(un)fencing the mind » fencing

This is where I spend my Friday evenings (61)

Elmine Wijnia — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 23:04:05 +0000

Where I spend my Friday evenings from Elmine Wijnia on Vimeo.

“…kind of tired…”, talking about understatement of the year

And what it looks like when there are kids moving around in this space (recorder in 2008: a two-day training during the holidays).

(about the number in the title)

Kids and their body skills (19)

Elmine Wijnia — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 15:03:13 +0000

I’m reading a (German) book on kids’ body development that I picked up in a bookstore in Dresden this summer. I won’t get into details here, but the numbers are rather shocking. The amount of time kids (in this case based on German research, but the numbers could easily be representative for the whole of Europe) spend on playing outside and using their body to walk, run, play games, balance on walls, etc. dropped dramatically over the past decades.

Obviously sitting in front of the TV and playing video games have great impact on what kids nowadays learn in terms of body skills. At my fencing club I’ve seen quite a number of kids that can barely catch a ball, can’t jump rope or balance on 1 foot for more than 5 seconds at age 8/9/10.

Reading this book helps me to help ‘my’ kids develop their body movements better. Even if it’s only an hour and a half a week I coach them. Baby steps count too

(about the number in the title)

How to keep kids entertained for two days?

Elmine Wijnia — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:10:32 +0000

It seemed like a good idea, a couple of weeks ago. To spend two whole days with the kids of my fencing club, practicing and preparing for the tournament we organise first weekend of November. The closer I get to Monday and Tuesday, the more daunting it seems. Keeping them entertained for an hour and a half can be challenging every now and then, so how about multiplying the amount of time I have to fill by 9…!

I spent a considerable amount of time on writing down a schedule yesterday, with lots and lots of excercises. I hope I have enough variation in serious practice and play. Hey, I even incorporate music and the Wii into it .

Whatever happens next week, it will be a learning experience for me. Let’s hope that the kids will learn something as well those days (and that it was fun to learn that) .