I recently had the opportunity to meet up with and chat with Vincent-Marco Duchetta who is the owner of Ring of Fire Martial Arts Academy where the Kickin'Kids After School Program is held. Vincent-Marco, who has been teaching children for over twenty years had some great insight into their program as well as some really good information regarding the way kids learn today.
Q: Vince, How long have you been running an after school program?
A: I have been doing after school programs since 2000, when we first opened our Martial Arts Academy.
Q: What made you think of opening this type of program up to the community?
A: Well, when I first opened my facility, I had to arrange my afternoon and evening classes around kids that didn't get picked up from their after school programs until their parents got off work which was around 6:00 p.m. . I started thinking of ways to be able to get the kids in earlier so that they could do Karate before it got too late in the evening. I came up with the idea to pick them up for the parents and bring them to our school so that they could do Karate and get their homework done while giving them a chance to learn in a different environment than the one they were already in for seven or so hours.
Q: So when you pick them up, what do they do once they arrive at your facility?
A: Once we pick them up, we take roll before leaving each school. When we arrive to the school, a coach meets them at the vehicle and takes another roll call as they exit and ushers them inside to begin the program. When they are all accounted for and settled in, we give them a snack and let them have about 15 minutes of free time. This allows them to unwind from the school day and prepare to learn more in a fun, safe and friendly environment. After the free time is when we start the homework. They are given 45 to 50 minutes to get their homework started and hopefully completed. We then have them participate in different fitness based activities such as Dance, Gymnastics, Martial Arts etc.
Q: How do you address homework? Does your staff monitor them or help them in anyway?
A: Absolutely! Our staff are very well educated and friendly and are eager to offer assistance when the children need it. We are not there to "teach" them their studies per say, but we will help them if they get stuck or do not understand the directions or problems they may have been assigned from their regular school teachers. Our staff is with them at all times. When they are doing homework, our coaches are constantly rotating around the room to ensure the students are working to their best abilities.
Q: What makes you guys different from the other after school programs around the area?
A: Our program is totally different in the fact that we want kids to be kids. We want them to play, have fun, learn and stay physically fit. A major problem with the public school systems these days is the fact that P.E. has taken a back seat to academics. Now don't get me wrong, every child needs to have an academic curriculum to learn but we feel that too much at a young age can be detrimental to them possibly causing burn out by the time they reach the college years.
Q: What part of your teaching approach is so different than the traditional teaching methods?
A: We teach in a manner that benefits children of all ages. Whether it is sports, dance or Martial Arts, these children all learn differently. We strive to have the kids learn by their age groups. Kids aged five to seven learn differently than kids who are eight to nine, ten to eleven and so forth. We teach kids how to become leaders, entrepreneurs and good over all citizens. Not only do we teach them how to excel in life, we also teach them that there will be failures along the way. For example, when playing games, sports etc, you do not always win. Sometimes you pick the wrong strategy and it costs you the victory.
When this happens we teach them to look at these failures to try and see where they went wrong so that they can learn from the mistake and correct it for future endeavors.
Q: Why do you feel your program works?
A: That is an easy one! Our program works because each child is given the opportunity to exercise not only their minds but their bodies as well. We feel that our system is the best, and we only accept the best kids in to our programs. Not just any child can sign up. We speak to parents and interview them as to what their needs and expectations are and from that we can determine if it will be a good fit for us as well as them. Our system is a different approach to after school programming that is followed to a "T" by our staff and coaches. When you have a good foundation in place, things just work out, kind of like a well oiled machine.
Q: What is your stance on the current bullying epidemic?
A: That is a tricky question. I think bullying is unacceptable in any form. Whether it is in the form of verbal, physical, internet or any other form it should not be tolerated by anyone. I could go on and on about all the horror stories I have heard from students, parents and in the news. We have a zero tolerance for anything that falls under the term bullying. If we see or hear of any bullying, we put a stop to it immediately. If it is a case of physical bullying, that is grounds for expulsion from our program.
Q: Where do you see your business in 10 years?
A: I see us as the number one After School program in the San Gabriel Valley. We are looking to open up two more facilities over the next couple of years. There is a need for quality after school programs and I feel ours is the best.
Q: Thanks for taking the time to sit down and talk to me. I have one more question for you before we wrap this up. If you could sum up in a few words, what would be the number one thing a parent should look for in an after school program.
A: You are welcome and thank you for taking your time to meet me as well. I would say that the number one thing to look for in an after school program would be the environment. You really need to find a place that is SAFE, clean and that has a friendly, educated and happy staff of people who are there to take care of your kids.If you are interested in a quality after school program, and would like some more information on the Kickin Kids After School program at Ring of Fire Martial Arts Academy, please call (626) 445-7072 or visit the website to register at www.arcadiaafterschoolprogram.com
