How I Prepare for a Grading

My Prepartions for a Grading

Yeah OK OK... I know its early as the grading isn't until 9th June, but for me it's never to early to start thinking about what's on the grading practical and theory sheets. Remember if you've lost your sheet you can download and print out a new one from the members section on the Phoenix website. Please see your instructor for username and password.

So what do I personally do to prepare for a grading? Probably the same as most of you, read the sheets, listen to my instructor (yes, I really do listen) and ask questions if there is something I am uncertain of.... but there are a couple of additional things I do, this is probably over-preparing but you know the old saying, "Failing to Prepare is Preparing to Fail".

Using Technology

I love my gadgets, and in this day and age of mobile and tablet technology the wonderful world of apps means you can have theory revision on your smartphone or tablet. I'm an Android user so have hands on experience of a couple of useful apps. The two I have installed for theory/quizzes are Tae Kwon Do Theory (Daniel Gooch) and Tae Kwon Do Assistant (Patricoda) both apps are based on the TAGB curriculum and are free to download from Google Play. Tae Kwon Do Theory covers 10th Kup to 4th Dan where as the Tae Kwon Do Assistant covers 10th Kup to 1st Kup. I use both on my train commute to and from work. I've not been able to find any Windows Phone/Surface apps for theory but no doubt this will change as this platform gains popularity.

I don't have access to an iPhone or iPad so I'd like to thank the creator of the Uddingston TKD Apple iPhone App, John McManus, for the following information:
 "The main part of the app is a Quiz, built for iPhone, but I think it works on iPad albeit scaled up. The Quiz has a Database of around 250 Questions based on the TAGB Official Book and BlackBeltSchools Information.You can select a group of questions from a single Kup e.g Yellow Belt or a range of questions e.g. Yellow Belt to Green Belt. Questions are from 10th Kup to 1st Kup, the number of questions per Kup vary , but as a general rule there are more questions available for the Lower Grader e.g. 10 Kup has +30 in the database. Once you answer all the questions you are scored, then you can review your answers to see where you went wrong.

There is also a handy link to the syllabus to BlackBeltSchools theory pages, but you need to be connected to the internet to access these. [App] Can be found on the iTunes store by searching for TKDQuiz."
If anyone has any additional Apple apps they use which they've found useful please let me know but TAGB syllabus only please.

A useful app for pattern reference (and I mean reference, not for learning from) which is available on Android, Apple iPhone and iPad is "This is Tae Kwon Do Vol 1". Please note that this app isn't TAGB related, so again, reference only! The app is pretty big so I'd recommend you install it on a tablet device rather than a smartphone and download over WiFi rather than your 3G connection. The first few tuls are available free and for few pounds you can unlock the rest up to and including Choong Moo. Interface is useful as you can watch the whole tul, watch a single move and its a complete world environment, meaning you can view the movements from any angle, zoom in and out as you wish. I'll stress again this is reference use only and not a learning tool!

You can also use what my wife calls the "original eReader".... BOOKS! Remember those?? There are official TAGB training books which can be ordered from your instructor and also available is the "Students Handbook" which is an excellent source of study materials. I've also seen TAGB theory flashcards for sale on eBay.

Remember, a little study on theory often is a lot better than a mass cram just before a grading!

Practice, Practice, Practice!

So you've got the sheets, all the books and all the apps under the sun.. then you're all set! Nope! You've still got the practical line work and patterns to remember. The majority of this is done under the careful eye of your instructor so he or she can ensure you're doing this correctly. After that it's practice, practice, practice until your muscles know it better than your brain does. I practice at home, at work, not in sight of the CCTV cameras of course. I've even been know to run through all the patterns I know while changing backup tapes in the office server room. One last thing I do is a mental preparation by running through all the linework and patterns, this is handy when I don't have the room to physically practice them.

My instructor, Mr Chahal, always says I over-prepare and he's right; I do, and maybe no one else prepares like I do, but if you've ever struggled with either the theory or practical at a grading, maybe one of the ways I've mentioned above will give you some new ideas for revision so you'll feel more confident on the day :)