hrough Montezuma Inspire Coalition (MIC), Medicine Horse Center has added the Natural Leaders Program to its family of youth programs offered to our local community. This equine-assisted experiential learning program partners with local middle schools to bring students out to the ranch to learn about themselves and challenges students to improve communication skills, build on strengths, demonstrate respect and empathy, focus on accountability and engage in critical thinking.
Why Horses You May Ask?
Horses respond to our behavior patterns and provide us with clear and honest feedback. Horses also impart physical changes to our bodies naturally lowing our heart rate and blood pressure while requiring us to be calm and in the moment. When students interact with horses they also learn important lessons about relationships and non-verbal communication in a non-judgmental and patient way.
Each week students join the staff and horses at Medicine Horse to explore who they are and what they bring to this world,. By empowering each individual with skills related to communication, connection and consent, students learn to develop the tools necessary to recognize and process emotions in a safe outdoor environment.
In order for a horse to willingly be in the presence of a human, we humans must be congruent between our feelings and our actions. We can ‘put a happy face on’ when we deal with each other, but a horse knows what we truly feel inside and responds to those emotions. Many middle school students who participate in our programs share that they feel stressed, alone and judged; they are afraid to be their ‘authentic self’ with others. By interacting with horses we can gain profound insights into ourselves. We can explore our strengths and our challenges, our alignment with our values and intentions, and the intrusion of old thinking and behavior habits. Through our programs, staff and horses help youth explore and build healthy behaviors and thoughts.
Through this and other programs at Medicine Horse, youth learn that caring for animals and our environment translates to caring for oneself and for each other. The empathic connection between horses and youth builds upon the values of shared experience and emotional responsibility. The Natural Leaders Program helps build a path to a hopeful, connected future.
By Lynn Howarth, Executive Director
