I recently ran my first Jiu Jitsu Camp for ages five and older. In the past all of the camps have been seven and up. It was a full camp and the most fun one yet. Having the younger kids there came with some new challenges but I was prepared for them.
The main difference having the younger kids in camp is being ready for the shorter attention span. I had to be ready to refocus the group or change activities much more often than when seven year olds were the youngest kids there. Another big difference was the class style had to be more of a peewee/kids hybrid class with the kids split into groups and a lot of hands-on coaching. For the next camp I will probably allow this age group to come again. It was fun having some of the peewee kids there.
For the class portion of camp we did a fun warm up and practiced some basics. After that we practiced arm bars on the coaches and did some Jiu Jitsu matches. There was a very wide variety of skill and experience levels in the room along with the variety of ages. After class we played all of the mat games that we have played before at camp with the addition of a free for all snow ball fight. We ended the day with some snacks and board games. I haven’t picked a date for the next camp yet but I am excited to start planning for it!
Danny
Even 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!
Chess 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? 
Yes! 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. 