That our program provides the time for this component of training speaks to value and quality. Here are three reasons why we emphasize the small group:

1) Safety—we are making a weapon out of your body!

If you do not know how to handle a weapon, it becomes a liability against you. A gun could go off in the wrong direction and at the wrong time. A knife could cut you by accident or be dropped on your foot.

If you do not know how to move your body properly, the art you’re wielding will become a weapon against you!

The most common example is the boxers’ fracture, in which case a person breaks their own hand throwing a punch. After taking off their gloves, wraps and tape, it became so common for boxers to break their own hands in street fights, that doctors dubbed the broken metacarpals (small bones in the back of the hand), boxers’ fractures. We’d very much like to avoid situations like that, so we spend the personal time with you to minimize the likelihood of these things happening.

Indeed, our students obtain injuries from running, soccer and other activities more often that they do in our school because we take care to prioritize your safety.

2) Learning Environment

Most schools teach the curriculum in the larger group class. But students of different rank, age, learning paces, conditioning and with learning disabilities, learn differently and at different paces and in different ways!! If you are serious about learning the art, it would make sense to have some more intimate time with your instructor where we can focus on you, answer your questions, and teach at your speed.

3) Student/Teacher Relationship

This last one could rank either at the top or bottom of your list, but we enjoy getting to know you. Schools that teach only group classes are less personal. In some cases the instructors write their students’ names on their uniforms in Korean or Japanese so that they can remember them. Especially for kids, this becomes an impediment to progress. How can you be of good help to a growing child when you can’t even remember their name? We know the kids’ names, favorite movies and toys, how they’re doing in school…we stay in the know.

Our small group not only gives us time to get to know our students better, but in the case of children, we get to know the parents as well, and that is valuable.