Tag Archives: communication

Child Safety, Motivation, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

Praise First, Correct Next

Here’s a common mistake that teachers and parents make in their desire to help children do their very best: they offer “constructive criticism” right from the very beginning.

This can make children feel they’re being criticized before anything else.

However, if children hear praise first, they are much more willing to keep improving. We train our instructors to seek the positives first, to be “good finders.”

Once they praise our students for their efforts, only then does the instructor share ways to improve upon the student’s technique.

So it sounds like this: “I like the way you kicked. Now if you turn your foot this would be better. Great! Now do it 10 more times just like that!”

Instead of being guarded and defensive, the child is motivated by the praise to try again.

I also see this with parents. They love their child and want them to do so well that they first correct their child instead of first praising them for their efforts. This minor tweak will really boost your child’s desire to be the best.

Our instructors call this, “Praise, Correct, Praise and Challenge.”

Child Safety, Motivation, SYN Digital Enrollment Director

Keeping Kids on Track

Everyone likes to be asked to do something, not always told to do so. The same goes for children.

At our schools, we tell our martial arts instructors that sometimes, in order to get the kids to practice on their own or to always use their best technique, they should try asking instead of commanding.

For example, we can say, “Johnny, can you do your kicks,” or we can scream, “JOHNNY! DO YOUR KICKS!” Both get the same result, but the first one is more pleasing to deal with.

Besides, if we constantly shout out orders, students begin to tune us out. It is always better to get kids to comply with a question we pose to them (“Do you want to be a belt someday? Let’s practice those kicks!”)

That’s not to say we don’t sometimes demand action. But we do mix it up, because constantly demanding is overbearing. We want students to realize that we want them to do their best – and that sometimes, we have to ask.

When we give them our best, they respond by giving us their best in return.