Tales from Three Noon Classes

This week I was on the official instructor roster at First Defense Krav Maga for three noon classes. I wrote last week about how I was managing my nerves in preparation for the classes. I'm happy to say all three classes went well!

I taught the first class with a ground focus, the second had a kicking focus, and the third involved striking and striking defenses. I designed the classes to meet requests from students I expected to attend the sessions. I was pleased to hear that they appreciated the coverage for their topics.

I took three lessons away from teaching these classes. First, it pays to prepare solid class plans. I spent a lot of time preparing my lesson plans for each class. I estimated the time for each activity and added options in case we ran through it faster than expected. I also imagined how to cut material in case we progressed slower than I expected. A combination of each situation occurred during the course of the week, but I was ready for each case.

Second, it is important to by friendly and confident when working with students. One of my classes included a student who is several ranks higher than me, and her striking is excellent. Another student had much better kicking than me. In each case I used them as examples when showing students sound technique. I also tried to learn from their demonstrations.

Third, I learned that I am capable of running multiple classes during a week. When I taught the one noon class the previous week, I wondered if anyone would have returned if they knew I were teaching multiple days. It turns out that I had repeat students this week! That helped me recognize that I could succeed in this field.

What lessons have you learned from teaching martial arts classes? Stay informed of new blog posts by following me on Twitter @martialvitality.