TINY dragons are going crazy for kung fu with karate lessons - for children aged just three.

Children who take part in Young Dragons classes are taught the basics of karate through the magic of Harry Potter and Star Wars, by getting them to move as if they were holding a wand or light sabre.

Once they have learned the manoeuvre, teachers Charlotte Bradshaw, of Ramsbottom, who set up Young Dragons, and Lisa Smith, of Haslingden, teach them the Japanese translation, meaning they are also picking up the basics of the language.

Young Dragons bosses believe they are the only group in the country which offers classes to children so young.

The company began when Charlotte's friend and karate teacher Christopher Yates, of Seiken Ryu, in Bury, found he was getting inundated with requests for classes for younger children.

They said this was because parents who had sent their older children to classes also wanted their youngsters to learn.

Charlotte, of Cotswold Close, stepped in and also got dance teacher Lisa, who has since learned karate herself, on board.

Charlotte set up Young Dragons in January 2006, which teaches non-combat karate to children aged three to six.

The children earn kishou, which means badges, for picking up the basic manoeuvres, which they are taught from a syllabus.

She said: "They pick it up very well, when we are teaching in schools the children are already in quite a disciplined environment but the younger ones are taught very playfully.

"We play a lot of games and it helps with the children's co-ordination, concentration and fitness."

Charlotte runs Young Dragons classes at Haslingden Primary School, where there are 19 learners, Bacup Leisure Hall, Haslingden Sports Centre and the Village Centre in Crawshaw-booth and has previously taken classes at Helm-shore Primary School.

She also employs teachers to take classes in Bury, Manchester and Newcastle, where Seiken Ryu is now based.

She said: "I think the reason it has taken off is because there are not many classes for younger boys. There are loads for girls but not for boys."