Dear Parents & Guardians,

In April we will be working on the character lesson:  GOAL SETTING

Learning how to set reasonable and attainable goals is a valuable lesson for children of all ages. All children should set goals periodically so they build the habits necessary to achieve important goals as adults.

Here are some tips regarding children and goal setting based on age:

• With children ages 3 and 4: for the first time they are learning how to follow through on statements they make, particularly with play. For example: they may say “I am going to make a house with these blocks,” and then they do so in a short period of time. This is their very first experience with goal setting. Team them how to recognize accomplishments like this as their very first lessons in goals setting.

• With children ages 5 and 6: They understand saying things can usually lead to accomplishments, but they are still at an age where they enjoy ‘fantasy’ and therefore may interpret a wish as a goal. For example: they may say something like “I want to jump over the moon,” which is more of a wish than a goal. Instead, teach them how to set reasonable and attainable goals such as: “My goal is to jump over this pile of pads 10 times so I can build muscles to jump even higher.”

• With children ages 7 and 9: They understand real goals vs. wishes, so now is the time to teach them how to map out plans to accomplish their goals. For example: “I want to learn my kickboxing form in two weeks so I will ask for help and I will practice my form 10 times a day with great focus and effort for the next two weeks.”

• With children ages 10 to 14: Their goals are going to be much bigger and grander as they get older. The problem is some will give up after they stumble. Teach them how to consider road blocks and ways of dealing with them. For example: if they do not make the football/netball team this year, they can practice over the summer every day for at least an hour to prepare early for next year’s trials.

To succeed in life, we must know exactly what it is we are trying to do. This is the first and foremost secret of successful people – a secret you can give as a gift to your children as you teach them how to set goals. YOUR goal should be to give your children a habit of setting goals – habits which will carry over as adults.

The homework for our junior students this month will be to have a ‘Black Belt Bedroom’ by the end of April.  Please encourage your children to tidy their room over the coming weeks so at the end of the month they have a ‘Black Belt Bedroom’

Thank you for allowing us to be a positive influence on your children and we look forward to watching our youthful students demonstrate their co-operation skills in class.

Sincerely

Digger Barnes

Chief Instructor

Storm Family Martial Arts