Horse Therapy at Happy Hooves

Dexter High School offers PE Yoga courses, social skills groups and the Peer to Peer class. The PE Yoga classes offer practice in mindfulness. The social skills groups work on specific social scenarios that students need additional support with. The Peer to Peer course helps students learn about learning differences and creates a sense of belonging and community for all students. This horse therapy program would help students learn self regulation as well as help students to connect with one another and further bring together a sense of belonging.
Many of the student’s IEP goals are based on advocating, connecting with peers, increasing communication and self regulation. We can measure progress through increased conversation, decreased anxiety and interactions with peers.
The students can take pictures of the animals and peers who they connect with on the farm, create a book and refer to the pictures to help regulate their emotions. Furthermore, the special connection with peers can help develop friendships and provide another topic of conversation.