Dojo Class Description

Shotokan Karate was intended by its founder to not only strengthen the body but, more importantly, to strengthen the mind and will of the student. It is a field of study that takes time and commitment to master. The Shotokan Karate program consists of five levels of classes. As the students advance in rank, they will move up through the levels—which will progressively get more advanced. The program is structured around the phrase, “Where much is given, much is expected,” therefore as the students are rewarded with higher and higher ranks, the workload and the responsibility required of the student will get more demanding. The theme of the program is a quote from Master Gichin Funakoshi:

“The ultimate aim of Karate lies not in victory or defeat,

but in the perfection of the character of its participants.”

Classes:	Class Length:
Level I	1 hour
Level II	1 hour
Level III	1.5 hours
Level IV	2 hours
Level V	2 hours
Level	Class Description
Level I	This class is for the white belts. Beginners of every age will start in this class. We will introduce the three aspects of Karate that we focus on throughout the course: Kata (Form), Kihon (Basics), and Kumite (Sparring). The students will learn basic techniques and also learn Heian Shodan, the most basic Kata. We will spar open hand-to-open hand, partial contact as to avoid injury but to also begin conditioning the students’ mind and body for more advanced and rigorous training. The students will also have some training with the kicking bag. Strength and agility training will also be introduced to the class.
Level II	This class is for the yellow – purple belts. This class will build upon the techniques and training of the Level I class. Students will begin to learn more advanced basics and some combination work will be taught. Students will be in groups according to rank so they will get more individual technical training from the instructor.  Students will learn more advanced Kata based on rank. We will spar open hand-to-open hand, partial contact as to avoid injury but to also condition the students’ mind and body for more advanced and rigorous training. The students will also have some training with the kicking bag. Strength and agility training will also be built upon.
Level III	This class is for the blue – green belts. This class will build upon the techniques and training of the Level II class. Along with building upon the basic and sparring training of the previous levels, students will also learn more advanced sparring techniques with a partner. The students will have more extensive training with the kicking bag. Strength and agility training will be increased.
Level IV	This class is for the brown-and-white through the first-year Jr. Black Belts. This class will build upon the techniques and training of the Level III class. Along with building upon the basic and sparring training of the previous levels, students will work on honing more advanced sparring techniques with a partner. We will spar fist-and-feet to fist-and-feet, no contact as to avoid injury but to train the students to control their punches and kicks to a hairs-breadth away. The students will have more extensive training with the kicking bag. Strength and agility training will be increased. To advance to the next level, first-year Jr. Black Belt students will be required to pass a Special Training Test—a physically and mentally demanding special session of class—thus, the physical and mental training will become more demanding as to prepare the students.
Level V	This class is for the second-year Jr. Black Belts through the Nidan (Second-degree Black Belts). This class will build upon the techniques and training of the Level IV class. Along with building upon the basic and sparring training of the previous levels, students will work on honing more advanced sparring techniques with a partner. We will spar fist-and-feet to fist-and-feet, no contact as to avoid injury but to train the students to control their punches and kicks to a hairs-breadth away. The students will have more extensive training with the kicking bag. Strength and agility training will be increased. Students who have attained the rank of Shodan (Black Belt) will begin weapon training in bo-jitsu and nunchaku. Students will be given more responsibilities in assisting the instructor over the younger students to teach them patience, diligence and responsibility.