About
LAUGHING RIVER® offers martial arts workshops and classes for wellness and self-protection. We instruct on how to defend from stress, poor health, impaired physical balance, sexual violence, and the threat of criminal assault. We offer classes in tai chi, meditation, jujitsu, falling safety, enhanced agility, martial arts enrichment programs, pressure point combat, kung fu and women’s self-defense. Whether our client’s challenge is emotional strain, poor physical health, or an unavoidable violent confrontation, the LAUGHING RIVER® will show you how to “Let It Flow”, and bring balance and harmony back into your life.
I have a 6th degree Black Belt in Jujitsu and I also teach Tai Chi. I have been teaching martial arts in NYC and Long Island for over 40 years. At Long Islands Largest Martial Arts Event, Just For Champions, I was presented the 2010 Hall of Fame, Platinum Warrior Lifetime Achievement Award, commemorating my 37 years in the martial arts. A wonderful art form, martial arts is a means to improve one's health and a means of self-protection. What's not to like about that. The way I teach is to prepare my students to one day become thinking, problem solving, creative martial artist. Martial arts is not just about physical self-protection. I teach my students to use the stratergies and wisdom learned in class to solve problems in their everyday life. I teach them to become leaders within their communities.
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
I like to start out slowly, observing what a student's assets are. My interest in teaching is to bring forth a students natural talents and abilities. I like to build a students skills set and physical conditioning step by step. Incresing their abilities in areas that are more and more challenging. I find that often what a student believes is their weakness is actually their strength.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Dino Blanche is the founder of The LAUGHING RIVER ® Martial Arts School, and a teacher of Taoist and Zen philosophy. He is the creator of ASP (ANATOMY OF SELF-PROTECTION) ® a pressure point fighting system, RG8T (REVERSE G8TRAINING) ® special agility training, and ISB (INTERNAL SHADOW BOXING) ® warriors’ meditation. He is a Master teacher of Tai Chi Chuan and Ju-jitsu. At Long Islands Largest Martial Arts Event, Just For Champions, Mr. Blanche was presented the 2010 Hall of Fame, Platinum Warrior Lifetime Achievement Award, commemorating his 37 years in the martial arts. In 2008 he won 2nd place: Kung Fu Forms in Seiko Hanshi H. Diaz Tournament of Champions. Mr. Blanche is Certified in SQUAD SCHOOL SURVIVAL TRAINING. Trained in marksmanship, land navigation, patrolling. Target detection, range estimation, team building, and survival planning. Dino J. Blanche has lectured at Brooklyn College, Parsons School of Design, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Art and Science, The Gary Null Support Group, The Lewis Latimer House and The Partnership for After School Education. For over 40 years, Dino J. Blanche has been teaching art and martial arts and designing award-winning arts & education programs. His grant winning programs at Cooper Union, Jamaica Center for Art, and ABC No Rio have been a part of a National Consortium of organizations sponsored by the Lila Wallace (Reader’s Digest) Foundation.
What types of students have you worked with?
2015 -2016 Self-Protection Instructor for The Brooklyn Latin High School.
2014 – 2015 Self-Protection Instructor for the Women’s Empowerment Society, at John Jay College, CUNY
2015 Tai Chi for All, a series of 7 workshops at various library branches in Manhattan, The Bronx, and Staten Island. The couse introduced children and adults to Tai Chi and a basics Self-Defense class, at the New York Public Library, NYC.
2015 Childrens Martial Arts Sampler, an 8 session couse that introduced young students to the basics of Self-Defense, at the Langston Hughes Community Library and Cultural Center Queens, NY.
2012 – 2014 Tai Chi, and Women’s Self-Defense class. Instructed women in the Tai Chi form and an ASP (ANATOMY OF SELF-PROTECTION)® workshop at Langston Hughes Community Library and Cultural Center Queens, NY.
2012 – 2013 Jujitsu Instructor at Maspeth High School Queens, NY. Designed and implemented a customized Self-Protection after school program for High School students.
2009 – 2011 Tai Chi Instructor at The McCarton School, NYC. Taught a customized Tai Chi program for children with autism, ages 5 through 15. The children learn, chi kung (breathing) exercises, and the Yang style Tai Chi form.
2008 – 2009 Art and Archery Instructor, at the Queens Museum of Art. A summer program for children combining the disciplines of visual art, and martial art (archery) in the great outdoors of Flushing Meadow Park.
2007 Wellness and Empowerment Instructor for the Ne Quan C. Mc LeanSCO Family Services (also called “Family Dynamics”), My Company, The Laughing River, provided wellness service through moving meditation, and martial arts (RG8T ®) to “at risk” Flushing High School students in Queens NY.
2006 – Present President of Laughing River LLC, a training and consulting service in Tai Chi, Jujitsu, ISB (INTERNAL SHADOW BOXING)® Meditation, ASP (ANATOMY OF SELF-PROTECTION)® and RG8T (REVERSE G8 TRAINING)® for exclusive groups, private institutions and individuals. Studio located in Elmhurst, Queens NY
2006 Jujitsu Instructor at Harlem Children’s Zone, Promise Academy Charter School. Jujitsu classes for young children ages 5-8
2002 – 2004 Tai Chi Instructor, for adults at The Jamaica Center for Art and Learning in Queens NY.
2002 Instructor at Peridance Studios. Instructor of “Reverse Gravity 8 Training,” (RG8T ®) a new innovative martial arts movement class designed to aid actors, dancers and choreographers, in NYC.
1993 – 2002 Instructor of Laughing River Jujitsu at The Cooper Union College and Bleecker Street Brooklyn Dojo ([email protected]) Jujitsu classes for adults and children, Tai Chi and Lok Hop Ba Fa (Water Boxing) classes & Private lessons.
2000 – 2001 Tai Chi Instructor at Hope Garden/ Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council. Tai Chi classes for senior citizens in Brooklyn NY.
1990 – 1993 Chief Instructor at the American Academy for Progressive Martial Arts at Cooper Union. Jujitsu classes for adults.
1987 – 1990 Director and Facilitator of Martial Arts Forums at The Cooper Union College. Hosted experimental workshop where martial artists of different styles gathered to exhibit and exchange techniques.
1984 – 1987 Head Instructor of the Hell’s Kitchen Dojo. Jujitsu classes for adults in NYC.
1982 – 1984 Head Instructor of the Fourteen Street Dojo. Jujitsu classes for adults in NYC.
1979 – 1982 Head Instructor at the Harlem Disco Dojo. Jujitsu classes for children ages 6 to 16 in Harlem, NYC.
1974 Assistant Teacher at Jerome Mackey’s, franchised martial arts school. Taught Judo and Jujitsu classes for children in Bayshore, Long Island, NY