Photo by Panther Taekwondo, used with permission.

So – what is it like to learn Panther Taekwondo?

At the beginning, everyone who joins Panther Taekwondo attends an introductory class. There are different lessons for children and adults because different age groups have different needs, but no other differentiation.  We practise sport for all and are totally inclusive.

The youngest children start at 4, but we don’t accept every 4 year old. We do a dexterity and coordination test and if they are not quite ready to begin, we ask them to wait a few months.

We’re looking for maturity and the ability to concentrate

After two weeks of introduction, if a child seems keen to begin classes, we check with parents on their behaviour at home and at school. We are looking for maturity and the ability to concentrate. If all’s well, we present new students with their uniforms and promote them into a main class.

Gradings take place every three months. Rank in taekwondo is marked by the colour of belt a student is entitled to wear.  If a student passes every grading, they will progress up the ranks through a series of coloured belts marking out their level of experience and skill

White – white/yellow – yellow – yellow-green – green – green-blue – blue – blue-red – red – red-black … and then finally black belt status.

What does it take to progress? What are we really looking for? And how do you know if you have it? This week, I’ll be asking those questions.