As kids get ready to go back to school in just a few short weeks, a local martial arts organization wants to teach them how to deal with bullies. 

Andrew Green, owner of Innovative Martial Arts, says that doesn't mean just physically standing up to bullies. 

"Defending yourself physically is always the last resort," Green said. "A lot of what we talk about is how you present yourself and how you carry yourself that will keep you from being targeted initially." 

"We'll teach them to make eye contact, have good posture and speak with confidence and we'll hopefully have a lot of fun doing it." 

Green says in addition, they will learn some very basic martial arts techniques. 

He says they will start the seminar by having discussions with the kids about what they think bullying looks like so they can have the confidence to identify it when they see it and help themselves and others. 

Green says it's not just about teaching them how to defend themselves, but also about how damaging bullying can be. 

"It's unfortunately sometimes an aspect of their school life that adults have a hard time dealing with because a lot of bullying goes unreported and the kids are left on their own," Green said. "Bullying is designed to take a kid's confidence away from them and make the bully feel good. If it gets too far along it become harder to deal with because if they're confidence goes down they'll have a hard time standing up for themselves." 

Green says they are expecting their Aug. 26 seminar to be full. 

You can register at innovativema.ca.