Pupils in Moston are greeting the school day with early-morning sessions of an antient Chinese martial art. Susannah Wright reports on an exercise that combines fitness and harmony.

The sight of 200 schoolchildren lined up in green uniforms doing tai chi is something to behold.

Arms stretched, knees bent, and pouncing, they look like an army of mini-ninjas.

This is how the pupils of St Matthew's RC High in Moston begin their day. Must be better than going straight into double maths.

A bit of chanting and a few shouts of 'woo-ha' help get the kids into the swing of things, and beaming smiles with a spot of giggling, show that they are enjoying themselves.

Jack Smith, 14, says."It's good fun. It's quite energetic and it wakes me up. It's a good start to the day.”

And Jemima Luanga, 12, adds: “I've always wanted to learn about martial arts and I think it's good to experience other cultures. Doing this makes me feel alive.”

The school began tai chi classes at the start of term following a trip to a twinned school in China earlier this year, brought about through international cultural relations organisation, the British Council.

Manchester based Chinese teachers, Lily Li and Ivy Li are tasked with leading the half-hour sessions.

Lily says: “Tai chi is good for getting oxygen and blood round the body. It gets the muscles moving and it's good for harmony.”

To give it its full name, Tai Chi Chuan, means 'supreme ultimate fist' and although there are various forms, it generally combines a series of moves that incorporate breathing with both slow and quick actions. It falls somewhere between yoga and the more vigorous forms of kung fu.

Ta chi is designed to blend the body, mind and spirit into one, and is used for meditative, strength and exercise purposes, as well as self-defence. It has been practised for thousands of years in China, and each day still, millions of Chinese people perform the moves before work or school – usually outdoors

At St Matthew's, the session begins with marching and counting up to ten in Mandarin to get the limbs warmed up, before going through set moves.

Stretching the arms in front and and upwards with a forward stride moves on to sideways arm and leg stretches. This is followed by a ready-to-fight stance, a forward arm push, then a twist round into bent knees and ended with a side kick.

Many of the kids have a glint in their eye and look as agile as a cat.

Teacher Claire Raynes, who has led the links with China, says she is pleased with how the children have reacted to the new start to their day.

“It was interesting to see how the Chinese school did things, and our pupils have really taken it on board too.

“The aspect of doing a fun exercise gets them going and makes them alert and ready for learning.

“As well as helping improve their health with exercise, it means they're more in tune for doing general lessons. And it gives them a desire to learn about other aspects of Chinese culture too.”

She adds: “Most of them love it, an although we've only been doing it for a few weeks, you can see on their faces that they're happy to come and do this.”

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