Janeway Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 SOOOOO.... Yesterday....... My 15 yr old, who in brick and mortar school was treated poorly even though he never did anything to deserve it, he has Aspergers. (I am not kidding, he did not deserve it, he did nothing to bring on that treatment, it was just bigotry on behalf of the staff and the kids being allowed and practically encouraged to treat him poorly). He earned his black belt!!! Not kidding!!! The test was grueling and awful and long. But he made it! I could NOT believe it! I was in tears at a point in the testing (don't worry, he could not see). Grown men were coming at him beating him up pretty much and he was defending himself. The test was long. He has spent years working on this. And now he is a black belt! 21 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthwestMom Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congrats to your DS! :hurray: :hurray: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congrats on the black belt. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Innisfree Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Well done! I hope he's as proud of himself as you are of him. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congratulations! That's a major accomplishment. I have known several Kids on the ASD spectrum who have really done well with martial arts and found them quite beneficial in many ways. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulubelle Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Awesome! My ds 14 is about a year or so away from his. He also has Aspergers, and he's come a long way in his martial arts journey. Well worth the effort! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congratulations. BTW, when the grown men in the martial arts studio are involved in a black belt exam, it is not referred to as "beating up." Just watch the terminology for a public forum like this. It is under completely controlled circumstances and completely safe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted May 6, 2017 Author Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congratulations. BTW, when the grown men in the martial arts studio are involved in a black belt exam, it is not referred to as "beating up." Just watch the terminology for a public forum like this. It is under completely controlled circumstances and completely safe. Well, I KNOW that, but, that was said in the context of the entire post. Even you got what I meant. Only way anyone would mis take what I meant would have only read those words and not the entire post, and the post was quite short. Anyone could take anything that anyone says out of context and make it mean something else. I am not responsible or concerned with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congratulations! I've seen several kids on the autism spectrum (and other disabilities) progress through the ranks and gain confidence and knowledge. It is wonderful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congratulations. BTW, when the grown men in the martial arts studio are involved in a black belt exam, it is not referred to as "beating up." Just watch the terminology for a public forum like this. It is under completely controlled circumstances and completely safe. I agree. And all of us including my Aspie knew exactly what to expect in the black belt testing (in general, I mean. ). Congratulations to him on his black belt. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 Congrats. Earning a black belt is no easy task! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 :party: :party: :party: Thank you for sharing the wonderful news with us, Janeway, and CONGRATULATIONS to your son on an amazing and difficult accomplishment! :hurray: I love happy threads like this! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted May 6, 2017 Share Posted May 6, 2017 That's wonderful, Janeway!! :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 (edited) Well, I KNOW that, but, that was said in the context of the entire post. Even you got what I meant. Only way anyone would mis take what I meant would have only read those words and not the entire post, and the post was quite short. Anyone could take anything that anyone says out of context and make it mean something else. I am not responsible or concerned with that. I understood what you meant because I am a 3rd degree black belt in Taekwon-Do. You may want to tone your posts to show the respect and knowledge about the discipline that it deserves, is all I'm saying. There aren't that many people who have witnessed a black belt test. Even many students of the sport don't show up to watch the actual tests until it's really close to their own black belt test - and only a small percentage of students stay in to get that far. Edited May 7, 2017 by wintermom 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 Congrats to your son!! :hurray: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 I understood what you meant because I am a 3rd degree black belt in Taekwon-Do. You may want to tone your posts to show the respect and knowledge about the discipline that it deserves, is all I'm saying. There aren't that many people who have witnessed a black belt test. Even many students of the sport don't show up to watch the actual tests until it's really close to their own black belt test - and only a small percentage of students stay in to get that far. I wonder if our taekwando dojang is unusual. All students watch the black belt testing. It's a very big deal to support those getting their black belt. My Ds was there to support those who got their black belts before him and those with belt levels below him were there to support him when he got his black belt. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 I wonder if our taekwando dojang is unusual. All students watch the black belt testing. It's a very big deal to support those getting their black belt. My Ds was there to support those who got their black belts before him and those with belt levels below him were there to support him when he got his black belt. At dh's work, kung-fu studio, some students show up for other people's tests but it isn't required. The tests are long, at least 2 hours, longer if multiple people are testing. To expect all students watch that multiple times a year(max of 4 black belt tests a year) would be overkill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 At dh's work, kung-fu studio, some students show up for other people's tests but it isn't required. The tests are long, at least 2 hours, longer if multiple people are testing. To expect all students watch that multiple times a year(max of 4 black belt tests a year) would be overkill. It is not required at ds' studio either but there is a culture of supporting each other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 (edited) I wonder if our taekwando dojang is unusual. All students watch the black belt testing. It's a very big deal to support those getting their black belt. My Ds was there to support those who got their black belts before him and those with belt levels below him were there to support him when he got his black belt. That's a really great culture! Is your dojang rather small? When mine was smaller, we used to be able to do that but as the academy grew, over the 12 years I stayed with it, there was less and less space to stay and watch. It was always really interesting and a wonderful learning opportunity, though. Sometimes the examiners got very long-winded with their comments, which added to the time. Our master instructor and dojang owner really streamlined things as the number of students increased. Edited May 7, 2017 by wintermom 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 That's a really great culture! Is your dojang rather small? When mine was smaller, we used to be able to do that but as the academy grew, over the 12 years I stayed with it, there was less and less space to stay and watch. It was always really interesting and a wonderful learning opportunity, though. Sometimes the examiners got very long-winded with their comments, which added to the time. Our master instructor and dojang owner really streamlined things as the number of students increased. It's bottom heavy. As in there are a lot more little kids than older teens and adults. The younger kids are divided more into groups by belt level so the younger ones do not see the kid black belt testing, I don't think. But the adult/ teen class (which was about 12 people when ds got his black belt) are very loyal to each other. My understanding is that the kid belts do the same moves but of course they don't have the strength and finesse of the older students so their belts will become adult black belts with more practice. I think. Ds didn't get a kid black belt because he didn't start until he was 12 and then got his black belt at 18. They had a master come especially for the black belt testing (who was different from the master instructor and dojang owner) and he could get long-winded! But he also got to know the black belt candidates well and was a great role model and encourager. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted May 7, 2017 Share Posted May 7, 2017 I wonder if our taekwando dojang is unusual. All students watch the black belt testing. It's a very big deal to support those getting their black belt. My Ds was there to support those who got their black belts before him and those with belt levels below him were there to support him when he got his black belt. There are way too many students and not enough space at ours for that. Some people go to black belt testing, especially those that will be testing next time. Black belt testing happens twice a year and a group of 6 schools in the area get together for it. A hundred or so people test each time (that includes all advancing degrees and mid-terms) and viewing space is at a premium. All together black belt testing takes 6-9 hours between three separate groups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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