MEERCATBRONZE Member
A Meerkat that eats chicken
194 posts
Location: Cambridge UK


Posted:
I have been asked by a youth club leader in my area to come and show the kids fire spinning an diabolo,they have bought some practice poi sets for them to use.
How do i know they wont just go home an make some of there own dodgy poi with petrol or do somthing really stupid i will be the one who has put that idea in there head.

Also what are the best moves to teach kids??its been so long i cant remember what was hard to do and what wasnt..

oliSILVER Member
not with cactus
2,052 posts
Location: bristol/ southern eastern devon, United Kingdom


Posted:
all you can do is tell them that they musnt try to do what you do, and if they are young kids they probably wont be able to get hold of petrol.
just explain the safety aspect really thougherly and set a good example.
hope it gose well.

Me train running low on soul coal
They push+pull tactics are driving me loco
They shouldn't do that no no no


AnonymousPLATINUM Member


Posted:
I'm not really a teacher but first off How old are they?

If their all sub 16 years then I probably wouldn't show them fire at all (sorry to those on the site who spin well and safely and are under 16, but not everyone is as mature and responsible as you )

If their a bit older then I wouldn't show them fire straight away.

You can stick to them learning and showing the basics, weave, butterfly, and such (if Malcom doesn't mind possibly use the lessons from here as a guide?) with practice poi and then when you think the whole group are of a sufficient level show them that it can be done with fire as well.

But I would spend a LONG time teaching them the basics with practice poi, before I let an inexperienced group anywhere near fire! Maybe just my paranoia, but I wouldn't want to feel I was responsible for a nasty accident...

Spend one lesson just going over the saftey aspects of using fire, and keep stressing to them that wrapping a lit poi round your head isn't fun... (first mistake I made with fire poi )

Hope that helps a bit...

PsyB.

toonboy7member
11 posts
Location: canada


Posted:
I'm with Psylent_BoB on this one ... I've got two, a 7 and 13 year old, we're all learning togther and no one's 'sparkin' it up' ... period!!!

I will eventually when I stop bashing myself in the head, but not the kids.

we've all watched people spin fire and Ohhh'ed and Ahhh'ed but they've not to try this at home <--- can't believe I actually said that, heh.


GidgBRONZE Member
Super Gidg!!!!
8,506 posts
Location: Portland Oregon USA


Posted:
I have to agree with Psylent_BoB also. There is sometimes that a spinner is just too young. I have taught people between the age of 5 and 42 and even the 42 year old one I wouldn’t trust playing safety let alone handle fire poi at this time.

I would and have introduced young people to fire poi, but as audience only. I would never have giving even a single fire poi to them to spin with. My reasoning behind this is that they are to easily distracted. You have your full attention on what you are doing. Not paying attention to the glow stick someone is waiving in the audience or seeing if the cute boy/girl is watching you perform.

For teaching moves? Depends on the age. For the five year old it was just doing the basic forward and backward spin. As they get older you introduce split time, basic crosses of the arms, turns and butterfly stuff. It really depends on the student and how the react to each of the new moves. You don’t want to overwhelm them. What I do is to start teaching them the basic forward and backward swing in even and split time. The crossing of the arms in even and split time (split time is the two beat weave), and then a basic turn. I always leave them with homework. A move or two that they, for the most part, can do 50% of the time. This gives them a challenge for the next time that you get together.

Well, that’s my two cents.


Growing old is mandatory; growing up is NOT.
Proud member of the HoP DPS.
Sanity is a highly overrated state of mind.
I'm normal ... it's everyone else that's crazy.

Gidg


*Jesika*member
2 posts
Location: new orleans, louisiana : usa


Posted:
NO fire. if you want to go further than that use glowstix so it is bright and traces but they can't burn themselves. just my opinion.

MEERCATBRONZE Member
A Meerkat that eats chicken
194 posts
Location: Cambridge UK


Posted:
cheers for the feedback its been alot of help .
I dont know why i hadent thought of glowsticks before thats a good idea it can look just as good as fire ..
all the kids are 15-16 approx
THANX

shadow steppinofficial hop irken
401 posts
Location: Tucson USA


Posted:
hmmm now i feel bad for spinning on the 4th of july in front of lil cousins and such. they where goin nutz about it.

