A lot of parents first thought when signing up their children for extra curricular activities is that "What will my child gain from participation?" It is rare for an extra activity to include a variety of diverse benefits but Capoeira is one of the few activities that achieves this. Capoeira is like taking a martial arts class, a dance class, a gymnastics class and a music class all at once.
Children are naturally drawn to Capoeira due to its rhythmic music, acrobatics and exciting interactions. Children love things that are exciting and dynamic. Once a child is exposed to what capoeira can be like, they eagerly step up for the challenge of learning the movements and the music.
If you need to know why Capoeira would be a great extra curricular activity for your child, then this short article may be helpful for you.
In a time where technology has taken over, children unfortunately are exposed to too much time with video games, internet, tablets, phones and TV along with an overload of easily accessible sugary food and beverages, as a result you have children who are lethargic and obese. Capoeira helps combat this childhood obesity epidemic in an enormous way. Your child will be busy moving back and forth, ducking, dodging, spinning, and jumping all while stimulating muscles they never knew they had!
Capoeira provides strength and flexibility training. Capoeiristas move quickly, they jump, bend, and even flip. During classes children exercise and participate in challenging high cardio activities. This training is fun because all children love to run, jump, and play. The movements they focus on are play based such as frog jumping, bear crawling, and handstanding.
Music is a core element in Capoeira. Capoeira music is always playing during the extent of a class. The children also learn to play all the instruments that they hear in the songs. children start out by learning the basics of rhythm by clapping their hands with the beat. Then they move to learning percussion instruments such as the Atabaque (an African drum) and the Pandeiro (a tambourine-like instrument). The children will also learn about and how to play a unique instrument called Berimbau, the most important instrument to Capoeira.
Why not have a look at some of the Capoeira songs and their meaning here.
As Capoeira was developed in Brazil and the language spoken in Brazil is Portuguese, the children learn and sing the songs in Portuguese. In Capoeira the children are exposed to Portuguese, the songs the children hear in class are all in Portuguese, and the children actually learn the words to the songs and eventually what the words mean. The children also learn to count in Portuguese, and all the movement names the children learn are also Portuguese words. It is inevitable for the children to pickup the fundamentals of a new language whilst learning Capoeira.
The Capoeira curriculum also teaches the history of Capoeira which gives it meaning and soul. Children will learn a bit about oppression, injustice, and the fight for freedom. They will also learn about multiculturalism, diversity, and respect for others.
Respect is engrained into Capoeira, this teaches children discipline and treating everyone how they would like to be treated. The children are surrounded by other children exuding respect, discipline, confidence, and friendship, this allows them to pick up on those traits.