Answers to Questions about the Strides To Success Curriculum

The Cowboy Poetry and Journey of the Spirit Horse curriculums were created using a strengths- based learning model that has received nationwide attention from school administrators. Both curriculums are now utilized in schools, camps, therapeutic riding centers, mental health facilities and residential treatment centers across the United States. Each lesson plan fits to many learning styles by combining a classroom component, an experiential equine activity, and an expressive art component. The lesson plans have been created to teach character education, academics and strengthen developmental assets.

Each of the lesson plans contains the following components:

Lesson Overview:
Academic standards including one or more standards in math, history, language arts or science
Life skill
Lesson objectives
Vocabulary words
Materials needed
Classroom activities
Equine activities & worksheet that coordinate with the activity
Processing & wrap up activities

All of the lesson plans have been piloted for the last three years and are designed to be flexible in nature. The academic standards can be catered to fifth- through eighth-grade levels.


We limit our workshops to 15 participants and are trying to keep the cost affordable. The workshops cover the following subjects:
Identifying and assessing the educators’ needs
How to make your center a resource for schools to utilize
Contacting and approaching key decision makers
Finding common ground between the barn and the educational systems
Designing pilot programs
How to incorporate developmental assets, life skills and academics into lesson plans
Evaluations & Rubrics
Collaborative Partners
Education Terminology
Step by step on developing lesson plans
Facilitating an EAL school based program
Securing contracts & funding school programs

You also receive the curriculum Cowboy Poetry and step by step instructions on facilitation of the curriculum.

Welcome!

Strides to Success is pleased to offer a forum for our friends and colleagues to post questions or comments about our Equine Assisted Learning Curriculum.

Since 2004, Strides to Success Learning Center has strived to create the most comprehensive and effective learning tools for school-based Equine Assisted Learning programs. Cowboy Poetry and Journey of the Spirit Horse, the first of Strides' curriculum, take the instructor step-by-step through the processes of teaching character and life skills to youth at-risk. Each lesson includes objectives, developmental assets, character skills, vocabulary words, projects and activities that relate to a particular life skill, such as respect, punctuality, courage and responsibility.

Please use this forum as a way to ask questions about the Strides to Success curriculum and to create a positive dialogue that will assist our organization in creating future curriculum to meet the extraordinary needs of the Equine Assisted Learning instructional community.