5 learning games for memorable unmounted lessons
Riding lesson fact of life: if it’s raining sideways, or the arena is hot enough to melt the bottom of your boots, or your school horses have conspired to all go lame at once, your students are going to occasionally be grounded.
This can be a disappointment or an opportunity for entertaining, educational FUN. It’s all in how you approach it!
Whether your unmounted lessons are impromptu learning opportunities or scheduled well in advance, your students should feel like their lesson time was well-spent.
We’re kind of ambitious — we also like to use this time to foster barn friendships and increase our students’ appreciation of just how much there is to learn about horses.
For this reason, horsey learning games are our group lesson go-to for filling camp schedules and unexpected rainy days.
Here are just a few of our favorite unmounted games, approved by students of all ages - no equine participation required!
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Pony Pictionary is a perfectly portable activity that we love to use during summer day camp, especially during hot midday hours when we could all use a little air conditioning.
Students can play individually or as a team, drawing on a chalkboard or dry erase board to illustrate a equine term that their teammates must guess. Art skills are NOT required.
We’ve found that particularly memorable drawings become barn legend and are talked about years later!
You’ll find rules and tips for playing the game in our Pony Pictionary sets for each Level; each set also has 48 curated terms, which can be printed as cards or viewed in your mobile browser.
You could also use ALL of the terminology in Level Up flashcards or lists – or just create your own list of terms for a particular riding discipline (e.g., quadrille) or unmounted topic (e.g., equine anatomy).
- Download a free Pony Pictionary game: Red HorseSense Pony Pictionary
2
Scavenger hunts are a camp classic for a reason: you can pack a surprising amount of terminology and information into the activity.
Hunts can be as simple or as diabolical as you like – but they should always promote teamwork and communication between students.
Allow plenty of time to discuss items in your final tally, and don’t forget to set rules for clean-up!
We still haven’t recovered from the time we asked for “A product used to clean a gelding’s sheath” and were presented with… a shedding blade.
- Download a free scavenger hunt game: Safety Scavenger Hunt for Rainbow Level
3
Carrot Toss Quiz – One of our most popular indoor activities is a simple variation on an oral quiz bowl.
Students who correctly answer questions get the chance to earn bonus points by tossing a carrot into a bucket. The student or team with the most points at the end of the session is crowned victor — and the horses get the carrots, which makes them the real winners in this scenario!
Of course, you can always substitute horse cookies or individually wrapped peppermints in place of the carrots.
- Download instructions and tips for the free Carrot Toss Quiz
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Hobbyhorse sports – Did you know there are now actual official tournaments for competitive hobbyhorse riding? What a time to be alive!
We keep a small but well-loved secondary school horse string in a basket in our office. These horses are trotted out to perform various lesson duties, including:
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Introduction to Horse Sports - What’s the difference between Working Hunter, Hunter Under Saddle, and Hunt Seat Equitation? How does a reining horse perform differently than a Western Dressage horse?
Differentiating between different riding disciplines can be a confusing task for new students. We think there’s no better way to let them learn than on their own two feet. Our versatile hobbyhorses carry their riders through cutthroat cutting horse competitions, mounted games relays, and exciting jumpoffs and Puissance competitions. -
Pattern practice - Arena too frozen to ride? Students can get their workout in and stay warm by performing dressage tests or similar patterns on foot. Teach ring figures such as serpentines, shallow loops and changes of direction.
If you’re feeling kind, you can set up a scaled-down arena for humans. Otherwise, the lesson doubles as a cardio workout! -
Learning gaits and movements - Canter leads make a lot of sense when you’re cantering around on your own two feet and your hobbyhorse hasn’t yet learned how to bend.
More advanced students can puzzle through the positioning and aids for various lateral maneuvers - although if you expect a nice half-pass, we recommend substituting stick ponies made with more flexible pool noodles.
By the way, in case you’re wondering, it isn’t just little kids that love the hobbyhorses. Our teenage Ground Buddies spent five years feuding over who was going to get to ride Nessie the Dragon Pony in camp demos.
No hobbyhorses available? Harness your students’ imagination: they can perform all of the lessons above on “Ghost, the Invisible Wonder Pony”.
- Read more about how we use hobbyhorses in unmounted lessons this blog post
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Whenever possible, get out the toy horses. We keep a plastic tub full of ancient but sturdy model horses and their accessories: fencing pieces, grooming tools, feed bags and hay bales, miniature jumps, tack, halters and blankets.
Older, focused students can use the toys to design facilities for optimal horse management, or create “disaster” scenarios to demonstrate horse safety rules. They can set grids and courses – measured to scale, of course — or write sale ads for each model.
Teaching a group of younger children? Just turn them loose. You might be surprised by their inventive use of the models, and find all kinds of hidden lessons inside their play.
Don’t be surprised if they groan when you tell them it’s time to pack the toy horses away!
Would you like a book with HUNDREDS of student-approved unmounted lesson activities, games, and revenue-boosting activities… plus sample lesson plans and tips for running unmounted programs? You’re in luck: THE BIG BOOK OF BARN LESSONS is available in paperback and Kindle e-book through Amazon, or you can purchase a PDF version directly from us!
Amazon reviewers say it’s a “must have,” “godsend” and “treasure trove,” among other really nice things.
Want MORE unmounted games?
You all loved this post so much, we wrote a follow-up: More Unmounted Games for Horse Camps and Riding Lessons
