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Extra-curricular activities

Find advice on the best extra curricular activities in secondary schools and primary schools here.

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Original poster

Judo or karate for primary-age girls?

22 replies

abeautifulbutterfly · 15/09/2011 10:10

Please enlighten me.
I have never been in the slightest interested in any martial arts but school is offering both judo and karate as extra-curric this year.
I have 2 DDs aged 6 and nearly 8, both with bags of energy, so thought they could try one of these out.
What's the difference between them, and is either more suitable at beginner level for girls of this age? DD1 in particular is rather dippy and easily distracted, so perhaps could benefit from some focusing of the mind and body...
TIA

OP posts:

Portofino · 15/09/2011 10:29

My dd is about to start Judo this week. My understanding is that Judo involves grappling and throwing down, and Karate involves kicking and striking with hands etc. Dd swears she wants to do this rather than dancing this year - I am hoping it is genuine and not because she has watched too much Kung Fu Panda....

Original poster

abeautifulbutterfly · 15/09/2011 10:44

Portofino

It all seems so scary and shouty and violent to ignorant, scaredy-cat me but I am not projecting this onto the DDs and am actually asking them to go to the taster lessons and see if they fancy it...

OP posts:

Portofino · 15/09/2011 19:59

Indeed! We are going to give it a go on Saturday. It is self defence at the end of the day, so possible more useful as a life skill than "jazz". I have an added complication in that dd broke her wrist over the holidays and the cast has only been off a week. She is signed of Gym at school til October. But enrollment is Saturday - so she might have to go and not do much for a few weeks.....I am going to ask...

TrillianAstra · 15/09/2011 20:01

I don't know but I want to say that you are ace.

I will most definitely be encouraging my (imaginary) daughters to take up a martial art rather than dancing or gymnastics. It's all about being completely aware of and in control of your body, and knowing exactly where every part of you is at any time.

fluffles · 15/09/2011 20:04

i loved judo as a child (and jiu jitsu as an adult) - it gives you so much physical confidence.

i'm sure karate does too - i don't think one is better than the other (despite being a confirmed judo/jitsu person and not interested at all in kicking and hitting).

go for the one with the best class, best teacher, most convenient.

winnybella · 15/09/2011 20:07

I think both are equally fun- DS took judo classes 2 years ago and there had karate next door and in both classes there were girls.

FWIW, in judo they grapple/throw each other but karate for beginners is no-contact I think-so if you think one of your girls might be a bit scared of the wrestling etc perhaps karate might be better (only saying because DS quit after a year because he didn't like the physical contact/pain when being thrown on the mat etc-but then he was a scaredy cat, much better now).

elphabadefiesgravity · 15/09/2011 22:27

I've just had the same thing - I know nothing about martial arts but ds aged 7 asked to go to karate and ashe rarely asks to join anything I thought I had better try and look for a class.

A work colleague who used to do judo told me that taekwondo is good for children its more like karate but with more kicks and is a bit more fun for children.

We went to watch a session tonight and ds seems to like the idea.

Original poster

abeautifulbutterfly · 16/09/2011 08:01

Thanks all (especially Trillian - no-one has called me "ace" in a long time!)

They went to the karate taster lesson yesterday and loved it, so I think I'll let them go there.
Winnybella that's good to know - they are a bit like that, esp. DD2 (she was worried beforehand whether she would have to fight someone bigger than her!), so I think I'll stick with it. They are both really agile and stretchy and they did lots of things like shoulder stands which they're good at so it gave them confidence.

Thanks again

OP posts:

sanam2010 · 06/10/2011 20:09

oh, your DDs are so lucky, I would have LOVED to do Karate as a girl but never did it bc all the clubs had only boys in the and I didn't want to be the only girl. It is so fantastic that more schools nowadays offer it to girls. I will definitely give my DD the opportunity to do karate. There are a few private primaries in London that offer Karate for girls, and at one of them (Cameron House School in Chelsea), apparently some of their girls obtain the black belt in Karate before moving on to secondary school. I think that's fantastic!

As to Karate vs. Judo, I would go for Karate now. Judo you can always do later in life, but as Karate requires more flexibility bc of of the jumping and kicking, it is great for young flexible children to do it. It's hard to start Karate when you're twenty, whereas once you've done Karate early, you can always switch to Judo later on.

My husband did Karate as a boy and loved it. My mum did Judo as a girl in her childhood and still benefits from it, she still knows how to throw strong people on the ground and defend herself even though she only did a couple of years.

