sample lessons

1. Horse Riding
Lessons
Sylina Levy
Instructor
2010

2. Review of Horse and Barn Safety
Grooming and Horse Equipment
• Leaving grooming equipment on the ground (make sure they are out of the way and don’t present a
hazard)
• Lead ropes and halters
• How to hold a rope or lead
• Tidying up (saddles, bridles, saddle pads, grooming equipment)
Barn Safety
• Pitch forks, rakes, brooms need to be safely put away
• Ropes, bridles, halters
• Water hose
• Grooming Equipment
Feeding
• All feeding of horses should be done with an aide or adult

3. Basic Horse and Barn Safety
Sample Lesson Plan
• Look at your surroundings/paddock/ground/look around
• Fight/flight / nervous tension / pressure / predator/prey
• Approaching your horse/ 45 degree angle
• Using your voice/speaking / let them know your coming
• About your horses ears
• Where to stand / shoulder / legs / horses back-end
• Normal Voice / speaking to your horse
• Horse’s feet
• Horse’s back-end / + 12 better 15 feet away
• Safety equipment (helmet ASTM/SEI approved, paddock or
riding boots, no loose clothing, riding gloves, pants, no
hiking boots, no sandels, no open toe shoes.)

4. Working with your Horse: Safety
Sample Lesson Plan
• use your voice / let your horse know what you are going to do
– (run your hand down his leg and ask him to pick up his foot)
– (brush the neck and gently tell him you are moving to his face)
• squat don’t kneel
• never crawl under your horse or put your hands on the ground
• never feed a horse with your hands, use a bucket
• stay with a tied horse
• know your horses temperament
• never tease a horse
• near side and off-side
• wearing your helmet
• Paddock Safety and Stall Safety
• Pick up after yourself (grooming equipment, equipment,.....)
•

5. Riding in the Ring
sample lesson plan
Lesson 1: Mounting / Dismounting / Basic Seat / Halt / Walk
• holding the reins (two hands until experienced)
• body alignment / breathing
• no chewing gum / placement of the riders tongue /
• basic seat (at a halt): alignment head/shoulders/hip/ankle/sits-
bones/ back/neck/arms/shoulder joints/elbow joints/ knees / chest
• the invisible track
• 4 points of contact
• basic aids
• “prepare to ….”
• Halt and Walk / basic transition
• Important term: shortening the reins

6. Riding in the Ring
sample lesson plan
Lesson 4: Emergency Stop/Emergency Dismount/Warm-
up/Cool-down
• warm-up exercises for horse and rider
• review of invisible track (ground work)
• review of basic seat / point of contact / aids
• review of emergency situations (ground work)
• practice (if the student wants to) emergency dismount
• practice emergency stop/turn
• importance of voice/whoa
• figures: circle, diagonal, right and left rein
• cool down