Lesson activities for a very young rider?

Sounds like you have a good list started.

Now, instead of giving her other activities, have her start feeling the horse and its movement.

Have her watch shoulders and feel hips and start identifying footfall. If she can't tell left from right well yet, put a colored sticky on the horse's shoulders so she can see it and tell you which foot is coming down. Move the hip stickies where she can see them, but not have to turn around, maybe to her own outside legs of her pants.

Have her pretend she is a puppet on a string and ride with her eyes forward when you are not asking for footfall.

So work on her own body and her feel of the horse with fun methods now instead of just playing games. She is plenty old enough to start this. I would also have her begin to use her legs to turn the horse. Kids love to know they control the movement without reins. I make this fun when leading by saying, go a 180 to the right. So with a 5 year old, say, "Make a half circle to the right, your pink sticky side, and head for the post with the sign on it." Kids thrive on this kind of success when you tell them that, Wow, you follow directions so well and the horse understands you!

A Very Young Rider

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Lesson activities for a very young rider?

Lesson activities for a very young rider?

A friend is giving lessons to a very young rider (5) and I am trying to help her identify some activities we can do. These are of course on the informal side and kept very safe, she is on a quiet horse and will stay on the lead line.

Because she is...

hmm, around the world? that is always fun for them. ( Where you spin around in the saddle)

Why not let them try riding 'all by there self" and you can give them the reins, and walk beside them. (make sure you teach them how to use them properly, and really make sure they know not to pull or flap, or anything).

you could lunge them, or lead the horse at a trot for short times if the rider is secure and safe to do so.

lead them over ground poles?

teach them how to do two point? Or stand in the stirrups.

How bout egg and spoon contest? might be pretty hard for a 5 year old though.

One of the things my lesson barn does with young riders is "Around the World". The kids love it, and it is pretty easy to do. You may have to have someone spotting beside the horse in case she loses her balance. To do around the world, she will have to move her right leg up and around the front of the saddle, so she is sitting sideways. She can take a little break, and then move her left leg up and around, so she is facing the back of the horse. Then, she can move her left leg again so she is sitting sideways to the right side of the horse. Then she can move her left leg again so she is sitting facing front again. This is a fun exercise, and it really teaches balance and coordination on the horse. Hope this helps!

I was gonna recommend around the world to make her more confident on the horse, but seeing as everyone else has done that already, how about you get her used to the school letters? Like simon says go to a/c etc? :) Good luck to your friend with the 5 year old, i hope it goes well! x

Carrying a cup of water, dropping potatoes into buckets, 'Around the world'

"Around the World"

Two point

Posting Walk

Sitting walk with her hands on her hips, head, etc.

go up in jockey position

around the world- u know what that is right?

posting on the lead line

dropping and picking up her stirrups

steering

play basketball