online physical education Archives

Three reasons kids don’t like P.E. class

/in Curriculum, Homeschool, Self Defense/by coachjody

P.E. class should be the favorite part of a student’s day! It’s the one place where they are not confined to a desk. But the top three reasons kids hate P.E. class are (Their quotes, not mine 😳)

“It’s only welcoming to athletic kids.”
“I don’t like sports and that’s all we do sometimes.”
“It becomes another place I might get bullied either in the locker room or in the gym.”

It’s hard to read these words. How can we make P.E. class fun, playful, and empowering for all children? As a parent and educator, I want children to be able to defend themselves, but I don’t want the experience to be scary or expensive.

This is why I created The Great Flip! It is an online martial arts resource filled with empowering self-defense videos and easy-to-follow lesson plans for students in 1st – 12th grade. You can make physical education fun, playful and empowering by teaching a martial arts unit!

Review Three Online Curriculum Plans

Educators understand the value-added benefits The Great Flip online martial arts program offers including this feedback:

My program gets students moving and active which improves physical and mental health.
The self-defense skills give students, parents, and teachers the opportunity to talk about the fears children are experiencing and apply faith in tangible ways. Bullies and bad guys don’t social distance. Students will learn how to apply confidence and courage to every situation.
6th grader at St. John Lutheran School
Adding a self-defense unit to your Physical Education (P.E.) class allows all children to enjoy P.E. class, not just the athletic kids.
Adding my program gives you another opportunity to talk about health and safety concerning social distancing, germs, and physical safety.
The Great Flip program can be used across ministries including youth events, family nights and PTO functions.
Use The Great Flip as an after-school program/club.
Use The Great Flip as a community event and a public outreach teaching kids about bully prevention and self-defense skills.

Shop all online courses here.

Students from 1st grade through high school are enjoying my program. Here are a few pictures of students at a local YMCA, Lutheran School, after-school club, American Heritage Girls, and a family at home utilizing The Great Flip.

Now it’s your turn to enroll in my online curriculum!

Click here to choose a curriculum

Click here to request a Free Video

Contact Coach Jody

The Great Flip is a national program alliance for American Heritage Girls

Learn self-defense at home

/in Self Defense/by coachjody

COVID19 Stay-At-Home ready! Who knew online self-defense would become more important than ever. Families and teachers are seeking wholesome, instructional and educational online curriculum. The Great Flip online self-defense is for everyone, ages six and up, inspired by the martial art Brazilian jiu-jitsu, safety and empowerment.

In this blog, you will learn how to set up a training space at home. The Great Flip is designed to be fun, playful and empowering. Each video inspires confidence and courage while you maintain a safe and controlled environment. Let’s get started!

Reasons to learn self-defense at home:

Increase your child’s confidence and courage in a controlled environment.
Avoid the germy gym.
Prep for a martial arts academy experience.
Introduce your children to the martial art Brazilian jiu-jitsu in a safe, positive and affordable environment.

Shop the Plan

Create an exercise area at home. Watch this short video and watch Coach Jody set up her training space.

Oh, and yes, distractions happen. Meet my dog, Brandy.

Now, let’s make your equipment list:

You!

Duh. I cannot wait to see you on the mat! You will be so happy you are learning a new life skill in the privacy of your home.

A training buddy

Grab a family member and/or group of friends. There are a several solo-drills and techniques, but most of the videos require a training partner. Plus, training with family and friends is fun! Go get your training buddy!

Soft training space

Before you start training, I recommend setting up a designated training space that’s soft. Yoga mats, beach towels and even the carpet is better than the hard floor. The best option would be mats. As you saw in the video, I bought the interlocking mats . These are reasonably priced and have multi-functions. The folding gymnastic mats are nice too. You can get fancy and buy jiu-jitsu/MMA mats, but that is not necessary. Bottom line, set-up a training space big enough for two people to train. I started with a 4×6 space and I just doubled it to have a little more room. I use the interlocking mats. I recommend the 8×12 space so two people can comfortably perform all the techniques.

I bought my mats on Amazon. The mats come in a 4×6 package for $20. So I spent$40. Share the price with your training buddies! Or, ask your school, church or fitness center if you can borrow mats! Be sure to keep them clean with disinfect wipes or spray before and after use.

Comfortable Clothes

You don’t have to buy fancy work-out clothes, but wear clothes you can comfortably move around in while standing and while moving on the ground.

No shoes

I prefer to train without shoes. Typically, I’m on an exercise or yoga mat which needs to stay clean. I don’t wear shoes or socks. Plus, wearing socks can be slippery. Training in bare feet will keep your training space clean, strengthen your feet and encourage better balance.

Hair bands

Yes girls, please pull your hair back into a pony tail or whatever you prefer. When your hair is up and out of your face, you can see better and train better. And when you work with a partner, you are less likely to accidentally pull each other’s hair.

A teachable spirit

I’ll be honest, when I started learning jiu-jitsu, I walked off the mat several times completely frustrated.

The techniques look so simple and easy, yet I was unable to do them right away. The techniques take practice. Be patient with yourself. The online instructional videos are designed to be watched repeatedly. And you can watch and practice from the comfort of your own home and training space until you master the technique.

I remember going to a one-day self-defense workshop and learning a million cool techniques. But when I got home to share my new knowledge, everything was mixed up or had vanished from my brain. I had not practiced enough to create the muscle memory. BJJ techniques are simple but requires practice. This is just like any other sport. You can’t expect to hit a three-pointer in basketball or pitch the perfect strike in softball without practice. Come to the mat with a good attitude, willingness to learn, discipline to practice … and you will succeed!

That’s it! Gather yourself, your positive attitude, friends and a soft place to train. See you on the mat!

Remember to tell me about your training space! Send me an email to jody@thegreatflip.com or follow me on Instagram @thegreatflip and use hashtag #thegreatflip in your posts!

Three easy steps to begin your online self-defense training experience.

Choose a training experience.👈
Enroll.
Train.

See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

The Great Flip is a national program partner for American Heritage Girls!

Fun, playful and empowering online self-defense

/in Recent Blog Posts, Self Defense/by coachjody

“Fun, playful and empowering; Great for the whole family!”

This is how a parent described The Great Flip online self-defense videos.

And this is exactly my hope for you and your family. I want the training experience to be empowering, of course, but also playful and fun. Self-defense training doesn’t need to be any scarier than the topic usually is for kids. Learning skills in a playful way can make the topic of self-defense easier to talk about with your family.

This is achieved in my step-by-step streaming self-defense videos suitable for ages six and up.

Each video is three minutes or less and you will learn one empowering technique. I also have solo conditioning drills and “social-distancing” approved videos too. These videos will introduce you to the martial art called Brazilian jiu-jitsu and complement your fitness goals. Oh, don’t have any fitness goals? … well, now you do! 😍

Request a free video

And while we are all at home quarantined due to COVID19, learning self-defense skills is a fun and meaningful family activity.

Give your kids confidence and courage while you maintain a controlled environment. You will discover meaningful time together learning these skills and talking about the value of these skills as you deem appropriate for your family.

And when you subscribe, I’ll teach you how to set up a safe place to train in your home (so you don’t knock over the lamp or hurt yourself). See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

Choose a plan and let’s get started!

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