Wild West Field Trip Horse Powered Reading

Pre-school & Kindergarten kids at Cross P Ranch Dr. Michele Pickel

Pony Express training

Pony Express training Learning GoalsHorse vocabulary & experience & cooperation Start by comparing, exploring, grooming and learning about the horse and pony Then learn to cooperate with each other & the horse to deliver the “mail”. One person will be your “mail carrier” and carry the mailbag Every team-member will fasten a rope to the halter of their horse and lead it through the obstacles to deliver their mail.

TRAIL BOSS: You can come into the arena with the kids to support the facilitators with this activity. However you DO NOT get to help the kids lead the horse. Your job is just verbal encouragement and an extra set of eyes for safety. Vocabulary to use & talk about: lead, cooperate, groom, Arabian, Quarter Horse, Pony, Gelding, Mare, Pinto, Gray, Forelock, Mane, Tail, Hoof, Frog, Muzzle, Blaze, Star

Making Hay

Making Hay Vocabulary- livestock, stock, hay, oats, pellet feed, treats, buckets, corral, bale, twine, manure, manure-fork, wheel barrow,

Hay – This is a like very long grass that farmers first cut down without chopping it up, then let it dry out in the field, and then “bale” it to make it into either rectangular shapes tied with “twine” (look at the sample bale), or giant round bales (like the one in the horse pen).

How many kids does it take to lift a bale of hay? How many does it take to carry it? Look at the hay. How many different kinds of grass or weeds you see in the hay.

Treats for you and the horse

Treats for you and the horse Horse Grain & Treats help the kids compare the grain mixture (oats, corn & pellets) and different kinds of horse treats. Have them smell the horse treats and decide which human treat it is like. Trail boss – give each child a peppermint & some corn crunchies to taste Explore the horse grain. How many different kinds of seeds do you see? Can you see the corn in the grain? Look at and smell the different horse treats and kid treats – what do you smell? Match the horse treat to the similar kid treat. Give 1 (ONLY ONE) of each different horse treat to a horse using the tin plate & then enjoy your kid treats.

Super Pooper Scooper Race

Super Pooper Scooper Race Everything poops – even horses! What goes in must come out. The wheel barrow, rake, and “manure forks” are used to clean up horse droppings.

Sometimes people call horse poop, horse “apples.” Why do you suppose that is? Look in the arena at some manure and see if you can guess. Use the manure forks and rake to scoop the pretend “horse apples” (what horse people like to call horse poop) and put them in the wheel barrow. Push the wheel barrow around the cones to the “manure pile” and dump them. Race back around all the cones to the starting line. Record your team’s fastest time!

Cowboy Gear & Clothes

Cowboy Gear & Clothes TRAIL BOSS help the kids: identify the names of the different pieces of tack. USE the vocabulary words. find and name the saddle & bridle parts Compare/contrast parts of the horse saddle & bridle with the pony saddle & bridle Talk about different meanings of “tack” (thumb tack) and “gear” (like in an engine) Explore the various types of buckles and try them out. Vote on which one they like best Discuss why they think there are different types of buckles. Help the kids try on the boots, chaps, hats, helmets, gloves, spurs, & bandanas

Vocabulary: Tack (stuff cowboys use on the horse such as the saddle & bridle) Gear (clothes and things that a cowboy wears or uses) Chaps (protects legs and pants from being torn by branches and bushes) Bandana (covered nose & mouth during dust storms) Boots (ask kids to think - why are they made this way? Tall to protect ankles from snake bites & cactus, heals to hook on stirrups, Pointy toes to…?) Hats (Why are cowboy hats made this way? Why is it important to where a helmet when riding? Spurs (not used to hurt the horse, but to give signals telling it what to do) Lariat (special rope used to catch a cow or calf that needs to get some kind of help like a shot or branded or pulled out of trouble like…? Think of some situations you might need to rope a calf) Halter (put around horse’s head to lead and tie it) Bridle (used to steer and stop the horse when riding. Find the three main parts: bit – metal part that goes in the mouth; headstall – leather part that holds the bit in the mouth going from one side of the bit over ears to the other side of the bit; reins – the long leather pieces that you hold and use to guide the horse) Saddles (compare & contrast how the saddles are different and the same. Notice some of the main parts: horn- does not make a noise  used to wrap the rope around when lassoing a cow; girth- goes under the belly of the horse like a belt that holds the saddle on the horse; stirrup- what the rider puts her foot in to get on and help stay balanced;

Book Blanket Buddies

Book Blanket Buddies learning goal: Relax & Read about different kinds of horses Cozy up on the big horsey blankets under the shade with a toy horse to enjoy books about horses. Listen to or read a story about a cowboy, horse or some other critter Sit on the saddle and read a book

TRAIL BOSS – At this center: explore the different horse books learn some new words from the books Please HELP them with the giant book. READ TO the younger children Help them explore the MANY different sizes and colors of horses. Read aloud some of the fun stories about horses. Encourage the kids to partner read with one another. Vocabulary to use & talk about: real, make believe, names of various horse breeds and colors– bay, sorrel, pinto, gray Arabian (like Moni) – his color is Bay (reddish-brown with black mane, tail, and legs) Quarter Horse ( like Flynn & Bailey) Flynn is Brown & Bailey is considered Gray colored Shetland Pony (like Ben) – Ben’s color is Pinto

Cattle Drive!

Cattle Drive! See if you can lasso those doggies! Work together with your team to rope your entire herd of cattle. Whenever someone ropes a steer – everyone yells YEE-HAW!! TRAIL BOSS: You can help the kids practice on the roping dummies. Notice they are all “running” away from the person roping. Swing the rope over your head a couple times and let the loop go as your hand points toward the calf or steer.

Vocabulary to use & talk about: Lariat (a long stiff rope with a sliding noose at one end used to lasso a cow) Lasso (to use a rope to catch a horse, cow or other animal) Calf (baby cow) Cow (female cow) Steer (male cow who has been neutered so can’t make babies) Bull (male cow who is usually bigger than others who can still make babies) Yee Haw (An exclamation of joy, challenge, or victory, possibly from the old English phrase "Ye haw" ("You come here"), Variations of Yee Haw include: Hee-haw, Woohoo, Wahoo, and even Yippee)