The big news this month was our first grading, which saw Dawn receive her 9th Kyu grade in the traditional way.  Some clubs organise periodic grading events where students are tested on their syllabus and either pass or fail. Chidokan take the view that students should be constantly assessed and promoted when they are ready, not necessarily in line with a timetable.  So it came as a surprise to Dawn and the other students when she was presented with her certificate. Congratulations to Dawn on her promotion.  It’s a reflection of the hard work and determination she’s applied over the past 4 months.

The first session of the month saw the arrival of Greg, a new student and a friend of Terry San.  Greg did remarkably well for a first lesson with very little prior experience and we hope he enjoyed it enough to come back again.

Class sizes have continued to grown in recent months so we held a trial for a Saturday class which drew 5 early starters.  We also added a permanent Monday morning session to the week which starts at 7am. With even more classes per week planned for 2014, there will be even more opportunities to train!

We also had a visit from Sensei Podda, and although he didn’t have time to train, he promises to be back before the end of the year.