This program was developed to safely give kids ages 6 -11 a well rounded foundation in a social learning environment. Typically in private riding lessons there is very little time to go over other topics such as horse anatomy, tack care, basic feeding, and more extensive ground handling. It has also been our experience that kids this age take a while to grasp riding concepts, so why not allow them to develop slowly and also teach them other aspects of horse & pony care? This program is structured to develop all knowledge and skill sets, not just riding. This program is curriculum based, students will receive a binder of material, and there will be opportunities to be ‘tested’, similar to the badge system in Scouts, ratings used in the United States Pony Club or belt testing in karate. Pony School class size is 2 – 4 kids.
Material covered in “Pony School”;
- Basic rules of the stable & safety around the stable and horses.
- General horse handling skills for every day activities (catching a pony, haltering, leading, giving corrections to the pony, knowing basic horse behavior).
- Grooming and basic horse care.
- Basic feeding information.
- Tack & equipment use and basic care.
- Introductory riding skills (pre-mounting safety check, mounting/dismounting, understanding of the basic ‘aids’, warm-up and balance exercises including ‘emergency dismount’).
- Also good sportsmanship and peer interaction are encouraged.
Students acquire skills at their own pace while attending these classes. Students will advance through this level and will be offered testing opportunities every few months where they will receive ‘badges of achievement’. Once a student can test through all the material they will be considered Pony School ‘graduates’ and will have established the basic skill sets to handle, groom, tack up a pony, and go through a basic warm up exercises. The student should then be adequately prepared to get the most out private riding lesson and moving on to our “Rider’s Academy” program to focus in on their riding skills.
How do I get my child started?
First, your child will need proper gear. Children will be required to have;
- An ASTM-SEI safety helmet made for equestrian use (bike helmets are not suitable).
- Comfortable pants that cover the child’s entire leg, and allow them freedom to move (tight jeans will restrict the students ability to mount/dismount safely and may also cause rubbing from the larger inseams). Generic leggings, yoga pants, track pants, stretch jeans with minimal inseams or riding breeches are acceptable.
- Proper foot wear is designed to keep a students foot from becoming trapped in the stirrup iron, give the student ankle support and arch support and protect their feet on the ground. Proper riding footwear includes paddock boots/shoes or Ariat Terrains and similar ‘hybrid’ shoes made for horseback riding that offer ankle support and arch/foot bed support (tall rubber boots and generic western boots tend to be too loose in the ankle and often slide down/off while riding and do not give the student adequate ankle support). I find the hybrid boots fantastic because you can wear them hiking or even out in public and they are often more comfortable and more durable to do barn chores or ground work in and don’t require the additional care that leather boots do.
Please consider visiting Double L Tack & Feed on Hwy 55 just outside of Coats for your riding gear needs.
How Do I Enroll?
Contact the stable to set up a first non-riding intro session (if you are a new student please do NOT use our RSVP system to sign up for class). At this time $30.00 sign up fee will be paid plus $15.00 for the intro session, a release of liability will be signed and you will be given your welcome packet / workbook which will include a 20% discount off the purchase of your helmet or your foot wear at Double L Tack.
RSVP for Class, Fees & Cancellations**
Pony School will operate on an RSVP, ‘pay as you participate’ system.
- RSVP to attend a specific class using our barn calendar or clicking on a class listed at the top of this page (how to use our RSVP system ยป)
- Typically, this class open for registration 10 days before and close 2 days before the class date.
- When class is open for registration a registration form will be visible. Submitting this form will add you to the class list. You should receive a confirmation email with in a few hours. This will provide you with class time/date and a link to the class status page. Also, if you did not receive an email confirmation, you can also check that event’s page to see your child’s name by clicking the ‘Show Attendees’ button.
- If a class has been filled a will be shown on the RSVP page.
- When the class RSVP date has passed, there will be a notice.
- $15.00 fee per participant per Pony School class, due at class. Cancellations or ‘no shows’ after RSVPing are $5.00.
- There is a minimum of two children to hold class. Class length is determined by the number of kids showing up for class; 4 students = 1 hour 15 minutes, 3 students = 1 hour, 2 students = 45 minutes.
- Because we have a classroom, Pony School will only be cancelled due to severe weather (severe lightening, tornado watches, snow/ice) or instructor emergencies. Non-riding weather days will be used to go over information such as tack cleaning, stall cleaning, horse anatomy, watch videos, work on projects, etc.
- Cancellations for severe weather or an instructor’s ‘emergency’ will be done via announcement on our website at the top of the Pony School web page and through email.
Pony School PLUS!
These are special activities, such as our ‘Halter Class’ horse show team, trail riding and Halloween costume contents (for the ponies & kids!). See our calendar, fees are on class listings.
