Its been a year now since I got to step foot into a dojang, and moving across country away from the network of schools I came up through meant I would've been changing up arts (I'm not opposed to learning a new art, the idea is actually appealing) as there are no TKD schools of the style I practice near me. The closest would be Soo Bahk Do (Tang Soo Do) or Kuk Sool Won.

While I've been on the hunt for a new career, I have come across postings looking for martial arts instructors so I decided to apply for a few because I love to teach, but don't have the resources at the moment to open my own school. I was offered a position with a company that runs after school programs for kids 5-18, and my first class is this week.

They bill the program as "Youth Karate" but the requirements are that you come from a traditional martial art with forms - and there are instructors teaching kung fu, Okinawan / Japanese karate styles, TSD, and TKD. I will be crafting my own curriculum within a set of guidelines the organization has - so I'll be teaching TKD and the Chang Hon / ITF form set.

The only thing I'm a little bummed about is that we only get 45 minutes / week with each group of students because of the nature of the program. I'll be running 3 45-minute classes - beginner, intermediate, and advanced. The kids are expected to practice at home, of course, but I really think they need at least 2-3 classes per week, but that's not my call - so my goal will be to impart knowledge in the most efficient manner as possible to the kids so they can succeed with the limited instruction time.

The company also issued a new uniform & belt to wear which is interesting - its got breathable vent panels on the sides and crotch which might be nice when the weather here in Texas gets warm again. The new belt is embroidered with kanji, which I had to chuckle at, but that's because the program is billed as "karate" and the director is a shotokan & aikido practitioner.