MATT MORIN / DCHS FUNDRAISER!
Thank you so much to everyone who donated to/attended (or both!) this most recent Guest Instructor Series clinic. Matt Morin of Freeform Jiu-Jitsu taught a sequential attack series from the Double Sleeve Guard entering into De La Riva, Sit-Up Guard, and De La X positions. After his instruction he ran us through several rounds of positional drilling and did some troubleshooting Q&A.
A huge thank you to Matt for donating his time both to us and for originating the idea of doing the clinic as a fundraiser event for the Dane County Humane Society. We were able to raise a little over $2K ($2,180!), which is just an amazing testament to what we can do through Jiu-Jitsu that reaches people far away from our mats. Thank you so much to everyone!
NEW CURRICULUM FORMAT
I mentioned in class this week that we will be following a different format while learning the Fundamentals curriculum. Up to this point we have been learning the curriculum in a “blocked” format. What this means is that we would spend a certain amount of time on one particular position, and move to the next position only when we have completed all of the lessons on that given position. This is an effective way to quickly learn the various techniques and concepts associated with any given position. The problem is that the retention of the techniques – not to mention the conceptual synthesis between techniques and positions – isn’t as great as it would be if we were practicing and learning via a different method of curriculum organization: interleaving.
With blocking, it would take around six months to complete the entire curriculum cycle, and therefore it would take six months to actually see and practice all of the major positions. This limits us because by the time we get back to the starting point, we have likely forgotten most of what we learned about the previous positions, techniques, and concepts. With interleaving, we will be constantly cycling through positions, thus reducing the time between practicing any given position and simultaneously being exposed to the entirety of positions in a shorter period of time.
The problem with interleaving is that it often leaves students with the false perception that they aren’t learning as much. However, repeated studies have shown both the effect of the false perception and the fact that the student is actually retaining information better and for a longer period of time.
So, going forward I will be utilizing the concept of interleaving to organize our flow through the Fundamentals curriculum. I will do my best to tie together techniques and positions that are more directly related so we can all make the conceptual connections – but due to the nature of the curriculum (unequal emphasis on some positions over others) this won’t be possible all of the time. However, I think this will be a much better format for both beginner and intermediate/advanced students.
I’d love to hear your feedback going forward, as well! You can read a synopsis about the pros and cons of blocking and interleaving here, and I first studied and read about these ideas in this book.
Fundamentals: this week in Fundamentals we studied the Double Ankle Tilt and Overhead Sweep options from the Single Leg X Guard on Monday. On Wednesday we took a look at the Catucada Sweep and Defense from the Closed Guard and discussed how it is a similar sweep to the SLX Tilt Sweep because both are sweeps that utilize our hips to off-balance and ultimately sweep our partner by contorting their knee and controlling their ankle.
Advanced: in Advanced class we studied three Single Leg X Passes. On Monday we devoted the entire class to studying and drilling the Falling Leg Drag Pass and on Wednesday we learned a rolling back take from the double under stacked position that immediately preceded the Falling Leg Drag Pass. We also drilled the rolling back take from forcing the “reap” in Single Leg X.
No Gi: in No Gi this week, Jim, Masha, and Kenzie took us through the techniques they learned at the recent Craig Jones seminar in Kenosha. They taught various escapes from the Back, Figure Four, Rear Naked Choke, Head-and-Arm Choke, and Armlock positions. Thanks so much to Jim, Masha, and Kenzie for going to the seminar and bringing back some great techniques to teach and share with others!
Jiu-Jitsu is a unique sport that requires you to use your mind and body in unfamiliar ways. While this is one of the things that makes it amazing, it can also lead to frustration. It is important to acknowledge progress over the end result. Parents can help foster this growth by reminding their kids that they are beginners and that just with any learning, the way to get better is through consistent effort and time on the mat.
This week, the kids did a great job with the Single Leg X sweep! We emphasized eliminating space, lifting our hips, and focusing our whole body to destabilize and seep our opponent. We moved on to closed guard and the Catucada sweep, observing the similarities in these two techniques. We dabbled in off balancing from standing as well with a game of Sumo. Participation, attitudes, and listening skills were at an all-time high this week!