year SGKC would like to hold a fun activity night called ‘Ninja Night.’
Tentatively Wednesday March 14 th is scheduled for the first event. What
happens then? Well, the plan is that there will be seven (7) small stations set
up for students to rotate through in small groups. Sensei, Sempai, and other
adult volunteers will operate or assist at these stations. Each one will be a
fun learning experience about the martial art style of “Ninjitsu.” They will
include history, self protection, stealth, tools, concealment, throwing blades,
and mind power (influence). The goal is to spend about 5 minutes at each
station. After the stations are all visited, there will be games (such as Ninja
Quest, Ninja walk, and Ninjas scale the castle wall) as time allows. Students
may dress up in a ninja costume if they’d like to. If enough dress up, we can
have a best costume contest! If you’re an adult and can help run a station,
please let Sensei, Sempai, or Mr. Carey know so we can provide you with
lesson materials. Please help us to make this a successful activity.
“More Thoughts on Respect”:
Respect is an issue that comes up quite a bit in martial arts (I sometimes feel it comes up far too little in other
areas of life). It's a tricky question at times, and to some extent it’s cultural. So how do we explain the concept,
and its importance, to those who are lacking? Those who seem to lack respect in the dojo typically have what is
deemed a "Western" or "Sport" mentality, which accords respect only to those who have earned it. In this case,
simply wearing a higher belt, holding a higher rank, being older in years, or even being the person running the
class, does not automatically qualify you for respect. Instead, those students demand that you demonstrate to
them that you are their superior in technique, speed, knowledge, etc. This puts senior students and instructors in
the position of having tests of strength or will with a student, which varies from harmless to annoying to outright
disruptive. It can break the flow of class, and makes people hard to train with. If you've ever done drills against
someone who didn't do the assigned combination, tried to learn kata with someone who keeps pointing out how
they did a move differently in their old dojo, or sparred against someone who ignored cautions, then you too
have had your training disrupted by someone who is disrespectful.
Eating Tip: It might sound funny, but if you can eat more often, smaller portions of food,
you may stave off intense hunger which causes a person to overeat and gain more
weight. Try eating smaller meals more often and avoid waiting to eat large meals.
Training Tip: If you are able to come to class and train two nights a week try and also
find one other day a week between classes to train on your own for at least 20 – 30
minutes. If you are only able to come one night a week try and find two other days to
train on your own for at least 20 -30 minutes each of these days.

St. George Karate Club (SGKC)
‘MA’ Homework
When children first start their training in the martial arts (MA), especially in the case of very young
children, we often find that they have not yet developed the self discipline to practice at home on a regular
basis. Practicing at home greatly enhances their performance at the SGKC and it should be encouraged.
One of the easiest ways to show your child, as well as us at SGKC is by showing them you are interested in
his or her training and talents. Children love to show off what they have learned in class and we encourage
parents to ask what he or she has learned every single week. Show your encouragement by offering
feedback, and compliment them in the areas where you see improvement. This approach with children
works wonders for their self-image and for motivation. In fact, if you use this approach in just about
anything your child does, whether it is homework or chores, you will notice a positive difference. If
children believe they are getting better it boosts their self confidence, which in turn encourages them to try
harder still.
Handouts are available for the different levels of SGKC training. These will help with karate ‘homework.’
See one of our instructors for assistance if you need to obtain this additional training material.
Uniforms
It’s not mandatory for
students to obtain a
uniform. But, if you’d
like one, ask Sensei
for assistance how to
purchase one.
Parent Helpers
Occasionally it would be helpful to have one or more
parent helpers assist in games, using blockers, holding
focus bags, etc. Please let the instructors know if you
are interested.
Parents: For SGKC questions you may contact Sensei
Snyder at: ray.snyder@sgcity.org
Rank (Kyu) & Bar (stripe)
It’s not necessary for students to seek rank (belt) and bar (stripe) advancement, but if they desire to do so,
it may be accomplished by SGKC documented hours, positive displayed attitude, and demonstration of
their learned abilities by testing. After any class you may inquire for further information.
Did You Know?
The very first martial arts to introduce the
colored belt ranking system as a visible
indication of the students progress was
Japanese Judo. The colored belt ranking
system was first used by Sensei Gichin
Funakoshi for his Karate school at
Shotakan Karate.
ATTITUDE – Attitude is a key element in karate training.
1. Begin with and end with courtesy. Be courteous to seniors,
juniors, elders, friends, and foes.
2. Begin and end each practice with a bow.
3. Remove all worries and outside distractions from your mind
while you are training.
4. Execute each kata with full mind and maximum power.
5. Harmony between breath and action is required.
6. When done correctly, karate produces an individual who can
concentrate energy and expand to heroic proportions in a time
of crisis.