Graduation - April 2025
- North Manchester FMAC
- Apr 9
- 6 min read
April's Graduation will be the last Saturday Graduation for a while (we move to Sundays from June onwards - Black Belts excepted) & the Saturday Graduation will be at the usual venue - Bury Grammar School, Tenterden Street, Bury BL9 0HN.
There are alternate Graduations for those unable to attend on the 12th due to religious, cultural, work or holiday reasons Sunday 13th is at the Oldham Centre & then Monday through to Thursday will be at the Bury Centre. If you are attending any of these alternate Graduations, you need to have requested one when you put your form in & youwill have been informed of the details directly by text - otherwise, we'll see you at Bury Grammar School on Saturday. If you haven't submitted a Graduation form, the next opportunity will be a Sunday in June.
Make sure you turn up for your agreed Graduation; otherwise your belt & certificate won't be there for you. Anyone who has a last minute disaster/illness should contact their Instructor for advice/guidance.
This Graduation will be slightly different to normal... Master H Nelson & Master B Nelson will no longer be running Graduations from the top corner or prowling round the hall looking for poor stances - they'll be doing that from the front of the room this time! 🤣
How to get there?
If you have not been before, the entrance to Bury Grammar School is off Tenterden Street. We are on the Boys School site, in the Sports Hall. The entrance to the site is on the sharp corner midway down Tenterden Street.
There is parking on site and there is also limited parking (check restrictions) in the streets around the School. There is also plenty of paid parking at the Castle Leisure Centre, just across the road from Bury Grammar School.
For those who would prefer to use public transport (certainly the easy option for many of the Prestwich Students!), the buses and trams terminate at Bury Interchange where it is just a short 5 minute walk to the Graduation venue.
You can find advance notice of all of the 2025 Graduation time/dates in the Centres, on Facebook, Instagram and on the website - as a reminder you can find them here.
If you have never been to a Graduation before, check out what some of the students say about it here.
Tigers (9.00am)
When you arrive, you will need to register with Mr Morton in the Reception area. Make sure you give him your name when you arrive so that we can ensure all certificates are present for the end of the Graduation.
All the instructors will be there to help our youngest students remember and show off the syllabus, so no need for any Graduation day jitters from parents or Tigers! Mrs Greenlees from the Bury Centre (she's lovely!) will be leading the way, with Mr McCann from the Hindley Centre backing her up, so make sure you do exactly what you do in class & you will be fine!
For the Tigers, graduation is just like another big class. They just need to show up in their uniforms, do what they've been doing all along, and they'll be good to go! Honestly, the parents are probably going to be more nervous than the Tigers.
At Graduation, Master Parkinson may ask the following questions:
What is the name of our martial art? (Tang Soo Do)
Where do we practice our martial art? (In the Do Jang)
What is our uniform called? (Do Bok)
What is the new belt that you will collect called? (Dee)
What is the Korean for Front Kick? (Ahp Podo Cha Gi)
What is the Korean for High Block? (Sang Dan Mahk Kee)
What is the Korean for Front Stance? (Chung Gul Jaseh)
Plus all the things we have been discussing as part of our ‘Listening & Respect’ theme.
Be there 10 minutes early & wait in the waiting area to be called through just before 9.00am.
Just like in class, they will be demonstrating:
High Block
Front Kick
Jump Front Kick
Front Stance
Same side self defence (you will need to get involved, parents)
and a Combination of High Block, Reverse Punch, Front Kick
Be sure to snap tons of photos and share your awesome Tiger moments on the Tiger Facebook pages. And hey, don't miss out on grabbing a pic with your favourite Instructor (there is some friendly rivalry to see who can get the most pics, so help them out!).
Middleton - https://www.facebook.com/FMACMiddletonTigers
Prestwich - https://www.facebook.com/FMACPrestwichTigers
White & Yellow Belts (10.00am)
This group is for any striped belts who've moved up from Tigers as well as all the White Belts. Mr Foster from the Bury Centre is taking care of this group at Graduation, and you'll see some of our 'friendly' faces up front too. Make sure to get there 10 minutes early and hang out in the waiting area until you're called in as a group.
If you've never been to a graduation, see what some students have to say about it here.
As a reminder, your syllabus is:
High Block (Sang Dan Mahk Kee)
Side Snap Kick (Yup Podo Cha Gi)
Both Chop Kicks (Ahneso Pahkuro Cha Gi & Pahkeso Ahnuro Cha Gi)
Jab & Cross
Side Stance (Sa Ka Rip Jaseh)
Cross-Hand self-defence #1
You can check out the terms you need to know here. And if you want to see some videos on different techniques, click here.
Orange & Blue Belts (11.00am)
This group, led by Mr Greenlees, will show you the current syllabus (above) and also go over some of the stuff you've learned before.
Low Blocks & Middle Blocks
Front, Back, Horse & Cross-Legged Stances
Chop & Punch plus Backfist & Punch
Front & Roundhouse Kicks
2 onto 2 & Same-Side Self-Defences
On top of all that, Blue Belts will be showing off the Beginner Form (Cho Bo Ja Hyung).
You can find the Blue Belt Terminology in the Student Zone here. Make sure to turn in your completed blue Beginners Workbook before Graduation. If you've misplaced yours, you can buy a replacement from the Club Shop or through the Wix App.
6th Gups to 4th Gups (Green Belts) (12.00pm)
Remember your sparring gear - unless you want to be the one doing the "Oops, I forgot" shuffle to the front desk... Mr Watt from the Swinton & Altrincham Centres is in charge here, so bring your A-Game, or at least your "I'm trying really hard" face!
Your focus should be Basic Form #2 (Kee Cho Hyung E Bu) & several of the 2 v 1 Self-Defences (just what we have been working on in class).
When it comes top the sparring, try to spar with students from other Centres - that will help you to improve your sparring skills.
3rd & 2nd Gups (Red Belts) (1.00pm)
We're looking forward to an awesome demo from the Red Belts, led by Mr McCann! Besides that, you might be asked to do any Basic Form and the current Pyung Ahn Hyung (Pyung Ahn Ee Dan Hyung).
Plus, you'll be showing the right number of 2 v 1 Self-Defences.
Lastly, make sure you bring your sparring gear! And remember to spar with people from other Centres - you can spar with each other every week!
1st Gups (Senior Red Belts) (2.00pm)
Your Basics & syllabus bits are getting a VIP inspection (that's why you've been given your own special Graduation spotlight). Besides all the cool moves the 2nd/3rd Gups are showing off, you get the extra fun of performing the previous Pyung Ahn Hyung (Pyung Ahn Cho Dan Hyung). But hey, good news! You can now skip Bassai at 1st Gup. 🎉 Mr Ogden is in charge.
Black Belts (3.00pm)
Along with your current syllabus, you might be asked to demonstrate ANYTHING from the Gup syllabus, so it's time to dig deep into those memory banks! Be sure you're up to speed on your Pyung Ahn Hyungs, Bassai and the previous Hyungs for the Ee Dans & Sam Dans.
All Black Belts will be demonstrating their Cross-Hand Cuff Grips and Il Soo Sik (One-Step Sparring) #7 to #12.
In order to go to Graduation, you need to get the thumbs up from your Instructor and show you know the syllabus appropriate your age and level. If you can nail that at our Centres, then Graduation will be a breeze. So, have fun on the day and use it as a chance to learn even more!
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