I am glad to hear your DDs enjoyed their taster session and hope they give it a go! It is so good for self-confidence and self-defence. Just think of how little you need to worry about them going out later in life when you know they can do karate!

zeus123 · 08/10/2011 17:06

DD10 has given up dancing and taken taekwondo - absolutely loves it. Go for it.

anothermadamebutterfly · 10/10/2011 10:42

My ds7 and dd8 started karate last spring, they both loved it but dd gave up after 6 months because she started ballet after much nagging (her nagging me) and we said she had to chose, and she chose ballet, to my slight disappointment because it would have been much more convenient for them to go to the same class in the same place at the same time! I thought karate looked fun, and the teachers were lovely (unlike the rather scary ballet teacher...).

Hope your girls enjoy it.

sylvia247 · 25/10/2011 17:51

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by Mumsnet.

stealthsquiggle · 25/10/2011 17:56

DD (5) does judo, because it is conveniently offered at school, but I think if I had a choice I would probably go with karate.

(whispers - sorry, Trillian, but she does ballet too - of a sort - but so do most of the boys in her class which makes it OK. Sort of)

HerdOfTinyElephants · 25/10/2011 17:59

I would say Judo is great for a child with lots of physical energy and flexibility but not so much coordination as they can get stuck in and enjoy it and it helps with the coordination without their noticing. But there is rough-and-tumble right from the start, so Karate would definitely be better for a child who's less keen on that.

mistlethrush · 25/10/2011 18:07

Ds does karate - and its a no-contact club right up into the Dan grades. The sparring is interesting - I think that they have to be more precise with kicks and punches because of not being allowed to make contact (although they certainly make contact with pads!). Ds started at school - but mitherd me to take him to a Saturday class which we started in the summer. Having seen the mix of ages going and lots of parents and children going together, I suggested to Dh he might consider it as he's done a martial art in the past and enjoyed it. Dh is not flexible, he's not 20 anymore and he's very unfit. However, he has been to two sessions and enjoyed them both - so I'm hopeful that he'll do this as a regular thing.

Ds does street dance and yogabugs as a contrast to karate and football

ByTheWay1 · 26/10/2011 20:44

My 2 girls do karate in a mixed age (6 to 63) class - they have been going for 2 years and are training for their brown belt - the one before black - they are enjoying it soooooo much - it surprised me that they would continue to love it so much as they now go twice a week for training - first half an hour is raw physical exercise (circuit type training) with some moves added in, and other half an hour is pad work where they have loads of fun - twice a week!!
I get tired watching!

wonkylegs · 26/10/2011 20:57

My brother and sister both did Judo for many years and were both quite good. My brother gave up after my sister who is 3 years younger than him beat him in an open competition (open meaning it wasn't restricted to age or belt categories) - it was mostly about skill and thinking about what you did rather than physical strength. Hence the fact that he was beaten by a tiny blonde thing.
My sister was always told she was very good and could have competed at national level but she finally bowed to peer pressure that 'it wasn't very girly' and being an impressionable teenager chucked it all in for more girl friendly gymnastics
I loved going to Judo comps with them both, all the kids loved it and were generally disciplined whilst having fun but some parents seem to take it all a bit too seriously

sashh · 15/11/2011 22:16

The first difference is the floor - Judo you have mats, Karate you don't.

Judo is throwing and pinning people, and is usually very quiet.

Karate you learn to fight by punching and kicking and screaming 'Kiaaaa' at the top of your voice.

Why not do a couple of weeks of both to see which they prefer?

reallytired · 18/11/2011 11:56

Ds hated judo, but loves karate. He didn't like the physical contact involved with judo. Ds has recently got his orange belt and does karate twice a week at school. Karate has been great for his confidence, poise and physical fitness.

I look forward to when dd is old enough to do martial arts. She is DESPERATE but has a long wait as she is two years old.

sanam2010 · 18/11/2011 13:06

Bytheway1, brown belt after just 2 years twice a week is fantastic!! Is that normal? I didn't think it was possible to advance that fast!! My dream for DD is to start karate when she is around 6 years old and I would be thrilled if she had the black belt by 10 or 11, was wondering if it can be done with sessions twice a week only.

sanam2010 · 18/11/2011 13:07

Bytheway1, brown belt after just 2 years twice a week is fantastic!! Is that normal? I didn't think it was possible to advance that fast!! My dream for DD is to start karate when she is around 6 years old and I would be thrilled if she had the black belt by 10 or 11, was wondering if it can be done with sessions twice a week only.

GloriaSteinem · 18/11/2011 13:21

Anyone tried Capoeira? My 4 yo DD loves it. Mix of fighting and dancing, non-contact but v energetic. Plus music and drumming. Good all rounder for littler kids to start with.

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