NEW YORK—With winter setting in many parents are wondering what to do with their children, who are starting to get cabin fever and square eyes from too much T.V. But it’s not just exercise that have parents and teachers worried these days, and many are perplexed as to how to get unruly children back in line and keep youth out of crime.
In Harlem, a karate school with old school karate values has hit the nail on the head. The school offers classes for all ages—from pee-wee classes for two to five year olds to serious karate training with Master Kushinda Thorton, children there are getting a good dose of exercise. But that’s not all.
“WORK HARD ALL THE TIME!” chant the students in unison at the start of the Tuesday evening class. “No drugs, no alcohol, no cigarettes!” They yell, continuing with Thorton’s ‘Virtues of Life’ words of reinforcement, “Give thanks for the opportunity to improve ourselves, our personal behavior, character, moral consciousness, self control, self confidence…”
Traditionally the school wouldn’t start training children in martial arts until they were around eight or nine years old, but Thorton came to realize that children were getting into trouble much younger these days.
“At one time we were taking only eight-year-olds and up, but since things were getting so bad, with kids in gangs and bad behavior, we started taking them in younger. I’m seeing children doing things they just shouldn’t be doing when they’re that young,” explained Thorton. Thus, he started the Little People classes two years ago.
Beginnings
Thorton founded the New Breed Life Arts & Education Association Inc. After years of working out of a YMCA, he moved the studio to 135th Street on Harlem’s west side in 2002.
Thorton’s passion and mastery of martial arts led him to understand what an incredible effect it can have on shaping young people’s lives. His project is committed to the community and has underlying motives to help combat involvement in crime, prevent drug abuse, and reduce what they see as feelings of hopelessness and despair in New York’s urban youth. The environment and training helps create positive self images, and gets parents more involved in their children’s development.
“Give them six months and we’ll turn them around. Some of them, especially the young ones, don’t behave—they (parents) just can’t control them,” said Thorton, who is almost like a father figure in some of their lives. “We teach them about sitting still and listening, how they should respectfully respond to their teachers. No more tantrums for the little ones; we explain to them to be calm.”
Many of the parents have seen firsthand the value of having a strong and caring authority figure in the kids’ lives, outside of the home and class room.
“He’s an assertive, disciplinarian cuddly bear… it’s so important that the kids have someone like this,” said Melissa Guzman, who started taking a group of two to four-year olds from her Small Ideas Daycare to the class a few weeks ago. “Every time you mess up in school there’s someone other than their mother or father to give them a kick up the butt.” She hears the other parents raving each week about the changes they’ve seen in their children since then started.
Since her young ones have been going to the Little People (or Pee-wee) class, Guzman has been amazed at how far they’ve come already. “They have meditation around the mat and they’re really listening,” she said. “They know when they go [that] it’s a time to focus.”
The pee-wee class also gets time to burn some energy, with kicks, punches and plenty of forward rolls, but it’s helping them to calm down and pay attention too.
Guzman, an expert in her field of early childhood education, was immediately impressed by Thorton’s way with children during class.
“He has a good understanding of the little ones, but he still lets them know it’s serious,” said Guzman, whose three-year-old daughter Kellyn loves it so much she’s going three times a week now. “At day care the environment is pretty mellow, playing, eating, nap time, eating. At karate there’s a rigorous routine, she’s really stimulated by it. Last week he told her, ‘Kellyn, you’re a warrior.’ She showed him her muscles. With all that pink princess stuff, I mean, how often does a little girl get to hear that? It’s great.”
The fees are reasonable, and a $50 a month donation is requested. For more information on the New Breed Life Arts karate classes, check out the website: www.NBLAMedia.com.
