Advanced Riders and

Independent Equestrians of SPUR

In honor of our beloved therapy horse Aries and his wonderful ability to teach students to ride, we have dubbed our group therapeutic riding program ARIES. ARIES stands for Advanced Riders and Independent Equestrians of SPUR. The program is designed to benefit  students, ages five to eighteen, whose main goal is independent riding.

 

SPUR students enter into the ARIES program by instructor recommendation after completing a minimum of one 8-week session of private SPUR lessons. Classes of up to four students meet once a week for an hour. The longer lesson allows students the time they need to refine their riding skills and to spend more time tacking and caring for their mounts.

Aries

The volunteers are an important part of all of the programs at Sunnyside. Though their role is slightly different, their participation in the ARIES program is vital to its success. Each student is assigned a volunteer to assist him or her during the lesson. The volunteers become very much like assistants to the instructor. As the lesson progresses, they help the students while working in the stall and then reinforce directions while students are mounted. Since the riders’ goals are to be as independent at possible, the volunteers often enjoy a break from leading.

Since its start in January 2007, the ARIES program has been a huge success. The program started out with two classes running each session: one for ages eight through twelve and a second for ages thirteen through eighteen. A third class for the most advanced riders was then added to the facility’s schedule.

ARIES students enjoy a ride outside with the assistance of their volunteer.

The group setting provides peer interactions and the opportunity to play mounted games. Grouping these students together has allowed for an increase in the number of students that can be enrolled each session and an expansion of the scope of the student’s education.

 

During the hour, students practice a variety of mounted and non-mounted skills. First, each student assists with the grooming and tacking of their mount. They learn the responsibility of working safely around a horse and checking their equipment in preparation to ride. Once mounted, students work to refine their ability to control their mount at the walk and trot, through obstacles, during games and even on a trail ride.

A Short Stirrup class for riders ages five through seven was added next to accommodate our youngest riders.  As the number of students who are eligible to ride in the ARIES program grows, classes will be added to accommodate the demand.

 

The ultimate recognition for the ARIES program came with the announcement that the program would be honored by the NJRPA. Each year the New Jersey Recreation and Parks Association awards to deserving counties and towns for their excellence in programming. The award for excellence in therapeutic wellness programming was presented during the NJRPA’s annual conference at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City in March 2008.

 

Congratulations to the staff, students and volunteers who have made this program a success!