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Equine Assisted Experiential Learning for Children
Jake’s Flat Farm offers a safe environment where children and adolescents experience the joy, power, and peace of connecting with horses. We believe that horses can improve children’s emotional, social, cognitive, and physical health. We focus on children with behavioral and emotional problems, children with autism, and children who have experienced abuse and neglect.
The Jake’s Flat Farm Children’s Equine Assisted Learning Program promotes the development of self-esteem, emotional health, and positive social relationship skills through interaction with horses.
This program addresses the following skills:
 Physical
Identify safety issues
Re-conceptualize what is safe and not safe
Maintain physical boundaries
Demonstrate safe behavior around horses
Maintain personal space around horses
Improve interpersonal boundaries
Reduce impulsivity
Improve body awareness
Language
Engage in small talk while interacting with another
Talk in a soft, calm, gentle voice
Describe actions as your doing them
Sing to a horse
Emotional
Experience acceptance from another
Increase self-esteem
Increase self-confidence
Overcome one’s fear of horses
Demonstrate a more positive attitude
Recognize emotions in others
Reduce loneliness from social isolation
Experience animals as a source of relaxation
Develop an appreciation of animals
Respond to another with feeling
Experience pleasure and comfort in the comfort of horses
Accept affection from a horse
Demonstrate patience
Manage one’s mood around the horse
Demonstrate confidence
Assert oneself with a horse
Social
Experience non-judgmental interaction with another
Demonstrate greeting behavior
Anticipate another’s needs, wants, feelings, and actions
Take turns with another
Cooperate with another
Play with another
Encourage and praise another
Set limits with another.
Learn how to give and take in a relationship
Increase social skills
Seek out animal companionship
Experience a warm and accepting relationship
Care for another living being
Nurture another living being
Avoid conflicts with others
Respect the horse’s power
Avoid power struggles with the horse
Comply with the rules at Jake’s Flat Farm
Accept adult authority at Jake’s Flat Farm
Initiate an activity with a horse
Cognitive
Increase attention
Increase goal-directed behavior
Increase mental agility
Integrate speech, emotions, and cognitive problem solving
Anticipate the consequences of one’s actions
Describe a horse’s positive qualities
Eliminate hostile projections that justify aggressive behavior toward horses
Is your child right for our program?
Ask yourself these questions:
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Does your child have allergies?
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What is your child’s previous experience with animals?
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Has your child ever exhibited abusive behavior toward animals?
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Do our goals compliment your child’s pre-existing treatment program?
If you think your child or a child you know, can benefit from our program we will be happy to help you incorporate horses in a meaningful way into your pre-existing treatment plan.
Equine Assisted Psychotherapy
Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) incorporates horses as a tool for emotional growth and learning. A licensed therapist and a horse professional work together helping participants learn about themselves and others by participating in activities with the horses, and then processing (or discussing) feelings, behaviors, and patterns.
The advantage of using horses is that they are large, powerful, social, animals with their own personalities, moods, and quirks. They are incredible at mirroring our feelings, attitudes, and emotional state. They call us to be honest and congruent. Interacting with them on the ground helps participants over come fear and develop confidence, communication, assertiveness, problem solving, and relationship skills.
We believe that equine assisted psychotherapy works best as part of an individual’s ongoing therapy, treatment, or recovery. Equine assisted psychotherapy activities are appropriate during the middle phase of therapy, after the participant and therapist have gotten to know one another, identified the major issues, agreed upon a treatment plan, and have achieved a level of stability. Equine assisted psychotherapy is not for individuals in crisis, or individuals who may harm themselves or our horses.
Activities do not require previous experience with horses or riding skills.
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