School Talk at Thomson Estates

A few weeks ago ATA instructors went to Thomson Estates elementary and hosted a special class for the whole school.  It was all the kids that have had good behavior all year from the school, split into 3 groups.  This was something new because I've never taught classes of 150 students before, but it was really cool.  I learned a couple things about engaging a crowd and that the excitement of a class is amplified when the "Yes Sir!" can be heard echoing through the entire school.  We took a few pictures, but it was tough to take them at the same time we were teaching.  Check out our Facebook picture album by going to THIS PAGE. 

We taught a really cool course called the ABC Concentration course.  First, we warm the kids up with some plyometric drills to make them fast and strong.  Then we talk about having a good attitude and always trying their best.  After that, we use martial arts to teach Belief- how the most important person to believe in is yourself!  Then, I taught them the 3 levels of master focus and give teachers a tool to use when the kids are having trouble focusing.

Thanks Thomson Estates and their guidance counselor, Gretchen Zahn, for inviting us.  The staff at the school, including the principal shows how dedicated they are to the future of our community every day in their action.  I've never met a crew with so much passion!

Personal Achievement Academy on the loose!

Mr. Hayhurst has huge Personal Achievement Academy seminars planned for this year!  It's going to be hosted by the YMCA in Elkton and we're even bringing in businesses from the community to talk about their services, give away prizes, and sponsor kids to do martial arts at ATA and do the seminars!  The seminars are Kid Power: Success Course (A's of an all star student), Bully Defense, and Child Safety.  They are going to be huge!  The sponsorships are Make-a-difference level, Community Activist Level, and Community Super Hero Level!  The first seminar is September 24th so get registered right away!

Mr. Hayhurst inspires Barb from Tendercare
Learning Centers to be an advocate of Personal Achievement Academy!

School talk at Chesapeake City Elementary

Today I did a school talk for one of my best students at ATA Elkton, Miki Guina.  He's really good in class because he always tries his best and he always looks like he's having fun.  He's gotten a lot better since he first started and his little brother might be starting too so he's going to be the leader of the "Guina Karate Guys" at home (lol).  Well, one of my favorite things to do is go to a specific classroom and turn one of my best students into a rockstar for his or her class mates.  So all through the class, he stood next to me like an assistant instructor and at the end, he broke a wooden board.  Most kids have never broken our rebreakable boards and even less have broken a wooden board (or even seen one broken in person).  As soon as Miki broke it, all his classmates jumped up and went crazy cheering for him.  I even heard a little girl say, "Miki is so cool!"  I wish someone said that to me when I was in elementary school!  To top off all of it, I asked Miki to choose a friend that helps him get better in school... not a trouble maker or someone that just wants to have fun instead of doing his or her work first.  He chose his best friend and he got to break a board too! Mrs. Powers was so generous to let me come to her classroom and I really appreciate it.  Check out the pose Mrs. Powers struck at the end of the class!

Mr. Hayhurst and Mrs. Powers strike a pose in her classroom at Chesapeake City Elementary

Update this thing already!

I just noticed that I haven't updated this blog in over a month! Wow! I can't believe I've let it slip. I guess I've been focusing on our Facebook accounts a little more than usual lately. Well, we've had our August testing which was awesome! After that, ATA Elkton hosted a tournament at Elkton High School on October 2nd! Then we had our Belt Promotions on October 15th and 16th with a bunch of people earning their 1st and 2nd degree black belts, opening space for a few new students to be ready to earn their next ranks in December!

Over the past 2 months I've been working hard to schedule a bunch of classes as a representative of Personal Achievement Academy. I, as an instructor from ATA Martial Arts, offer my skills to help teach kids about bullying, safety skills, and how to really become a champion. From the past few weeks, I really see some kids try harder with me than they do with their regular teachers, it's truly amazing.

Here's my upcoming schedule for the next couple weeks (and still adding things):
1. Just finished teaching abut 50 kids at Cecilton Elementary as PE Teacher of the Day
2. Thursday 10/21- Cecilton Elementary PE Teacher of the Day
3. Friday 10/22- Cecil Elementary PE Teacher of the Day
4. Saturday 10/23- Kid's safety Mass Introductory Lesson with beginners and kids from Cecilton Elementary @ ATA Elkton
5. Wednesday 10/27- meeting with the director of the Boys & Girls clubs in Cecil County to see what we can do to enhance the kid's abilities at the 3 locations
6. Friday 10/29- Bully Defense lesson at the Boys & Girls Club in Charlestown, MD
7. Thursday 11/4- Child Safety Seminar for Hollingsworth Manor in Elkton, MD
8. Saturday 11/6- Bully Defense Course for kids at YMCA in Perryville, MD
9. Monday 10/8- Bully Defense Course for families and staff members at Tendercare Learning Centers
10. Friday 10/12- Bully Defense Course for families and members of ATA Elkton (at ATA)

Wow, it didn't seem like a lot until I listed it out here. I guess a planner is a little deceiving. This is going to be worth it because I believe that if every kid had at least a little martial arts training, then their lives will be better and I'm going to help positively effect my community and make it better.