Marie's Fencing Blog

 In my sample lessons, I rely on language consistent with Gaugler's Science of Fencing  and the Fencing Master's Certification Program. I recognize that some of the shorthand may be confusing, especially when paired with the numbered hand positions. I consider one set of numbers to be the blade position (either an invitation or engagement) and the other set of numbers to be the hand position. This guide should clear up any confusion. Invitation in 1st The blade is held high to the outside with the point directed between the opponent's eyebrows and collarbones. Your hand should be in first hand position. In this posture, the fencer is threatening with the point while staying safe from cuts to the head. Your student won't spend a ton of time in this position. Invitation in 2nd The blade is held out from the body with the hand in second hand position and the point directed at the opponent's inside hip. In this posture, the inside line is vulnerable. ...

Footwork Advance Retreat Lunge Recover back Recover forward Passing step forward Passing step backward Jump back Lateral movement Hand Positions  (this is a good time to refresh "inside" and "outside" lines) 1st - palm facing out 2nd - palm facing down 3rd - palm facing in, like a handshake 4th - palm facing up Intermediary positions 2nd and 3rd - between second and third, at an angle 3rd and 4th - between third and fourth, at an angle Simple Attacks From the instructor's invitation in third, straight thrust From the instructor's engagement in fourth, disengagement From the student's engagement in third, glide Simple Parries From the student's engagement in fourth, attack by disengagement to the chest Make sure the student parries third by making a straight line with their sword Encourage the student to sink with the parry (bend the knees deeper). Repost with a glide or with a detachment The student's feet should not move during the riposte. Circ...

  Footwork Advance Retreat Lunge Recover back Recover forward Passing step forward Passing step backward Jump back Lateral movement Simple Attacks From the instructor's invitation in third, straight thrust From the instructor's engagement in fourth, disengagement From the student's engagement in third, glide Simple Parries From the student's engagement in fourth, attack by disengagement to the chest Make sure the student parries third by making a straight line with their sword Encourage the student to sink with the parry (bend the knees deeper). Repost with a glide or with a detachment The student's feet should not move during the riposte. Single Feints From the instructor's invitation in third, student should feint an attack and disengage the incoming parry. The student's feet should not move during the feint. The feint should present a plausible threat. After introducing feints, you may add double and triple feints, or you may want to work on the arrest, t...

Begin by covering the basics. I don't have a specific order in which I teach these items, but the simple attacks always occur last. Safety and Gear What should you do when someone calls a hold? Stop fencing and put your sword in a non-offensive position. What gear should fencers wear to spar? Mask Hood Gorget Fencing jacket or equivalent Gloves (optional under SCA rules) Athletic cup (if appropriate) Athletic shoes  Parts of the Sword Blade Tang Ricasso Strong Medium Weak Tip Strong and weak edges Guard Pommel Grip Quillions Dish/rings/etc. On Guard Position Begin with the feet in an L shape with the dominant foot pointing toward the opponent. Step forward about shoulder width apart and bend the knees with weight evenly distributed (you can mess with weight distribution as you progress through your fencing journey). Bring the sword arm up, sword extended with a bent arm and pointed between the opponent's eyebrows and collarbones. The back arm should be raised and ready to hand ...

 Hello! I've made a few posts, but I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Marie la Cousturiere in the Society for Anachronism. I've taken the title Captain because I am a member of the Order of the Meridian Blade (the Grant of Arms level award for fencing in Meridies). I'm creating this blog to make teaching SCA fencing a little bit easier, therefore making fencing more accessible. I am an English teacher by trade, so I've spent a lot of time putting together curricula for my job. It seemed natural to take those skills over to my hobby. In addition to teaching English, I have completed instructor certifications with Sonoma State University's Fencing Master Certification Program and Kravolution's krav maga instructor program. These experiences are reflected in my posts. I also intend to refer to written material in this blog, most frequently Science of Fencing  by William Gaugler and Fundamentals of Italian Rapier  by David and Dori Coblentz. I cannot recom...

Warm-ups  - Dynamic stretching. Games  - Choose a quick game that fits with the skill you plan to cover. Footwork  - You can never practice footwork too much! Review  - You may want to take some time to go over something from the previous week's lesson. Lesson  - Beginning with the simplest actions, work your way up to the final action. Cooldown  - Wrap up with some static stretches and remind everyone to hydrate!

This is one way to build a pell for solo practice. The pool noodles are there to keep your sword from getting damaged by the 4x4, and the canvas is there to keep the pool noodles from getting damaged by your sword.  During the building process, we got so excited to try the pell that we just stuck a sword box over the noodles. In that shot, you can see how the pool noodles fit on the 4x4 as well as how one might practice cuts on a pell.  

 This is a pacing guide for a six-week beginning rapier course. You may find that you can cover material more quickly or slowly depending on your students' grasp of the material. You can make even the simplest lessons more challenging simply by adding mobility or doing actions in time. Week 1 safety and gear parts of the sword on guard position basic footwork hand positions simple attacks Week 2 review footwork and hand positions simple attacks simple parries circular parries Week 3 review footwork and hand positions simple attacks simple parries attacking from out of measure single feints counter attacks Begin free sparring  - Make sure that students are not trying to use techniques they haven't learned yet. Week 4 review footwork simple attacks simple parries blade seizures parry/riposte or disengagement in time Week 5 review footwork simple attacks simple parries beats (simple and circular) expulsions Week 6 Review all content and prepare for authorization! Go over the rule...