Learning with the assistance of horses is becoming popular worldwide as it is proving to help individuals with a range of social , emotional , physical and developmental challenges. It is also proving to be highly successful for those diagnosed with autism, ADHD and other learning difficulties.

Clinical research shows that even being in close proximity to horses changes brain wave patterns, allowing humans to be transformed in a very positive way.

All sessions are non riding and involve participation with the horses in a safe, supervised space. The activities are designed to achieve a higher level of engagement from participants , increasing self awareness and improving the ability to relate to others.

Horses give us feedback without filters. Their only agenda is safety. A person who is consistent, respectful, congruent, compassionate, purposeful, honest, responsible, confident and able to communicate effectively – both in expressing and listening, is considered by a horse to be safe. Horses are non judgemental and will show us what we need to know and learn to develop these qualities. In fact, these are the very same qualities that humans look for in colleagues, leaders, peers and personal relationships.

Equine Assisted Learning activities at ELEA are experiential therefore learning is accelerated because clients ‘learn by doing’.

Being in the presence of horses promotes a sense of presence and produces a feeling of wellbeing. The horse’s bio-rhythms such as heartbeat, breath and brain rhythms are almost always in sync (operating at optimum efficiency) to ensure they are ready to deal with threats and danger. According to the studies of the hearth math Institute, the electro magnetic field of these bio rhythms is five times as strong as humans. When we are in the electro magnetic field of these horses for even a short space of time, our own heart and bio rhythms entrain with the horses, this producing an overall feeling of well -being and aliveness.

This state of presence and well-being also creates optimum conditions for learning.

Classroom based learning and talk therapy and counseling may have limited effectiveness at times compared to experiential learning. With experiential learning participants learn with all their senses, their mind, body and emotions. Through learning by doing, new neural pathways can be created to change behavior patterns, and learn new more effective ones.

With horses as learning partners, participants get immediate, real time, honest , unbiased feedback. Consequently learning can be faster and go deeper than other forms of learning.