Every month in the United States, three million children miss school due to fear of bullies. In the Gracie Bullyproof program, our goal is to instill your child with unshakable confidence so they can overcome bullies without violence. Due to the non-violent nature of the techniques, CNN, ABC, NBC, and Oprah have featured the Gracie Bullyproof program as one of the few effective counter-measures to bullying for children between the ages of 5 and 12.

We will teach your child to use verbal assertiveness to deter bullies and several non-violent self-defense techniques to stay safe if physically assaulted. Importantly, we don’t teach how to punch or kick, since this often does more harm than good. Instead, we use leverage-based control holds to neutralize threats without violence. Numerous school districts have embraced the defensive nature of the Gracie Bullyproof techniques as a reasonable, nonviolent response to bullying and some even host Gracie Bullyproof classes on campus! The bottom line is: we will prepare your child to defend themselves against bullies without turning them into one.

If you’re interested in instilling your child with unshakable confidence while reinforcing positive values and good character, the Gracie Bullyproof program is for you! Even if your child has previously tried Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) and had a negative experience, we can assure you that they will absolutely love the Gracie Bullyproof program!

Critical Confidence
Studies suggest that bullying may be the leading cause of low self-esteem in children, and according to some surveys, less than 15% of kids actually report acts of bullying. A child’s inability to stand up to a bully is rooted in profound fear for their personal safety. Ironically, the victims know that they must confront the bully and would like nothing more than to stand up to them. But, they simply can't follow through for fear of the physical harm that backs the bully's every action. And, therein lies the challenge – how do you instill in a victim of bullying the confidence to face the tormentor, look them in the eye, and back them down? The answer is simple – teach the victims to defend themselves against physical attack, and the rest will follow.

Fighting Fire with Water
Most martial arts programs rely on striking the attacker with violent punches, kicks, knees, and elbows, but in the Gracie Bullyproof program we take a different approach. All the techniques are purely defensive and utilize no strikes. Furthermore, we teach children how to defuse confrontations with words and never to initiate physical aggression. If attacked, we offer techniques to non-violently neutralize the threat and gain control until help arrives. In the Gracie Bullyproof program, we teach the children how to fight fire with water so that you never have to worry about your child becoming a bully under our guidance.

The Gracie Bullyproof program prepares your child using a three-pronged approach:

• Increased Awareness: Harassment comes in many forms. Sometimes, a victim doesn’t take a stand because they can’t differentiate between “joking” and “bullying.” We teach your child to differentiate between harmless play and harmful harassment so they know precisely when and how to act in each circumstance.
• Unshakable Confidence: A confident child is a Bullyproof child. Bullies seek “easy targets” – those who will tolerate their abuse. We arm your child with the tools needed to overcome physical, verbal, and psychological harassment, so they are so confident in themselves that no bully will try to harass them.
• Total Responsibility: We prepare your child to deal with bullies without turning them into one. We emphasize discipline, responsibility, and respect throughout the course, and teach five “Rules of Engagement” to ensure they never abuse their power.

The Rules of Engagement
Teaching a child jiu-jitsu without teaching them when to use it, is akin to giving someone a gun without teaching them how to use it. Gracie Bullyproof is the only kid’s jiu-jitsu program that actually teaches children precisely when they can, and cannot, use the techniques they are learning. The five "Rules of Engagement" are regularly rehearsed in class so that children will never abuse their power and, equally important, they will not hesitate to take a stand when abused by bullies.

Although we discuss the Rules of Engagement in Gracie Bullyproof classes, we strongly encourage you to discuss the Rules at home to assure your child that they have your support in the event that they need to take a stand against bullying.

Verbal Jiu-Jitsu Training
One of the most pervasive and damaging forms of bullying is verbal harassment. Gracie Bullyproof is the only kids' jiu-jitsu program that makes Verbal Assertiveness Training, or as we like to call it "Verbal Jiu-Jitsu," part of its regular curriculum. We've devised a series of role-playing exercises to teach kids how to identify and manage the common threats associated with verbal harassment and relational bullying. Gracie Bullyproof students learn how to differentiate between "bullying" and "joking," and not only are kids taught how to speak assertively when necessary, but they also learn how to use direct eye contact and confident posture to deter bullies from targeting them.

Perfect Programs for Every Age
Nearly all jiu-jitsu schools have all of their youth students bunched into one class, and a few schools have classes separated by age group. The Gracie Bullyproof program is one of the only youth jiu-jitsu programs that separates kids by age AND experience level, so that every child gets the perfect balance of fun and challenge in their weekly classes. All kids begin in super-playful entry level programs for their age group, and as soon as a child reaches a certain level of maturity, they are promoted to the next training program.

Little Champs (4-7 Years Old)

Our Gracie Bullyproof® Little Champs program infuses kids with powerful self-defense skills as well as respect, discipline, and focus to help them in school and life.  We teach verbal jiu-jitsu, Gracie Games and several self-defense techniques.

Jr. Grapplers (7-12 Years Old)
Gracie Bullyproof® Jr. Grapplers builds unshakable confidence so that your child can overcome bullying without violence. Parents love our Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu program because it's the perfect blend of self-defense and character development.  This program will add to those techniques taught in Little Champs.

Gracie Combatives - Tween (11-14 Years Old)
Gracie Combatives® -Tween is based on our adult co-ed program and includes elements from our Gracie Bullyproof program.  While youth age 13 and older may attend the adult class we have created a class for kids that age to be with their peers.  

Black Belt Club (Invitation Only)
We invite children who excel in the Jr. Grapplers program to join the Black Belt Club. This is our most advanced youth jiu-jitsu program and joining the Black Belt Club is the highest honor for any youth Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. Kids in this program possess all the traits necessary for success on the path to black belt: discipline, respect, courage, leadership, loyalty, and compassion.

GRACIE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
We have found that our instructors develop powerful bonds with every student on the mat, but especially with our youth practitioners. We leverage this connection to help you develop your child’s character for success in all aspects of life. The Gracie Character Development Program consists of six chapters: Responsibility, Health, Respect, Citizenship, Manners, and Caring. We spend two months on each chapter. In every class, we discuss the featured character trait for 10-15 minutes, emphasizing the simple things your child can do to make it a part of their life. The secret to success lies in our use of a unique point-based reward system that we tie to attendance at Gracie Game Day, a special two-hour party where they get to play tons of games with all the instructors and kids. Only kids who score enough points during the two-month chapter qualify to attend Gracie Game Day, so it’s a powerful incentive for kids and a useful tool for parents to encourage positive behavior at home and school. Gracie Game Day is so much fun that parents will often put on a uniform just so they can join the party!

Free Online Access & Free Satellite Training
Upon enrolling your child in the Gracie Bullyproof program, you qualify for a free subscription to Gracie Bullyproof Online. Through our interactive online curriculum, you’ll have access to detailed video instruction on every technique in the course enabling you and your child to review techniques, or learn new techniques, from home! Furthermore, if you ever take a family vacation to a destination that has a Gracie Bullyproof Certified Training Center, your child can participate in classes free of charge for up to 30 consecutive days!

Used under license from Gracie University.