Jedi youngling Jedi younglings , also known as Jedi initiates , were Force - sensitive children recruited by the Jedi Order from various species across the galaxy . At an early age they began their initial lessons in the Jedi arts at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant , although their training also extended to the planet Ilum where younglings were required to undergo a sacred rite of passage known as the Gathering where the younglings would claim their Kyber crystal to use in their lightsaber . Before the time came for a youngling to advance to a higher degree of education , Grand Master Yoda served as an instructor in the ways of the Force to all younglings in the course of his long career . In order to qualify for the rank of Padawan , younglings had to complete a series of tests — the Initiate Trials — in order to become apprenticed to more experienced Jedi such as Knights and Masters . Over the course of the Clone Wars , the Jedi Order ' s future was threatened by machinations of Darth Sidious the Dark Lord of the Sith and nemesis of the Jedi . Seeking to train a force of dark side acolytes who would serve as his enforcers in the New Order , Sidious orchestrated the abduction of several Force - sensitive infants who were chosen to become Jedi younglings . The Jedi succeeded in foiling his plot , however . Yet despite their efforts to safeguard the next generation of Jedi , the younglings perished along with the majority of the Jedi Order as a result of Order 66 and the subsequent rise of the Galactic Empire . Overview . The Jedi Order , a monastic organization dedicated to the preservation of peace and justice in the Galactic Republic , recruited its members shortly after birth . Utilizing blood tests to estimate the midi - chlorian count of prospective students , the Order was able to identify Force - sensitive youngling s of various species throughout the galaxy . After their sensitivity to the Force was confirmed , the infants were brought to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant where they quickly learned that their true family was the Jedi Order . The Jedi maintained a list pertaining to confirmed Force - sensitive infants , particularly their identities and locations . Due to the children ' s importance to the future of the Jedi , the High Council went to great lengths to keep the list ' s contents internal to the Order . The list itself was contained within the Kyber memory crystal which could only be accessed through a holocron , an informational device stored within the vaults of the Temple . Only a Force - sensitive , trained in the use of telekinesis , had the ability to combine the crystal with a holocron . The crystal itself was entrusted to a member of the Order who served as its keeper . During the Clone Wars , the Sith arranged for the theft of both a holocron and the crystal in order to abduct members of the Jedi ' s next generation . Darth Sidious , the Dark Lord of the Sith publicly known as Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine , < ref name = " Palpatine / Sidious " > < / ref > intended to use the younglings in an experimental procedure to create a force of dark side adepts that would serve him in the New Order . However , the plan was thwarted by the efforts of the Jedi , particularly the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan , Ahsoka Tano , both of whom rescued the children from captivity . Later , Skywalker became instrumental in the fall of the Order following his seduction to the dark side as the Sith Lord Darth Vader . With the initiation of Order 66 , Vader led a military assault on the Temple at the behest of his new Master , who commanded him to spare none of his former comrades . This command extended to the younglings , a group of which were slaughtered in the High Council Chamber by Vader . In the aftermath of the Galactic Empire ' s rise to power , the majority of Jedi were slain along with the youngest of their brethren , resulting in the destruction of the next generation of the the Jedi Order . Despite the loss of the younglings , the remnants of the Jedi endured throughout the Dark Times , surviving both the Sith and their Empire to become a new , albeit short - lived generation under Jedi Master Luke Skywalker . The Jedi practice of recruiting younglings also served as inspiration to Commandant Brendol Hux , an Imperial Academy instructor who greatly admired the training methods of both the Jedi Order and Grand Army clone trooper s . His illegitimate son , General Armitage Hux , incorporated his father ' s views into the military training program of the First Order , causing an entire generation to become stormtroopers — super soldier s programmed from birth and exceptionally trained in Armitage ' s view . Youngling clans . Jedi younglings were divided into ten clans consisting of approximately twenty students . Among these groups was Bear Clan , a class of younglings between the ages of four and eight . The youngling clans would remain as one unit , living and training together , until the time came to go their separate ways as Padawan learners . The younglings who were not chosen to become Padawans were supervised by the Council of Reassignment . Instruction . Upon joining a clan , younglings began their basic training in the Jedi arts . Their lessons included various tests and rituals that had to be completed in order to advance to the higher levels of the Jedi arts . Between the ages of four and eight , younglings acquired the basic skills of lightsaber combat using low - powered training sabers to practice the deflection of blaster shots fired by training droid s . The next step in their progress as aspiring Jedi was the construction of a genuine lightsaber — the signature weapon of the Jedi which first required a kyber crystal . This lesson ultimately led to the creation of the Gathering ; an ancient and significant tradition that began centuries before the events of the Clone Wars , the Gathering tested the younglings ' ability to locate their particular crystal through the Force . It required younglings to travel offworld from the Jedi Temple on Coruscant to the Crystal Cave of Ilum , a frigid world located in the Unknown Regions and most sacred to the Jedi Order . After acquiring their crystal , the younglings had to use the Force to telekinetically combine all of the necessary components into a lightsaber . For almost a millennium of the Jedi Order ' s history , all younglings were trained by Yoda , the ancient Grand Master who also served as an instructor in the Jedi arts for eight centuries by the time of the Clone Wars . Yoda provided the younglings with a beginner ' s education in lightsaber combat , a practice which incorporated lessons on using the Force to guide and enhance their reflexes . In addition to teaching the basic skills of lightsaber combat , Yoda also served as a guide for younglings who participated in the Gathering . Tera Sinube , another ancient Jedi Master , also took on the responsibility of overseeing the younglings ' development as lightsaber duel ists . In addition to guiding the development of their students , it was the Master ' s prerogative to introduce a padawan as a guest lecturer to a youngling clan . The task of educating younglings in the proper construction of a lightsaber was the duty of Huyang ; an architect droid professor based out on the Jedi vessel , the " Crucible " , he personally oversaw the creation of lightsabers by younglings of a thousand generations — a record which included the one - time youngling Yoda . Behind the scenes . The Jedi youngling s were first introduced in the 2002 movie , the second film in the " Star Wars " prequel trilogy directed by George Lucas .