ABOUT

These horseback riding lessons are based on Pony Club, United States Dressage Federation, and Western Dressage Association of America levels.

 

 Why I started writing these lesson plans.

Step by step riding was born when I was pregnant with my first child. I knew I wouldn't be able to teach with small children. So, I hired several people to  teach my lessons for me. As I watched from the sidelines, I realised that I needed to write lesson plans for them. My new instructors were attempting to teach everything all at once.  I knew that students needed to learn in reasonable bite sized chunks. Learning is a process not an event. These instructors sometimes missed important steps in the rider’s education. Don’t get me wrong, they were wonderful people but they didn’t always see a problem with our riders or know how to fix it. The ability to see what needed to be improved and the knowledge of how to make those important refinements was lacking. I was certified, by Certified Horsemanship Association (CHA), to teach riding and I followed their levels of riding. CHA’s influence  and my experience had taught me that I needed to teach with a step by step process for optimal results. So, I put together progress sheets for each level and teaching outlines for my instructors to teach from. Eventually, I thought, “I need to correlate these lessons with other associations”. So, I studied Pony Club, United States Dressage Federation, and Western Dressage Association of America. I was happily amazed that they all correlate so closely! There really is a best step by step way to teach horseback riding. I have tailored my “Essentials for Everyone Lessons” to meet these standards of excellence.

My lesson plans are continually being upgraded so I am offering them to you as subscriptions. This way you can take advantage of the most up to date lessons.

 

About me and my experience

Since about age 5 I’ve been horse crazy. I  voraciously read every horse book I could. Finally, at age 9 we got our first family pony. We lived on a dairy farm and my dad would tell me that the cows were earning an income but my pony wasn’t. So, I painted a sign and put it out on the lawn. Pony rides for 10 cents. Summer tourists enjoyed the pony rides.I spent 9 years studying horses in 4H.

Dreams do come true and at age 19 the Sacandaga Bible Conference camp across the road asked me if I would help them start a horse program. I enjoyed giving trail rides, teaching riding and horsemanship. Camp officials encouraged me to get certified with Certified Horsemanship association so I did.

I’ve been teaching and learning ever since.