Teaching Kids?

[Lady Riposter]

I'm a fairly experienced fencer who has been working with the fledgling youth programme at my club during the summers and over winter break. I'm about to head back for another term at university and, due to a coaching shortage, the class I was teaching this term is being handed over to two or three very helpful teenagers I've been coaching who have never coached before but will try very, very hard.

I'm going to have the head coach give me the lesson plans a few weeks in advance and come up with some drills and games that the kids can do with the kids. The class they'll be teaching is a group of 7-10 year olds who have been fencing for about four months and there are generally 5-8 in the class.

We're trying to use as many games as possible to teach this session and this class so I was hoping someone could point me to some websites that have fencing games on them. Some of my kids have short attention spans and I've found that they respond best if we switch partners and activities frequently to keep them moving and listening. It's been working very well so far and I'd like to make sure the students who are teaching have an aresnal of tricks and games to use when they suddenly find themselves needing to switch activities or have spare time.

ANY games or even "fun" drills you can give me would be appreciated. If they're for adults I can adapt them for use with the kids like I did with the games we did tonight. (My kids now have a Wuzzle obsession - an early 80s Disney cartoon - from doing drills tonight. They've named their "team" The Wuzzles.) I'd like to make sure that my students are well-prepared to work with the kids. Any help you can give me would be much appreciated!!!

Thank you!!!!!
Jenn

P.S. Sorry for the long story!

[ThatReallyHurt]

There are two popular games that are played at my club during both the youth and adult classes:

1) Fencing the line - there's a large box on the floor, divided in two by a line. Two teams face each other across the line, and the object is to score a proper touch on someone across the line (we use foil target area). You can step over the middle line with one foot, but if you step outside of the box or over the middle with both feet, it's treated as a hit by an opponent. You can gang up on a person across the line - usually one or two people will keep someone's blade busy, and another goes for the touch.

Once you're hit, you leave the box, walk around (this is important for safety reasons, don't want anyone getting hammered in the back, neck, or head), and join the team on the other side. If you're hit again, you're out of that particular round.

This game is pretty popular at my club - it's even more interesting when a coach is on one of the teams, and is fencing against three people. Neat stuff.

2) The Three Musketeers - I think this is what it's called... anyway, if your class is big enough, divide it up into four groups of three, and put one group in each corner of the room. When the game starts, each team moves more or less together, trying to score touches on other teams and be the last team left. Any team member hit is out of the game immediately while their teammates continue on. The last part of a team or full team remaining wins. It has to be stressed that any attacks must be made from the front - this doesn't mean that you can't wait behind someone for when they turn around, but you can't attack from behind.

This may not be as good a game to play with little kids - some of them may get too into it and hack away at each other from behind.


One other thing we sometimes do when doing footwork drills is for the coach to give hand signals for different actions, as well as verbal commands. The idea is that the hand signals take precedence over the verbal, and sometimes conflicting commands are given. Rewards are kind of difficult to figure out, but maybe whomever is the last person to not make a mistake (always followed the hand signals) gets to pick their partner and gets to use the electric gear first?


I hope this makes sense (I'm pretty tired) - if it doesn't, let me know and I'll try to get my thoughts together a little better.

[PhineasGage]

The level 1 Canadian coaching manual has many interesting games and exercises. It's definitely worth a look. You can find it here:

http://www.fencing.ca/coaching_manuals/manuals.htm

[Pancakes]

WHAT TIME IS IT MISTER WOLF?

Only with footwork.

Red Light, Green Light, with footwork. When you introduce a new move (lunging, beat attacks, whatever), let them fence 'normally', with a normal attack getting one point, a beat attack or lunge that hits getting two points.

[Lady Riposter]

Thanks for the ideas, guys. I'll definitely take a look at the coaching manual. I'm used to adapting things for younger groups so anything helps.

I know one of the other coaches have just done general melees (add accent marks as appropriate) that worked out fairly well. The kids knew that if they got out of control it wouldn't be allowed again. I like how the Three Musketeers game makes it a little more structured.

Red light, green light is a great idea! That's something the kids can lead too which they'll LOVE. I have a very enthusiastic bunch here!

Thanks for the ideas! If anyone has any more I'd love to hear them!

[LUDICROUS]

Put a glove in the middle of the piste (you can do 2 gloves per piste if you want). Get two kids. They sit an equal distance away from the glove, with their legs out, arms holding them up (hands flat next to their torso) and their backs towards the glove. On the count of 3 (or whatever, or "go!") they spin around, get up and dash for the glove.

Builds reaction time I guess.

You can vary their starting position, too. Or make them step for the glove while watching them, and they lose if they step too big.

Beware - I ripped my fingers open on the piste doing this once (despite being the ONLY person to do this ). Wasnt much of an accident at all, but hey. It bled enough, and now a club jacket has a dark stain from where my hand was (i was dabbling in sabre at the time) resting.

[Pancakes]

Thanks for the ideas, guys. I'll definitely take a look at the coaching manual. I'm used to adapting things for younger groups so anything helps.

I know one of the other coaches have just done general melees (add accent marks as appropriate) that worked out fairly well. The kids knew that if they got out of control it wouldn't be allowed again. I like how the Three Musketeers game makes it a little more structured.

We did that when I first learned (it was sabre, though). There was three musketeers, one team was cardinals, the other was musketeers, it actually taught a bit about strategy at the same time, kings and doctors (each team has a king and a doctor, the doctor can revive people but if the king dies the entire team loses, if the doctor dies, no more revivals).

There's castle/seige, which I don't think would work with non-Sabre that well, some people on the inside of a boundry, the rest on the outside, more people out than in. There's a time limit, if that expires the defenders win, but if they get beaten, the assaulters win. Adjust rules to make sure everyone is actually fencing.

Of course, free for alls (with "cliffs of insanty", if you go outside the boundry you're eliminated, but it's a pretty big playing feild anyways).

[Zilverzmurfen]

Try this thread for more tips!

http://www.fencing101.com/vb/showthr...=fencing+games