Program guide.

Please read the dojo etiquette soon after enrolment, and the other guides as soon as possible. You can find them in our student guides. If you don't have a child in our class, you may want to skip the paragraphs about children.

Goal setting is built into all of our programs. Set your goals and lay down a plan for your training as you go through your course. The best time to do this is at the beginning of each term. The grading requirements are in the student guides too.

Walk into the training area a few minutes before your class is scheduled to start, and kindly keep the noise down when a class is in progress.

You are expected to attend only the classes you are regularly registered for. Jumping from class to class now and then is not permitted. If you need to change your days, let us know and we will do our best to accommodate you.

If a holiday lands on a day you usually attend class, you may attend any other class without notice in the same week as the holiday.

You are not charged session by session. You are charged for the program you signed up for, which includes a number of sessions with school closures in mind. You can make changes to your membership before the end of the trial period that comes with it. Once the trial period has passed, no more changes can be made for the rest of the course.

You will usually receive a message from us every weekend with the focus of the week and any important announcements. We expect students (or parents) to read all our messages so we are on the same page.

Sparring gear is mandatory for free sparring: gloves and foot protectors. Focus mitts are needed for classes titled Sparring Skills or Fitness Kickboxing. You can order the right products in our dojo store.

• Green stripes are earned for extraordinary performance or effort in class: 1 point.
• Blue stripes are earned for outstanding performance during training: 2 points.
• Red stripes are given for unacceptable behaviour that offends the etiquette of the dojo, such as violent behaviour, or for consistently arriving late: minus 1 point.

At the end of each term, everyone's points are counted and we find our top 10 students. The top 10 compete in the Last Man Standing Competition, and whoever takes first place after eliminating everyone else wins a prize. Everyone starts fresh each term.

For very young children (L1) we have junior grading requirements, a lighter version of the syllabus used for L2 and L3 exams. For L1, yellow belt is broken into small steps, and students wear different colour stripes.

Exams are held at the end of each 3-month term. Mid-term exams (tip-tests) are held informally around week 5 or 6, when students show what they have picked up and get feedback from instructors. A tip-test can result in no stripes, 1 black stripe or 2 black stripes:

• 2 black stripes when the new content has been picked up well
• 1 black stripe when the new content has been picked up partially

You need at least one black stripe to sign up for a belt exam. Either way, use the rest of the term to prepare, keeping your instructors' feedback in mind.

1. 10th kyuWhite belt
2. 9.5 kyuHigh white: white belt with a black stripe
3. 9th kyuSolid yellow belt
4. 8.5 kyuHigh yellow: yellow belt with a black stripe
5. 8th kyuSolid orange belt
6. 7.5 kyuHigh orange: orange belt with a black stripe
7. 7th kyuSolid red belt
8. 6.5 kyuHigh red: red belt with a black stripe
9. 6th kyuSolid green belt
10. 5.5 kyuHigh green: green belt with a black stripe
11. 5th kyuSolid purple belt
12. 4.5 kyuHigh purple: purple belt with a black stripe
13. 4th kyuSolid blue belt
14. 3.5 kyuHigh blue: blue belt with a black stripe
15. 3rd kyuSolid brown belt
16. 2nd kyuHigh brown: brown belt with a black stripe
17. 1st kyuHigh brown: brown belt with a black stripe
18. Shodan1st degree black belt

To get credit for absences, email us the period you expect to be away. Credit is issued only for future absences reported in advance, and for periods of one week or longer (not single missed sessions). Credits have no cash value: you use them to extend your course when your membership ends. You can bank up to 1 month of absences per year on 12 and 24-month programs (not short-term or trial memberships). No credit is issued for term breaks or national holidays. We cannot stop and start monthly payments because of absences.

We are closed on statutory holidays, and for 1 week every 3 months (the term break) after exams. If a special class is scheduled on a holiday or break, you will be notified. We reserve the right to cancel up to 4 sessions in a row if absolutely necessary. If we do, we issue credit for the cancelled sessions plus 1 extra session.

Check with your doctor to make sure you are fit for the kind of training karate is. If you have any condition that may limit you in class, let us know about it and any limitations (ADHD? Hearing problems? Asthma?).

From time to time we may take pictures or videos in class and use them in our ads. If you don't want us to use any you (or your children) appear in, let us know and we won't.

We cannot accept responsibility for lost or stolen items. Please lock up your belongings in the lockers downstairs, or bring them into the training area.

We rely heavily on email. Please add our addresses to your contacts, and let us know right away if your contact information changes. We expect students (or parents of young children) to read all our emails and respond within a reasonable time when a response is called for. If you can't check email regularly, please tell us.

Program questions: powerhouseoffice@gmail.com. Admin questions: dojostudentservice@gmail.com. Please don't approach instructors unexpectedly with admin questions; we are happy to arrange a call or a meeting.

Find a training partner. Students who have a friend or family member in class tend to stay much more committed. If you know someone you would like to train with, invite them, and let us know before they come (we need their name and contact info).

If you have a child in our class, consider getting involved yourself. Leading by example is the best way to motivate your child, even at one session a week.

• We cannot supervise outside the training area (hallways, upstairs or outside). Please be on time for pick-up, and remind your child to stay in the training area if you run late.
• Help us enforce the "No Running" and "No Yahooing" rules when your child is in the building.
• Remind or help your child sign into their classes every time they come in (see the iPad).
• Parents of L1 students especially: please stay in the building while your child is in class.
• Have your child visit the washroom before class.
• Get your child changed downstairs in the change rooms, not in the hallways or at the entrance.
• Wait for your child upstairs, not in the office downstairs or at the entrance.

You earn credit toward your tuition for every member you refer who signs up for regular training. Ask us for details.