Learnt with a coach

Ju-jitsu at home

A mat, a qualified instructor and grade-by-grade lessons at a club; at home, etiquette, the stop rule and getting help.

2 cards at home 4 for the club

What should we practise today?

Tell us where you are and who is playing. You get one card and the reason.

Where are you?

Who is playing?

Start a session

New to ju-jitsu? The game in a minute

Read this once before the first card.

The art in short: Ju-jitsu is a Japanese martial art of self-defence. It mixes strikes (punches and kicks), throws, hold-downs on the ground and, for older students only, joint locks and strangles. Students learn to fall safely before anything else.
How competitions work: In sport ju-jitsu there are three kinds of contest. In fighting, two players score points for controlled strikes, throws and hold-downs. In duo, a pair shows set attacks and defences, and judges mark them. In ground fighting, players score from holds on the mat.
How grades work: Students move up through coloured belts, called kyu grades, by passing gradings in front of examiners; the black belt grades are called dan.
Rules children break first: Stop the moment the instructor or partner says stop.
Tap twice on the mat or the partner to give up, and let go at once when your partner taps.
Strikes in practice stop short of the target.
Never practise throws or holds on friends at home.
At home you learn the manners and the stop rule: Bowing, kneeling, stopping on the word, and showing a strong "stop" with the hands and voice. Falls, throws and everything with a partner are at a club.

Words you will hear (24, in plain language)

Dojo: The training hall.
Mat: The padded floor where all practice happens.
Instructor: The teacher.
Uniform: The jacket, trousers and belt worn for training.
Belt: The belt colour shows the grade; kyu grades come first, dan grades are black belts.
Grading: A test in front of examiners to move up a grade.
Bow: Bending forward from the waist, standing or kneeling, to show respect at the start and end.
Seiza: Kneeling with the bottom on the heels, the big toes overlapped, hands on the thighs.
Mokuso: A quiet moment with the eyes closed at the start and end of a lesson.
Breakfall: A safe way of falling: the head kept up and the forearms slapping the mat.
Throw: Bringing a partner down to the mat under control.
Hold-down: Keeping a partner on their back on the mat.
Scarf hold: Three hold-downs: from the side with an arm round the neck and shoulders; from the side across the chest; from above the head across the chest.
Escape: Getting out of a hold-down.
Joint lock: Techniques that bend a joint or press the neck; club only, and not for children.
Tap: Two taps on the mat or partner to say "I give up"; the partner lets go at once.
Partner: Tori does the technique; uke receives it and falls.
Strike: Hitting with the hand or foot; in practice, at pads or stopping short.
Combination: Two or more techniques joined without stopping.
Retraction: Pulling the hand or foot back quickly after a strike.
Set practice: Agreed attacks and defences done in a fixed order.
Free practice: Light practice where partners choose their own techniques, under close supervision.
Duo: A competition where a pair shows set attacks and defences.
Stop hands: Both hands held up in front, palms out, like a stop sign.

Try it, nothing to buy

Mark the space once. Every card starts from it.

The cards, level by level

Nobody is late. A beginner of any age starts at Basic.

Basic 3 cards · show· hide Etiquette, safe breakfalls, a few controlled punches and kicks in good balance and a first set of throws, on both the left and right sides. Each grade needs a set amount of training time before the next; ask the club.

Move on when the instructor grades the child.

Intermediate 2 cards · show· hide Breakfalls from every throw, punches and kicks joined while moving, throws while moving and joined together, footwork to set up techniques, and more control and precision. The strikes are a small set; the throws and ground techniques are many.

Move on when the instructor passes the next grading.

Advanced 1 cards · show· hide Every basic technique of the system, a personal set of favourite techniques, and smooth changes between standing, striking and the ground. The higher grades and competition age groups are set by the club and the national body; ask the club.

a1 The full system and your own game At a club what the coach teaches, what to ask

Teaching this at home

Contact, falls, weapons or heights. At home only games and knowledge; the skill is taught at a club.

You do not need to know the sport. Each card tells you where to stand, what to say and what to look at. Pick one thing to say in a session and say only that. The first week looks messy; that is normal. End every session on one that works.

Cards marked At a club are taught by a coach. They tell you what the coach teaches, what is safe at home, and what to ask the club before your child joins.

How to warm up before playing is at workonfitness.com. The rules of the game are at sportsmaze.com.