Tag Archives: chess

Thanksgiving Week Kids Camp in El Dorado Hills Jiu Jitsu

EDH Jiu Jitsu will be offering a kids camp for kids age 5-15 this Thanksgiving week on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Our seasonal camp is a fun half day camp with an emphasis on learning and having fun through different activities like chess, jiu-jitsu and origami.

What will I do at kids camp?

Campers will be doing many things during the week. Each camp day is a little different from the other, but our activities include games like dodgeball, snakes in the grass, freeze tag, fireball, and other games. Jiu-Jitsu is also taught with an emphasis on self defense and anti bullying which is a little different from our typical Brazilian Jiu Jitsu lessons taught in the evening classes.

In addition to the physical activities we have with games and kids jiu-jitsu we also have time to sit down and play quietly. We’ve incorporated “no stress chess” for the younger children to learn and play chess, while teaching and allowing the older students to play chess. Other arts and crafts have been incorporated into camp with Japanese origami, Japanese calligraphy being the main activities. The students enjoy making their own ink on the ink stones and practicing different kanji characters with a brush.

Our seasonal camps also feature story telling and speeches or presentations by the campers. The story telling is a great time to talk about a seasonal activity, bullying, the environment, community service, kindness, and more.

  • Games
  • Jiu-Jitsu with an emphasis on anti-bullying
  • Jiu-Jitsu with an emphasis on self defense
  • Chess
  • Origami
  • Japanese Calligraphy
  • Letter writing
  • Speech / Presentations
  • Story telling

What do I need to bring?

Water and jacket. There is no specific attire required, but come ready to move and have fun! In most of our camps we provide a healthy snack so please let us know if your child has any allergies that we need to be aware of. Typically, our snacks are an apple, peach, persimmon, (season fruits) and cheese stick, cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds, etc.

When does EDH BJJ host a camp?

Camps are held during the season breaks of the year, all year round during the season breaks in the fall, winter, spring, and summer. Please check back during your school breaks if you miss our camp this season!

 

EDH Jiu-Jitsu & Self Defense

Kids Camp in El Dorado Hills

Kids Camp El Dorado Hills had the first week of camp for kids age 5 and up. The camp is an opportunity for local children to learn jiujitsu, chess, and have fun moving. Healthy snacks of apples, almonds, cheese, and yogurt are provided to the campers are picked up fed and tired. The next week of camp will be JULY 31 – AUGUST 3.   NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY to join the camp! We welcome beginners to jiujitsu, chess, and anyone looking to learn, move, and have fun is welcome!

In the jiujitsu lessons the coaches teach the fundamental movements and positions of guard, mount, side control, back control, a strong stance. These fundamentals give students an opportunity to better understand strong positions that are advantageous in self defense and anti-bullying situations. From these positions the campers learned different movements and submissions to control their opponent. When working with a partner, students not only are learning about the physical space their body occupies, but also how to communicate with their peers. Communication is an integral component of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Campers are taught the importance of communicating with their body as well as their words to convey their thoughts. Developing healthy communication strategies at a young age leads to higher EQ, emotional intelligence.

In addition to jiujitsu and the lessons we are able to teach through it’s practice. The camp also includes the teaching and learning of chess. While jiujitsu is chess with the body, chess is jiujitsu with the mind! After a morning of games and lessons in jiujitsu and self defense, the campers are given a healthy snack and an opportunity to continue working on their communication. Since we have multiple levels of chess players, we incorporate peer mentorship, “No Stress Chess” (a chess set designed to teach the basic game while playing the game of chess). and some adult coaching. This allows all levels of chess players to have fun and keep up with the game. During chess, the campers are given an opportunity to calm down from the previously rigorous games and exercises and direct their focus and attention on the chess board. Even the most rambunctious children tend to focus in on learning and playing chess.

A strong component of our camp is the concept of learn through play.  To do this we design our games with technical lessons and concepts to develop leadership and/or teamwork. One example of a game we play is tug of war. In tug of war, the team concept is developed along with leadership. The leader of the group is responsible for helping to “unite” their group to pull all at once. At the end of the game, the winning team will assign a number to the losing team to practice a technique learning during the jiujitsu lesson. If the number 10 is picked, the losing team will do 10 arm bars (for example) and the winning team will perform half (5 in this case). In this example, leadership is developed by the vocal member of the group to pull the rope all at once. Teamwork is shown and developed when everyone works together to pull the rope all at once. Technical skills are developed after a winner and loser is established to disguise the repetitions practiced.

Along with the practice of jiujitsu, chess, and games we emphasize gratitude. We talk about gratitude at the end of each session and ask the campers what they are thankful for. Through out the day, an emphasis is made of saying thank you, writing a thank you card to take home and give to someone, and thinking about the things that are necessary to be thankful for.

Join us on our next camp experience in El Dorado Hills! We welcome new comers and look forward to having our current members join us for a fun half day of jiujitus, chess, gratitude projects and games! Next camp will be July 31st -August 3rd!

El Dorado Hills Kids Camp during Thanksgiving at EDH BJJ

Thank you, to all the children and parents who participated in this year’s Thanksgiving Week Kids Camp!

The camp was held on the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, leading up to Thanksgiving. It gave children the opportunity to spend more time in the dojo to explore other engaging activities that coincide with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, self defense, and teamwork. The camp also gave our instructors the opportunity to connect with the children in an even more meaningful fashion than just learning and practicing BJJ.

15134554_1160365437382575_5885546125256103671_nEven though we had a scheduled agenda before the children arrived each day; we stepped out of the agenda and followed the interests of the children. Each day started with games and free play, to let the children socialize and become more comfortable with each other. That led to learning the basic and foundational movements and positions of BJJ. The campers expressed what they were thankful for by making cards and drawing pictures for their families. And we had plenty of snack breaks to feed our hungry learners!

15109355_1161485187270600_4703711507340850035_nChess seemed to be the most interesting daily activity for the group. For over an hour the children worked harmoniously together, as they helped each other setting up the Chessboard and learning how the pieces moved. We worked on game-planning and strategies. Does that sound like some familiar concepts we use for another game?

15171097_1162054420547010_623634796777894843_nYes! The camp was structured around getting each student to THINK. Not only about what they were thankful for, but that their actions have consequences, how to work together in groups or with a partner, and that the cross over between chess, jiujitsu and other activities off the mat. 

El Dorado Hills Jiu Jitsu
916.595.4064