We all know some kids are just not into exercising. Kids learn through play. Partner exercise is a great way to have children exercise. Here are 12 partner exercises for kids that are actually fun to do.

My hope is that someone out there will see this and use these partner exercises in their PE class, gymnastics training, or even a dance class.

Teaching a kids class is very different than teaching an adult martial arts class. The main difference being, how long their attention span is.

When I teach an adult kung fu class, the emphasis is heavy on shadowboxing and correction of fighting techniques. However, if I were to teach a kids class the same way the kids would be bored to tears. The best way to keep the kids engaged is with fun partner exercises for kids.

Basically, when children have to work with a partner they are forced to try hard and pay attention. They have no way to let their minds wander off. These partner exercises are fun drills that will build their strength, stamina, and flexibility.

Partner exercise sit-ups

For children, they think of exercise as hard work. If you were to have a child do 50 sit-ups, you'd probably hear the child complain.

However, if you taught sit-ups as a partner exercise, you'll receive less complaints. In fact, the child will actually find exercising to be fun! 

Grappling partner exercises

In this video, we show highlights of 2 grappling games that we have for kids. These are great drills or partner exercises.

The games are called 3,2,1...Go! and Steal The Ball. Checkout our highlight video!

For 3,2,1...Go! The kids would find a partner. The objective is to try to have your partner touch their hands to the ground.

For Steal The Ball, the objective is to try and collect as much of the other team's ball and bring them back to your hoop.

Disguising repetition

At our Summer Camps, we do want the kids to gain strength, flexibility, and coordination through various exercises. We have them exercise on their spots. But, to keep an exercise "fresh and new", we sometimes have them pair up with someone and do a partner exercise.

Interacting with another person helps the kids forget that they're actually exercising! In fact, we see the kids enjoying this part of class! They are smiling, having fun, and motivate their partner to try their best.