I have had the great pleasure to work with some of the 8th graders at Trackers Forest School in Portland. These are shots, taken by parents (and used with permission), of one of the classes. The kids are smart, enthusiastic, ask great questions, and are keen to learn. I’ve really enjoyed working with them!
This course is a four week introduction to see if the kids like it, if it might be a viable extension of their program. Most of their class time is spent out of doors, but with the rain here we’ve had to adapt and thanks to the very hard work of one of the parents, we found a great spot to keep gear dry.
Trackers Forest School is part of the Trackers program in Portland. For more information see: https://trackerspdx.com/forest-school
With an introductory class like this, and limited space, we’ve spent most of our time on fundamentals of movement and basic blade-work. I note this because whenever I have students targeting more than the head, they are in jackets. Only three weeks in, we’ve focused on the dynamics of the cut, both direct and by molinello, and I’ve restricted that to the mask (top of the head, left and right cheek). Safety is paramount and I want to make it clear that what you see here is not oversight or neglect, but by design.
Sala delle Tre Spade 