The story of kung fu

For younger readers: ages 8 to 11, read aloud if you like. Switch to for teenagers and adults.

1. 1Did kung fu begin at the Shaolin Temple?A monastery on a mountain, monks who trained with the staff, a general who wrote it all down, and a famous story that historians call a legend. · 3 min
2. 2What happened at the Southern Shaolin Temple?A temple fire, five people who escaped, a nun who taught a young woman, and a woman who learned from a crane. Legends, told by the masters themselves. · 3 min
3. 3Who were the great masters of southern China?A young man who learned from three teachers and named his style after all of them, and a doctor who became the hero of a record number of films. · 3 min
4. 4Who were the masters of the north?A village that gave the world tai chi, a man said to have learned from a praying mantis, and a great gathering of martial artists in Nanjing in 1928. · 3 min
5. 5How did Ip Man's Wing Chun reach the world?A teacher from Foshan starts again in Hong Kong, his students carry Wing Chun around the world, and one of them becomes a film star. · 3 min
6. 6Who brought kung fu to Britain?A teacher from Hong Kong in 1961, a hit song in 1974, a lion dance in Liverpool, and a monk sent to London. · 3 min
7. 7How did kung fu become a Youth Olympic sport?China turns kung fu into a sport, a world federation is founded in Beijing, and in November 2026 wushu has its first Olympic medals. Then: your class tonight. · 3 min

Written from checked sources, listed on the sources page. Pictures are drawn, with computer help, under our direction; none shows a real child. Recorded chapters and words are read by a computer voice; a word not yet recorded uses your device's own voice.