None of us can afford to let the years go by and ?hope for the best.? Each child must go through a re-programming process every September to regain his or her previous academic level. The child who did great in June may have to settle and adjust to school all over again in the Fall.

The common problems for children, when going back to school, are attention span, motivation, and goal setting skills. We have many choices to enhance the success rates of our children, but if money is a factor, our choices seem to be limited, and every parent wants the best for his or her child.

Therefore, let's look at our options. You could do it all yourself, and some parents choose this path. You would need to tutor your child, reinforce respect, supervise each activity, and gently guide him or her toward constructive friendships. If you have a career, you might as well put it on hold for the summer.

You could place your child in an affordable summer camp and pray he or she will survive the season. You could also find a good skills camp for a minimum of $300 per week. Between summer camp, back to school, gasoline, and Christmas, we'll all be working a second job.

However, martial arts summer camps are very affordable in comparison to most summer camps. All of them are run with maximum supervision and kids are eager to belong to a structured society. Children know what is expected of them; it is just a matter of reinforcing the structure and making it fun for kids.

Does it sound like a military school? In some ways it is - but each child who enters a martial arts summer camp, will be a model student in an academic school setting, during the next school year.

How is this possible? The foundation of martial arts is courtesy and respect. This is how a martial arts school maintains structure and integrity. All of the extra life skills such as: goal setting, anger management, stress management, motivation, self defense, and having a positive attitude, are ?icing on the cake.?

Every child who enters a martial arts summer camp learns the taste of success, the feeling of achievement - and no child is left behind. In turn, this will prepare him or her for the next school year.

? Copyright 2006 ? Paul Jerard / Aura Publications