In my hands I hold your smile and in my heart it runs so wild You are the one you are unique I'm so in love you make me weak And the reason that I feel is like a shadow from a light so if you have the chance to be with me be my shadow in the night


RoziSILVER Member
100 characters max...
2,996 posts
Location: Sydney, NSW, Australia


Posted:
Each audience/class is different. Leave it as something additional to be taught, and determine during the course of the lesson the level of maturity there. If there are any pyros like Frostypaw then it is a no go.

It was a day for screaming at inanimate objects.

What this calls for is a special mix of psychology and extreme violence...


JinXmushroom collector
208 posts
Location: JHB, South Africa


Posted:
kids arent as stupid as some of you guys might think.

JinX : If it doesnt kill you it makes you stronger

The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earth worms dizzy.
It will however make cats dizzy and cats throw up twice their bodyweight when dizzy.


Lasa'nta Dubh Mac Tiremember
51 posts
Location: LA... Pine Oregon


Posted:
Howdy. sorry to make my entrence here but. yea. i'm a 18 year old spinner. and all my friends are alot younger then me most around 14 15 so,.. and they always want tp pick up my staff. just have to make sure they have some respect for the flame and there alright. if not, they don't get anywhere near it.

Nothing goes through the Lunitics dark mind... By his own Decaying HeartI love the little tacos... I love them goood G.i.rI'm gunna roll around on the floor for abit k? G.i.r


CharlesBRONZE Member
Corporate Circus Arts Entertainer
3,989 posts
Location: Auckland, New Zealand


Posted:
Jinx...Yes kids are as stupid as we think.

Trust me...they are! How do I know this, you ask? Because kids are people, just like everyone else, and people are stupid too!

People are stupid all the time, constantly, forever!


And children (and a lot of young adults) have a definite lack of responsibility compared to most adults.

I'm not talking about every single kid in the whole world, but I am talking about 99/100 of them.

The reason these 99 act more irresponsibly than 99/100 adults is that they haven't really experienced true accountability yet.

They haven't had to pay for their food, clothing and shelter out of their own pocket. They aren't yet driving and so don't realise what happens if they fail to fill up the car and can't get to work one day.

Their world is so much smaller than most adults (some adults still have this small world).

They don't understand the way the world works as much as most older people.


This is not a reflection on their intelligence, but on their exposure to experience, which is limited because of their age.

Just because an 8 year-old child might know how to fix a fuse in a house, doesn't mean he's worldly...it means he's worldly when it comes to fixing fuses in houses.

A few adult actions do not make an adult, they make a child who has some adult perceptions on some things, and a LOT of childlike perceptions of other things.


You can flame me all you like, and say whatever you want to say, but it won't change that this is the way the world is.

A child of 8 years CANNOT have 30 years of experience. It just does not work that way and never will.

Admittedly, there are some adults who haven't learned anything in their 30 years, but those exceptions don't change the way other children are.

And ditto for the 'mature' child. He/she is just a drop in the ocean compared to the immature children.

If kids are just like most stupid adults, but with less experience, then YES they need even more supervision than us stupid adults. And us adults require a lot of supervision ourselves!

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shadow steppinofficial hop irken
401 posts
Location: Tucson USA


Posted:
ya i guess hiding kidz away from everything just isnt practical. i guess as its been said the most important thing is to make sure they respect it and understand the dangers.

In my hands I hold your smile and in my heart it runs so wild You are the one you are unique I'm so in love you make me weak And the reason that I feel is like a shadow from a light so if you have the chance to be with me be my shadow in the night


JinXmushroom collector
208 posts
Location: JHB, South Africa


Posted:
point taken Charles, but if you tell a kid not to do fire what is the one thing they will really want to do?

ok mabey dont show them but if one has seen fire performed what you gonna do lie and say it doesnt work on poi?

im 19 and im not an adult with kids so i dont know that side, but im not a kid either, i do however remember being a kid and hearing about all these cool things i couldnt do because i was a kid.

conclusion: dont show them fire but tell them about it but then tell them why they shouldnt do it, use a grousome story about getting burnt, say it was you to give some efect and say you where young at the time.

dont lie to the kids just tell them what they must hear.

JinX : If it doesnt kill you it makes you stronger

The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earth worms dizzy.
It will however make cats dizzy and cats throw up twice their bodyweight when dizzy.



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