Gracie Bullyproof®

Every day in the United States, an estimated 150,000 kids miss school due to fear or intimidation of bullies. In fact, many believe that fear of bullying may be the leading cause of low self-confidence in children. Worse, statistics suggest that less than 15% of kids actually report acts of bullying. We know that most bullies are insecure and seek self-esteem normally by harassing smaller or weaker children. The Gracie Bullyproof® program has three objectives: 

1. BOOST CONFIDENCE

Bullies are less likely to target self-confident children. We instill confidence by teaching techniques that will neutralize the attack of a larger opponent.

2. INCREASE AWARENESS

Harassment from bullies can be physical or verbal and delivered at various intensity levels. In each lesson, we focus on teaching your child to recognize and respond to the most common physical and verbal bully behaviors.

3. BE READY

Only when your child makes it clear that he/she will not tolerate the harassment, will they free themselves of the bully's torment. We will prepare them for every common contingency. 

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

Aside from preparing your child to deal with bullies, the other objective of the Gracie Bullyproof® program is to instill in your child the character traits that will lead to success in all areas of life. There are six chapters in the Character Development Program: Responsibility, Health, Respect, Citizenship, Manners, and Caring – each of which your child will study for two months. We dedicate time in each class to address the featured trait and the simple things they can do to make the trait a part of their everyday lives. The secret to the success of this program is a very powerful point-based reward system that encourages each child to make the small character changes in their daily lives - on their own! 

Class options

LITTLE CHAMPS: 5-7 YEARS OLD

"We don't teach Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, we play Gracie Jiu-Jitsu."

At this age, children are not interested in learning martial arts, but they sure don’t mind "playing" martial arts. The Little Champs secret is that we have devised a series of 10 "Gracie Games" in which we secretly teach the children essential self-defense techniques. By playing the fun and challenging "Gracie Games," children develop strong reflexes in the execution of the basic techniques, as they unconsciously learn the foundation principles of leverage and control. Once a child masters the Gracie Games, or turns 8 years old, we promote them to the Jr. Grapplers class.

JR. GRAPPLERS: 8-12 YEARS OLD

"Empower your child when they need it most."

Since bullying is most prevalent in this age group, we teach the children in the Jr. Grapplers classes the 15 essential techniques they must know in order to defend themselves if attacked. The best part about the techniques is that they are all non-violent control tactics designed to minimize injury to the bully if used during a real fight. Jr. Grappler students who master the 15 techniques and display a very high level of focus will qualify to move on to the Gracie Combatives® program.