Recently I started nannying for a family whose daughter takes riding lessons.  She has been riding since August, and is still very much a beginner.  Knowing horses as I do, I've been rather astounded at how the basics have been somewhat neglected in her training.

First off, she hasn't been taught much, if anything, about staying safe on the ground around horses.  She doesn't know how to handle herself around horses, or what she should or shouldn't be letting horses get away with -- let alone how to demand the behavior she wants from them.  As a result, she fears getting bitten and kicked, and has inadvertently rewarded the pony she rides by squealing and stopping what she's doing (say, picking his feet) any time he makes out like he's going to do either of these things.

I was also amazed that she didn't know how to properly groom or tack a horse.  The riding school never actually showed her what to do, so she has had to muddle through by watching what others do, and by getting help from her parents and her old nanny (none of whom know horses either).

And probably most horrific, her instructor has her going over low jumps when she has nothing even close to a good seat yet.  She is in group lessons where there will be a few beginners and a couple of more advanced riders, and I suppose her instructor just has the beginners going over the jumps too because they would complain if they couldn't.  But because all of the riders share the instructor's attention, many bad habits are being overlooked in the beginners -- reins too long, heels not down, incorrect position, and so on.  The beginners are only just learning to canter on a lunge line, and don't yet have a solid seat or strong legs, yet they are going over small jumps!

While this isn't the end of the world, and there are probably plenty of children who have learned to ride by the seat of their pants instead of learning the basics first, I do think there is a place for basics in teaching kids to ride.  First kids need to know how to handle themselves around horses, and then they need to learn the correct position and get a good seat before they start cantering, let alone jumping.  Habits like long reins, heels up, and other issues are only going to make falls more likely while cantering and jumping.

What about you?  How did you learn to ride -- traditional lessons or on your own?  And did you learn the basics first, or did you learn by trying things that were far above your actual skill level?