What is Equine (horse) Assisted Learning (EAL)?

• What if I hate (don't like, am scared of, have never met one I like) horses??
• Why work with the experts from KLC?
• Why "MYKLC"
• The Name Kaleidoscope Learning Circle. . .

. Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) is learner-centered experiential education process with horses “teaching” us about ourselves. Fortunately, these teachers happily work for hay, an occasional apple or carrot, and they do not take summers off! ? As our facilitation partners, horses can't overthink a person’s motives or manipulate their interpretations of your behavior. Their sensitivity to nonverbal stimulus helps them read people, reflecting group and individual emotions through observable and physical feedback, such as pinned ears or swishing tails. The emotional “mirroring,” the innate social structure of the herd, and the fact that horses are prey animals are all part of the equine classroom.

Kaleidoscope works with you to design a customized learning program, geared to help reach your goals and desired outcomes. Our facilitation processing reflects insight in human, horse, and organizational behavior, group dynamics, and living systems theory. The EAL programs offered through Kaleidoscope are not therapy, though the core values are similar to those found in Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) programs.

The equine assisted learning model helps individuals better understand themselves and others through participating in activities with the horses and then discussing feelings, behaviors, and patterns. The debriefing process seeks to bridge the horse activities from the arena back to “real life,” inviting people to reflect, generalize, and apply new insights. EAL can help you become a better teamplayer, develop problem solving skills, improve your leadership abilities, communicate more effectively, build healthier relationships, and enhance self-authenticity.