Scroll down to learn more about Lesson Plans, then use these buttons to quickly find the resources you need.
Use these proven lesson plans and teaching guides – still working for us after 15+ years – to develop a new program or add some pizzazz to your current lessons.
Our lesson plans will give you a helpful framework for designing your own riding program, whether you award Levels ribbons or not.
We encourage you to use them as a general guideline and a source of inspiration rather than a rigid formula. Each student and lesson environment has its own individual challenges: weather, footing, lesson location, soundness and suitability of the horse are just a few! You may wish to modify the length or structure of the lessons, change the order in which they are presented, or mix them into plans of your own.
Each lesson plan contains:
As an equine educator, you have the power to facilitate an appreciation for horsemanship both in and out of the saddle. The specifics of how you do this, however, depend on a great many variables: Do you teach ground lessons along with mounted lessons, or as separate classes? Do you teach day camps, or school programs, or horse care clinics? Do you regularly train working students and volunteers? Are you presenting the material to adults or very young children?
Your approach might need to be flexible and unique! For this reason, instead of creating traditional lesson plans for the HorseSense curriculum, we’ve compiled our favorite methods of teaching unmounted lessons.
The ideas shared here have all been used in our riding school and can be adapted to suit students of all ages. We encourage you to use these ideas as a general guideline and a source of inspiration.
You’ll find Teaching Guides for specific topics (e.g., bandaging, hoof care). All guides will include:
These plans assume that all horses used are safe, sound, and have been trained to perform and/or accept the skill being taught.
We also assume that as a well-qualified and conscientious instructor, you are not teaching to a level beyond your experience and expertise.
We have free Trello template boards you can use to create a portable lesson planning and records system that fits in your pocket!
See how we use our Trello boards here.
Drop us a line with your question or comment and we’ll do our best to respond quickly. Like you, we have horses and students and dogs and cats and families to manage, but we check email several times a day so you should hear from us within 24 hours.
We have been blessed with many talented photographers over the years: students who voluntarily stood out in a sweltering/ freezing arena – or slogged up and down our hilly pastures – capturing lifelong memories of camps, clinics, and shows. We’re grateful to all of them!
One such student, Delaney Witbrod, is now a professional photographer with a gift for animal portraits – see more of her fine work here.
You’ll also find illustrations throughout our online courses and printed materials (like study guides) graciously donated by Rhonda Hagy, who is a student and lifelong friend. Contact us for information about her work.
Are we lucky or WHAT?!
