BOCA RATON, Fla. — Five-year-old Levi Ferenczi and his class warm up for their Brazilian jiu-jitsu class.
"You ready to keep going?" his mom, Brooke, asks him.
This isn't your typical jiu-jitsu class. What sets these sessions apart is that every Tuesday and Thursday, they're designed specifically for kids on the autism spectrum.
"Since the first time he was here he was nervous," Brooke said.
Within six months she says she's seen a change in her son.
"So, Levi, he's been following directions a lot better, he's definitely become more social with other kids, and I've seen an improvement in his confidence," she said.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu is not just a martial art focused on self-defense; according to Dennis Darzi, owner and lead coach at Denys Darzi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Boca Raton, it also builds self-confidence, enhances fitness, and sharpens problem-solving skills.
"Some kids come here because they are anxious, they are nervous, they fear everything. In the beginning they don't know what to do but after three, four, five months you see their courage, their confidence, they feel much stronger," Darzi said.
As of 2022, approximately 1 in 31 children in the United States — about 3.2% of eight-year-olds — have been identified with autism spectrum disorder, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Brooke says it's important to know how to work with children.
"It's a group of like five-, six-, seven-year-olds, they understand how to work with them very age appropriately and I think that comes from Dennis Darzi," she said.
Brooke says the structure of jiu-jitsu has worked wonders.
"I know it helps them," she said.
