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My son is 5 years old and would like to start Karate. I'm not sure what type he should take, so I'm basically looking for suggestions in and around the Cary area
Is there anyone with children in Karate schools in the area that may be able to recommend a school in particular? Basically, I want him to be physically active, but also learn respect and patience.
I'm leary of going to White Tiger because I think the kids can get lost among the hype and large classes, so preferably I'm looking for a smaller school, but really, I'm looking for a good trainer who will teach the children what they need to know and do it well.
So, any help with classes, as well as prices and if there are contracts would be especially helpful!
My son goes to Tae kwon do in NJ, and I have been looking for some schools in Raleigh for him to continue. I have asked his current Master for some suggestions and he did mentioned White Tiger. The school he goes to now is small and there are at most 8 kids at a time in class. I also do think that he will get lost in the shuffle, he does very well in a smaller environment. However, I spoke to his current teacher and he said that the only reason why their classes are so small is because its brand new, and that it is not unusual to have 20-30 kids in class, and that they learn better. I would research a few schools and take advantage of their free intro classes.
We signed my daughter up for the 21 day free Confidence Class with Vision Marital Arts at Ten Ten & Kildaire Farm Rd. My husband also took the class with her and they both really enjoyed it as something they could do together. When the 21 days were over they sat down and talked about prices & contracts to continue. There were a couple of options and neither were affordable nor was it refundable. If we moved they said we could transfer the money to another studio where we moved. If she lost interest we were out of luck. Our daughter is 5 & we just couldn't see spending thousands of dollars for something she may or may not be interested in next week/month/year. She was terribly disappointed, but it was not affordable. We had her in dance and that was $50 a month so we were just shocked at how expensive Karate was.
We looked around for something more reasonable and a place we could pay by the class or by the month with no contract. We are still looking although not very seriously.
I checked out Lee Brothers in wake forest, they are 5 brothers and have a few different locations, some are in Cary. They seem pretty reasonable, I believe its like $120 per month, no contracts, pay as you go, and you can go to as many classes as offered. I am planning to check them out when I get here.
I have trained in Karate for 20 years, and taught for about 10. Things aren't the same as they used to be in the martial arts world.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KellyCrash
When the 21 days were over they sat down and talked about prices & contracts to continue. There were a couple of options and neither were affordable nor was it refundable. If we moved they said we could transfer the money to another studio where we moved. If she lost interest we were out of luck. Our daughter is 5 & we just couldn't see spending thousands of dollars for something she may or may not be interested in next week/month/year.
"Karate" today has become a purely commercial venture geared toward turning out "black belts" quickly and building the franchise. Most of these places like you describe are known to serious martial artists as "McDojo's" - you can guess that there is not a lot of respect for them. They give out rank like candy and advance students too quickly - I've even seen some promise to make you a "black belt" in three years! The entire purpose of these black belt mills is to build a large profitable franchise - and they often sacrifice quality instruction to that goal.
But there ARE good schools out there. Just before I moved to NC, I was attending a class at a local recreation center. The price was $30/month, for two 1-1/2 hour classes per week. Those sorts of places exist - they just take some looking. Have you checked out your area recreation centers, YMCA/YWCA, etc?
In my opinion, no REAL martial arts instructor would require a contract. If the instruction is good, there is no need for one.
Something else to pay attention to: Tae Kwon Do is NOT Karate - but a lot of TKD schools have signs that SAY "Karate". The same goes for Kung-Fu and JuJitsu.
Tae Kwon Do is a Korean martial art. It is also an Olympic sport. Of the various martial arts, it's probably the closest to Karate, but tends to put more emphasis on kicking.
Kung Fu is Chinese, and there are a wide variety of Kung Fu styles available. To mention a couple, Wushu is very acrobatic, and Wing Chun (or Wing Tsun) is the style that Bruce Lee originally studied.
Proper "Karate" comes in two primary forms: Japanese and Okinawan. Shotokan is the most popular Japanese style, and I think Shorin-ryu is the most popular Okinawan style, although there are many others. The differences between Karate styles are difficult to tell if you haven't had training.
I hope that bit of info helps a little as you're looking
Quote:
Originally Posted by KellyCrash
We looked around for something more reasonable and a place we could pay by the class or by the month with no contract. We are still looking although not very seriously.
I was discussing something like this with my wife a couple days ago. I used to be the Regional Director for a program in California, and I was thinking of starting a similar program here. It's a pay-per-class program that runs in 3-month sessions, and it's especially geared toward younger children. PM me if you would like more info.
I take classes at Lessing's TaeKwonDo in Holly Springs. Mr. Lessing is an amazing instructor, the classes are not huge, and the prices are very reasonable and are paid monthly. Your son would be able to come take a couple of classes to see if he likes it before committing to anything. I hope I post this link correctly. It is www.lessingstkd.com
From the perspective of someone who teaches karate: take your kids to judo. Frankly, karate, much like taking up boxing, is worthless if you're not sparring and punching each other HARD. I don't know many programs like that for small kids (nor parents who would put them in one if it existed). Judo on the other hand lets kids practice realistically/full-force in relative safety because they're not hitting each other, they're wrestling. Karate varies way too much; even two schools of the same style can be completely different. Judo on the other hand is very consistent. Much like basketball or football, almost anyplace you go, judo is judo. Don't waste money taking your kids to some Tae Kwon Do McDojo's judo program. Look for a local rec center or YMCA and take them there. You should usually be able to find Judo for MUCH less than other martial art. If you feel like driving out to Durham Bushido Judo is a non-profit group with trustworthy (and patient) instructors, a large kid's program (who compete a lot), and it's $50 a month. If your kids are still interested in karate, 12-14 is the right age to start that. Ligo Dojo in Durham looks like a very good school for karate. I'd plug myself, but I only teach adults (though 14+ are allowed if they have an 18+ family member taking class with them).
The Town of Cary offers kids and adult lessons in Karate and Tae Kwon Do. The benefit there is no contracts, the courses are about 2 months and you can choose to continue or not without paying thousands of dollars. And, I FULLY agree with the last two posters about the extreme commercial aspect of Tae Kwon Do Centers. My daughter had a friend who went to White Tiger and was a "Black Belt" by the age of 7.
Ligo Dojo in Durham looks like a very good school for karate.
ABSOLUTELY agree - Ligo is an old-school hardcore Kyokushin dojo, which is the style I originally trained in. Durham is just a bit too far for me to go regularly, or I would be training there.
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