Ninja Academy Leadership Program
Leaders Mason and Orion performing at the 2023 Ontario Kata Championships
The Academy has a thriving leadership team that supports classes, tournaments, kata training, and summer camps. Each leader brings their own skill sets and approach to leadership. We work closely with our future leaders to ensure they speak formally to students, build confidence in their leadership, and accomplish their personal and collective goals.
Where do we start?
Gakusei (students) need to be consistently attending classes in order to be considered for the leadership program. They also need to be at least orange belt (yonkyu), but depending on maturity and eagerness they can start earlier. Once they have demonstrated confidence with ukemi (breakfalls) and can follow the class fitness instruction (stamina), they will be given informal opportunities to lead elements of the class, like warm-up, calisthenics, and ukemi.
Athletes who are actively competing in shiai or kata can support classes by sharing their experiences during lessons so to give aspiring athletes insight into the latest trends in Judo. Once an athlete has established a strong tokai-waza (favourite technique), renraku-waza (combinations), and oseokomi-waza (turnovers and hold-downs), they will be given opportunities to lead technical portions of the class. Athletes who show knowledge in kata, can begin sharing their knowledge with students in the order of the forms.
Next Steps: Into Apprenticeship
Once students have had opportunities to lead several portions of the class, they will be invited to consider attending regularly as a volunteer apprentice. They will be introduced as such and be allowed to showcase their knowledge of the class structure and ability to perform calisthenics and ukemi. There are two leadership streams which apprentices can follow: technical or competitive. The technical stream leader focuses on structure and performance, and the competitive stream focuses on technique and stamina. At times, these two streams overlap depending on the skill set and experience the apprentice brings to the dojo. Once the apprentice has consistently attended classes as a volunteer apprentice, they will be asked if they wish to take on further leadership roles which can lead to employment.
Our Goal with the Leadership Program
We intend to foster the unique skillsets of each athlete by developing it into practical coaching application and certification. We will keep your athlete on a steady course to become NCCP certified by the end of high school (age 18). They will be able to use their accumulated skills and certifications to be employable in the future wherever they live. Coaching and athletics as a lifelong pursuit will benefit their personal lives and career goals.
Please watch the video below to see what these apprentices think about leadership at the Ninja Academy:
Where do we start?
Gakusei (students) need to be consistently attending classes in order to be considered for the leadership program. They also need to be at least orange belt (yonkyu), but depending on maturity and eagerness they can start earlier. Once they have demonstrated confidence with ukemi (breakfalls) and can follow the class fitness instruction (stamina), they will be given informal opportunities to lead elements of the class, like warm-up, calisthenics, and ukemi.
Athletes who are actively competing in shiai or kata can support classes by sharing their experiences during lessons so to give aspiring athletes insight into the latest trends in Judo. Once an athlete has established a strong tokai-waza (favourite technique), renraku-waza (combinations), and oseokomi-waza (turnovers and hold-downs), they will be given opportunities to lead technical portions of the class. Athletes who show knowledge in kata, can begin sharing their knowledge with students in the order of the forms.
Next Steps: Into Apprenticeship
Once students have had opportunities to lead several portions of the class, they will be invited to consider attending regularly as a volunteer apprentice. They will be introduced as such and be allowed to showcase their knowledge of the class structure and ability to perform calisthenics and ukemi. There are two leadership streams which apprentices can follow: technical or competitive. The technical stream leader focuses on structure and performance, and the competitive stream focuses on technique and stamina. At times, these two streams overlap depending on the skill set and experience the apprentice brings to the dojo. Once the apprentice has consistently attended classes as a volunteer apprentice, they will be asked if they wish to take on further leadership roles which can lead to employment.
Our Goal with the Leadership Program
We intend to foster the unique skillsets of each athlete by developing it into practical coaching application and certification. We will keep your athlete on a steady course to become NCCP certified by the end of high school (age 18). They will be able to use their accumulated skills and certifications to be employable in the future wherever they live. Coaching and athletics as a lifelong pursuit will benefit their personal lives and career goals.
Please watch the video below to see what these apprentices think about leadership at the Ninja Academy:
Let's Get Started!
Consistency is the most important experience for leaders in development, so please be prepared to commit to a consistent schedule and make the appropriate accommodations in case of missed classes. Start your leadership journey by encouraging your athlete to ask Sensei Paul Teleki in the dojo about getting started and parents can email here: [email protected]
Consistency is the most important experience for leaders in development, so please be prepared to commit to a consistent schedule and make the appropriate accommodations in case of missed classes. Start your leadership journey by encouraging your athlete to ask Sensei Paul Teleki in the dojo about getting started and parents can email here: [email protected]