Yellow Belts; The First Rays of Sunlight
Congratulations on making it to the new rank! Just as a seeded plant takes root and begins to grow, the yellow belt is just the beginning of the martial artists' growing interest. In many eastern traditions, the color yellow is revered as a color of honor and well-being. In our martial arts class Yellow belt is the first new colored belt that our students can achieve and we honor them during their testing days with this new belt. With the new rank comes many new challenges and skills to master, including new forms, techniques, new Korean words, and even board breaking!. While the standard yellow belt is expected to learn and retain all of Il Jang, the High Yellow belt learns a new form called Taegeuk Yi Jang. Now that the standard and high yellow belts start to learn more, the information below will be separated as such.
Yellow Belts |
High Yellow Belts |
Learning Korean!
Although these two new ranks include new Korean language, it is important to reinforce the language learned at every ranking level. Practicing the numbers with your student strengthens their memory skills as well as boosts their confidence to speak up during classes. That being said, learning something new is exciting and satisfying to master so we will teach them at this level to use the Korean words associated with martial arts such as the words for Uniform, Thank You and You're Welcome.
Yellow Belt Korean1. Dobok (Dough-Bach)
The word Dobak in Korean means uniform and learning the word for this helps our students connect to the traditions of martial arts in a tangible way. It also teaches them to respect their uniform, by understanding the importance of the word to their Martial arts class. 2. Baro (Bar-oh) In the context of Tae Kwon Do, "Baro" means to return to the beginning position after the end of a form. At this point in their martial arts journey, our students will be finishing their first full form so it is important that they understand this word. Fun Fact!In Japanese martial arts the uniform is often referred to as a "Gi", but since we are learning traditional Tae Kwon Do material, lets just stick with calling it a Dobok!
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High Yellow Belt Korean1. Gamsahamnida (Kahm-sah-ham-knee-dah): Thank You
Though it may look overwhelming at first, learning to say thank you in Korean is an important part of teaching respect and discipline in the class. Encouraging manners, especially in Korean, promotes an environment of camaraderie, comfortability, and appreciation for one another. 2. Aneiyo (Ann-ee-yay-oh): You're Welcome In order to respond to a respectful "thank you" our students are also encouraged to know "you're welcome" in Korean, however they will not be tested on such material. |
Taegeuk Forms
At this point in the program, we believe that our students are well prepared for different expectations with each new belt they earn. For our yellow belts we feel confident they are capable of learning the entirety of Il Jang and the High Yellow Belts learn a similar but slightly more challenging form called Yi Jang.
Yellow Belts; Taegeuk IL Jang "The Sky" (Full)
Whereas the white belts are only expected to learn movements 1-10 of Il Jang, our yellow belts are accountable for all 18 movements of the full form. Underneath this brief introduction you will find the same links from the white belt resource since it is the same form, however we encourage parents and guardians to emphasize the entire form instead of just the beginning movements.
High Yellow Belt; Taeguek Ee Jang "The Lake"
For our high yellow belts we introduce the second Taeguek form known as Ee Jang (also sometimes called Yi Jang). It uses very similar motions and techniques as Il Jang, making it a natural and easy transition from white to yellow belt.
The main technique introduced in Ee Jang is the high punch, all of the other movements have been covered in the Il Jang.
Boardbreaking; The Palm Strike
Boardbreaking is an important part of martial arts as it requires a combination of focus and skill that come with the experience of higher ranks. The high yellow belt is the first belt with a board breaking technique; the Palm Strike. The Palm strike is one of the most effective and safe striking techniques in Tae Kwon Do. It involves using "the heel" or bottom of your hand and driving through with the force of a standard punch. It is important to stress the focus and carefulness with board-breaking, as wrongful technique can result in a painful strike to both the board breaker and the one holding the board.
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Testing Summaries
This section provides a concise list of the new techniques that each student should prepare for their next testing date.
Yellow Belts
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High Yellow Belts
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