Therapeutic RidingHandicapped Riding Students:The natural movement of the horse assists the physically handicapped child and adult to move muscles in ways which are life altering to his or her everyday experiences. Movement improves. It can be more enjoyable to get your therapy on the back of a horse. The view from on top of a horse can be empowering. Trained Volunteers will be assisting. There will be 2 side walkers and one leader for every horse and student. 
Special Needs and Learning Disabled Students:Horses can assist these students with maintaining focus, impulse control, communication, social skills, life skills and behavior management. It is hard to ignore a 1000 pound horse. These students start their relationship on the ground and learn to form a partnership which allows them to mount when the time is right. These classes are taught in groups in an after school format. Trained volunteers from the local 4-H, Gloucester County College Equine Classes and mature local horse men and women assist these bright young stars with shinning to the best of their abilities. There will be a lead instructor to direct the activities. Groups will consist of 4 students with the appropriate number of volunteers according to the tested abilities of the student. Our students will come to us with a wide variety of disabilities. We focus on their abilities and cause them to continue to develop their own strengths. Each student will provide current reports from medical and education professionals. Our instructors use this information to develop individual lesson plans and goals with the student. Together we create measurable markers and celebrate those when reached. We start our relationship with all our students in an initial meeting where we meet, exchange paperwork, begin to discuss our goals and meet the horses of course. All students must complete our application packet and must meet with an instructor or therapist before being. Please note that we will work to serve as many students as we can but there may be limited spaces as our position within the community grows. When that happens we will initiate a waiting list. Depending on their individual needs, a student may be scheduled for either mounted or unmounted activities. We allow the students the time they need to create a trust between the horse and the human. In some cases, our students prefer to play on the ground with their new found equine friend before they get on. In this way we can allow the relationship to naturally progress. We call this therapeutic horsemanship. Our professional staff will be happy to discuss these options with you. We are excited and pleased to have the opportunity to serve you. Session and Fee SchedulesHours of Operation
Starting in the Fall of 2008 we will add Thursday evening hours 3:00 to 6:30. A NARHA certified instructor will be present at all therapeutic riding lesions. Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA) Certified Staff will be present for equine assisted learning activities. We will only add additional spots in our riding program when horses, certified instructors and students can be appropriately matched to provide a safe and therapeutic outcome. Fees for SessionsTherapeutic HorsemanshipSummer 2008- week of July 28th till week of August 25th (four week session) - riders come once a week at their scheduled time. One make up lesson can be made on the following dates (Sunday, August 17th or August 31st) Cost is $ 120.00 per student. The lesson is a 30 minute group lesson lead by a NARHA Certified instructor. The fee must be paid at the start of the first lesson. Fall 2008- Week of September 15th till week of October 20th (7 week session) the cost will be $210.00 per student. Same terms as above apply. Winter 2008 - Week of November 3rd till December 15th (7 week session) the cost will be $210.00 per student. Same terms as above apply. Winter 2009 - Week of January 5th till February 23rd (8 week session) the cost will be $240.00 per student. Same terms as above apply. (Please note that currently we do not offer scholarships but are arranging fundraisers to offer them in the future. Although our cost is considerably more than the above prices reflect, we are anticipating grants, donations and fundraisers to supplement the cost. It is our mission to keep our prices as low as possible.) Requirements:All paper work must be in 10 days before the beginning session. Each student must come in to meet with an instructor or therapist for placement and review of the paperwork. New students must attend an orientation meeting with their guardians/parents on the following dates prior to the start of the sessions: Summer 2008: Orientation Date- July 21st at 6 pm Fall 2008: Orientation Date- TBA Winter 2008: Orientation Date- October 30th at 6 pm Winter 2009: Orientation Date- January 2nd at 6 pm Please call or email for information and prices for equine assisted learning and equine psychotherapy. info@equineassistedtherapyofnj.org |