Pony Pointers depicts in a straightforward humorous style the information beginners of all ages will enjoy.
If you like to laugh while you learn, this is the book for you. Beginners of all ages enjoy the straight-forward style. Everything you wish you knew when you started. For under eight dollars this book will bring a smile to horse lovers with any level of experience - along with valuable information to learn and share.
48 pages
$7.99
Pony Pointers Book
is Endorsed by:
Karen L. Waite, M.S. Equine Youth Specialist, MSU Extension
John Lyons, America's Most Trusted Horseman
Farm Safety 4 Just Kids
The Pony Pointers Teaching Guide
Makes teaching horsemanship fun and easy
It's a
Ready Made Curriculum
Horse Project Leaders who participated in a 2007 pilot study approved of Pony Pointers and the Pony Pointer's Teaching Guide as an innovative and easy to use system for teaching horse safety, care, and riding.
If you've ever wanted a ready made curriculum to teach horsemanship - here it is. The Pony Pointers Complete Teaching Guide is your resource for lesson plans, topic objectives, activities, and more ...
View sample pages from The Teaching Guide
Order the print copy of The Teaching Guide with the activities CD
78 pages
$24.95
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Download complete eBook in pdf format
$14.95
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About the Authors
Kathy Bennett & Carol A. Peterson
Kathy Bennett's articles have appeared in various magazines including "Western Horseman, "Equine Times," and "Rails and Trails".
Carol Peterson is an equine artist and high school equestrian team coach.
Together, they have teamed up to create Pony Pointers and it's companion Teaching Guide, which are designed to make teaching and learning horsmanship fun and easy.
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Pony Pointers is Dedicated
to Teaching Fun, Safe Horsemanship
and offers a FREE eNewsletter that includes
information and resources
to help you teach and learn horsemanship
Sample Activity Sheets from the March 2009 eNewsletter
click here for 8.5 x 11 printable pdf
click here for 8.5 x 11 printable pdf
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Sample teaching tip from March 2009 eNewsletter
Teaching Tip: Learning Styles
A learning style is the underlying and consistent way in which a person perceives, understands, organizes and recalls information. If the teacher's methods match the student's preferred style, the student will learn better and faster. This has a positive effect on the student's self esteem and helps to improve the student/teacher relationship. There are many ways to look at learning styles, but here is a list of some general classifications:
Visual:
Usually looks intently at the teacher's face
... recall information by remembering how it was set out on a page, uses lists to organize their thoughts, often recognizes words by sight, and likes to look at displays and books.
Auditory:
Likes the teacher to provide verbal instructions
... likes discussions and solves problems by talking about them. Uses rhythm and sound as memory aids.
Kinesthetic:
Learns best when they are active and involved
... find it difficult to sit still for long periods and use movement as memory aids.
Tactile:
Like hands on activities
... use writing and drawing as memory aids.
These are just a few examples and
we will look at more styles in upcoming issues of
the Pony Pointers eNewsletter
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Questions or Comments?
click here to send me an email
-- Kathy Bennett
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sample article from the Pony Pointers eNewsletter
Teaching Balance
and the Conservation of Energy
by Kathy Bennett
Without balance, the rider requires force to hold their posture as segments of their body fight against each other and the ever present forces of gravity. This wasted energy and motion creates disharmony with the horse. The horse who also struggles to support poor balance is inefficient and inhibited from his full athletic potential.
In balance, two opposing forces or factors are of equal strength or importance so that they effectively cancel each other out. An item in perfect balance requires almost no energy or force to maintain its position or stability.
Think of a person standing on a balance beam. They start to tip, and some segment of their body on the other side will quickly shift to compensate in an effort to equalize the weight on both sides of the balance (center) line. It can be quite a dance and if things aren't evened out on both sides, they will fall.
If that same person stands on the ground and starts to tip, they will quickly catch themselves by stepping over to create a base of support to offset the forces of gravity.
When we ride, the horse is our base of support. He compensates and deals with our weight within his actions and being the big strong animal that he is, he is usually able to do this without much help or notice from us.
However, enter into a flow of movement that requires the un-balanced horse to perform a balanced action, such as a flying lead change, and you get a nifty little cross-fire or refusal instead because the horse really can't defy the laws of physics (no matter how many times he gets a spur in his side) to compensate for overwhelming balance offsets while he is suspended is mid air and he knows he has to land on all fours. We can be grateful for this considering the alternatives.
Balance is a harmony in which the various parts form a whole and nothing is out of proportion or unduly emphasized at the expense of the rest. In this state of balance there is a conservation of energy and the good news is that balance is a straightforward law of physics with a few simple rules. Rule number one, don't fight gravity.
Let's go back to the flying lead change. The horse must rearrange his legs while in an upright position with all his parts balanced on both sides of the center line. It's simple for him if he is upright with all legs equally hung from his body in the suspension phase of the stride. He just switches his legs and lands in the new lead. But, if the rider is out of balance, the horse must work as a base of support and must use the landing phase of the stride to catch the rider's offset weight.
In teaching the flying lead change, therefore, the place to start is the rider's balance. Balance in the simple lead departure. Balance in coming down to a trot for the simple change of lead and taking off again in the new one. The rider should be able to ride a straight line before attempting a flying lead change.
By nature the body is constantly seeking to work with balance to minimize unnecessary movements and conserve energy. It becomes only a matter, then, of recognizing where we fight gravity and then to focus on how we may re-harmonize our posture with it.
Here are a few definitions to define balance.
The line of gravity is where the center of mass of a system is at rest (neither side is pulling on the other side for compensation)
A partnership of sides is when all the mass on both sides of the line of gravity are equal
The base of support is where the movement is stabilized
If the line of gravity falls outside of the base of support, the forces of gravity overtake the object and it falls
Counterbalancing is when the mass on both sides of the line of gravity shift to compensate for inequalities between the sides. |
Balance works with the forces of gravity to help the body conserve its energy, minimize stress to its components, and maximize a unified flow of movement. The complete laws of physics go beyond the scope of this article; however, I hope this introduction to balance will help you get started toward balance and the conservation of energy.
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Recent News & Events:
April 2-2009 --Teaching Balance and the Conservation of Energy earns Expert Author Status at ezine articles.
http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Kathy_Bennett
Michigan Horse Council Horse Expo
March 13-15, 2009 -- We (Kathy and Carol) were available at the Michigan Horse Council 26th Annual International Stallion Exhibition and Trade Show at the Horse Expo Author's booth, March 13-15, 2009. We had a great time signing books, meeting people, and talking about our favorite subject, horses and ponies.
Thanks to all who visited the booth, we enjoyed meeting you.
Pony Pointers Horse Safety at Bellevue Elementary School
Bellevue students participated in a Pony Pointers Horse Safety class presented by Kathy Bennett and Carol A. Peterson, author and illustrator of the book Pony Pointers, How to Safely Care for your Horse or Pony.
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If you are interested in hosting a Horse Safety Class or Book Signing
Click here to: Contact Us
Thank you
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