Fujian White Crane Kung Fu & Tai Chi

Day of the Girl Child  Once upon a time, Fang Qi Niang was a girl child in 17th century China. She grew up to be a Master of Kung Fu, unafraid of fighting with men who came to challenge her, and when they lost begged her to teach them. This former girl child became the founder of the White Crane System of Kung Fu.    At Fujian White Crane Kung Fu & Tai Chi, we still teach White Crane Kung Fu in and around London – to children, teens and adults.    Today is the International Day of the Girl Child. Children are vulnerable to harm and girls are particularly vulnerable to harm because they are girls (boy children face different harms on the basis of being boys).      And so we had a Club conversation around how we teach children (under 13s) in our classes, such as instructor Rob Forsyth's thriving children's class in Winchester.  Can we help them train through the early years of adolescence?  We teach them to fight without fighting, instructor Sharon Ngo showed me.    Here are the key elements of how we organise and run our children’s training that may particularly benefit girls:    ✏️ a non-gendered, loose-fitting uniform that does not focus on body shape;  ✏️ equal access to training space with boys;  ✏️ an active environment that does not lead to children observing each other; and  ✏️ no physical contact (sparring) but skills-based training.    Just hoping for girl children to participate in physical activities is not enough. Giving them girl-only spaces and training are great in sports – but we also live in a mixed society, and most children go to mixed schools. As a Club we provide a proactive environment where we reinforce equal access - to space, attention, opportunity, learning.    Let’s hope our contribution helps.  #kungfu #martialarts #children #kensingtonandchelsea #london 

Welcome to World Mental Health Day – there are so many wonderful resources being poured out today. Hence I stopped to think about what we do and how we can have positive effects on those who choose to join us. Students often comment that their Kung Fu and Tai Chi training really helps their mental health. Which is good news. But when I ask them how does it help, they cannot pin it down. The usual answers are that exercise is good for them, learning new skills gives them a focus, and so on. The reasons you read in the media as suggestions for healthy mental health. And those are valid. As Instructors we train people’s bodies – their tendons, their muscles, their reaction speeds, their joints. But the hidden side of our teaching is that as a Club we actively train their courage. Not self-esteem, or self-confidence, or self-belief but courage. We feel emotions in our bodies, and troubles in our lives affect us physically. Which is why exercise helps. But facing our fears and problems takes courage. And yet we are often left on our own in how to have courage. Are people just born with it? Where do you get it? Can it be learned? Will it always be there or can it go away? The ways we teach, structure our classes, motivate and drive training, acknowledge achievement and test improvement – all raise and nurture courage. Our Kung Fu and Fighting classes are tough physically and demand cognitive input. Our Tai Chi classes require even greater concentration and only appear to be gentler because they involve less cardio. But our training is not for the already strong but for those who want to be stronger, who want to deal with fear not just live with it. And the answer is YES, courage can be learned, it can be trained, and it arises when it is called upon. That is encouraging. #WMHD2023 #WorldMentalHealthDay

Going to school is not the same when your Mum’s a primary school teacher. You can never get away with “the dog ate my homework” because she’s heard every excuse under the sun, and she’s not letting me leave the house without it.    This was in the 80s when Britain was a very different place – maybe not better, just different. And teachers have made their contributions to those changes and continue do so to this day. They bear a responsibility to the society of tomorrow across the world.    Good, responsible teachers change our worlds. And it doesn’t only have to be in school. Speaking for myself, outside my recruitment business I teach Kung Fu and Tai Chi. Passing on centuries’ old knowledge with diligence and accuracy takes dedication to constantly improving my teaching ability. And sometimes a firm but fair hand.   Today, we pause to celebrate the remarkable individuals who ignite our curiosity, cultivate our minds, and shape our futures — one lesson at a time.   The world needs good teachers, who influence beyond the classroom, shaping society and moulding the leaders of tomorrow.   Shout out to all the teachers out there, thank you for making the world a better, smarter, and more compassionate place!   #WorldTeachersDay #ThankATeacher #EducationMatters