Self-Defense Workshops for Kids

Learn the basics of self-defense in a comfortable, supportive environment

For children of all ages

Some statistics about child abduction

On average every 40 seconds in the United States a child becomes missing or is abducted.
There are nearly 500,000 registered sex offenders in the United States, yet the majority of offenses are never reported.
In 46% of child abductions the child is sexually assaulted.

The state of California maintains resources with more statistics and to search for sex offenders in your area.

The City of Palo Alto also offers good resources.

Some statistics about bullying

Four out of five middle school students admitted to having bullied someone. (Pagewise, Inc., 2003)
Thirty percent of U.S. students in grades six through ten are involved in moderate or frequent bullying — as bullies, as victims, or as both — according to the results of the first national survey on this subject.
One out of every four kids will be abused by another youth
In a recent study, 77% of students said they had been bullied, 8% of students miss one day of class per month for fear of bullies and 43% fear harassment in the bathroom at school.
On playgrounds… Every 7 minutes a child is bullied… Only 4% have some adult intervention… Only 11% have some peer intervention… And 85% have no intervention.

In these seminars your child can learn about

“Stranger Danger”
Bullying
Creating & maintaining awareness of your surroundings
Personal boundaries
Verbal deescalation
Strategies for avoiding confrontation
Most important weapons for self-defense
Exit strategies
Simple example physical practice (intensity & duration can be adjusted; 5 minutes to an hour or more)

Classes can be tailored to different age groups and time limitations. Children deal with different issues at different ages, so grouping children by age in separate classes is best. With younger kids we spend more time on non-physical self-defense compared to older kids. And teens’ relative emotional and physical maturity makes their classes different still.

Expert Instructor

SVSK Chief Instructor Jon Keeling has been deeply involved in the martial arts for over 35 years and began teaching Karate in 1984 and self-defense in 1989, having taught self-defense to thousands of people. Mr Keeling has studied practical self-defense from some of the most highly-regarded experts available, including extensive interaction with Mr Rory Miller, considered by many to be the very best at it. Mr Keeling completed his intensive Instructor Development Course, as well as many other training sessions, including a Violence Dynamics camp. Read his full bio.