Favorite Teaching Styles and Other Questions About Your Lessons

[CorazonLock]

We have the thread on instructors and the horses you’ve come in on that may or may not have been exceptionally suitable for your discipline, but I’m more curious about two things:

What teaching styles do you prefer? What types of teaching styles have not suited you? I was talking to someone yesterday about how much I appreciate my current instructor’s teaching style. She has tons of analogies so you can remember what something feels like or what you should be doing, and she is always encouraging and effective. When I’m not doing something right, she tells me or shows me what I should be doing and then reminds me when I’m trying to add it to my toolbox. She also makes me think for myself by asking lots of questions, for example, which jump I thought my position was best over or what I think I could add to achieve a better trot.

The one thing I truly appreciate though is that she never makes me feel dumb or down on myself because I haven’t been doing something. I’ve been through instructors that yell or see to really criticize. I know that is effective for some, but I’m very sensitive and tend to carry the world on my shoulders and overthink every mistake I’ve ever made. I deal with anxiety and that only adds to it, and while it’s important that riding pushes me out of my comfort zone, it’s also important that I’m enjoying it as an outlet.

Also, out of curiosity, how much do your lessons run, and if you trailer in, is there a charge for that? I pay $50 for a private lesson (which seems pretty reasonable in my area), $35 for a group, and then $10 to trailer in.

And how far do you drive for lessons? I drive almost 2 hours one-way because eventing is scant in my area.

Please, indulge in my curiosity and tell me about your experiences.

[SolarFlare]

I recently started lessons with an eventing coach (I rode mostly hunters for 30 years) and have learned so much in a short time. She freelances and comes to my barn so no ship-in fees. I take a 45-minute private lesson each week. I’m in Ontario so probably not a good comparison for you but I pay $40 per lesson.

I really enjoy her teaching style. She explains everything really well - which is important to me. I’ve been going it mostly alone for a few years so I need to know why I am doing something, so that I can recreate it on my own and add it to the toolbox!

During my assessment, I told her a couple things I wanted to really work on (one being learning how to actually sit the canter) and she also picked out a couple things my horse needs work on (very accurately). Each lesson she adds another bit to work on - and I do my homework in between, so that hopefully the next time she sees me, we aren’t working on the same thing again the whole lesson.

We are using this time in the winter to revisit some basics, which will really give us a much better base for this show season. I switched over to eventing a couple years ago (did some CTs, then spent a year rehabbing horse, then more CTs last year along with some XC schooling). I did well on my own but realized to progress any further I needed some specialized instruction.

I am similar to you in that I don’t like an overly-critical style. I have mellowed a lot, but I used to say I was harder on myself than any instructor would ever be, so I really didn’t need the added stress of a coach getting after me without ever telling me what was good. I don’t expect to be told that everything is wonderful when it’s not, but there’s a way to convey constructive criticism without berating a student. One thing that I found very difficult was when a coach would assume I wasn’t trying or was ignoring what was said when I wasn’t able to fix something immediately. I am trying - but when you’ve been doing something “wrong” for years, it’s tough to fix. It doesn’t mean I’m not even trying, but maybe need a different explanation or another run-through to try again. Sometimes just hearing something in a different way makes sense. For example, with me, telling me “shoulders back” does not help at all, but when we started working on my core and pelvis and aligning it better, my shoulders came back on their own. The shoulders were a symptom, not the actual problem.

[Highflyer]

I am actually the opposite-- I only ever learn by doing it over and over until I get it right, so analogies and theory are largely wasted on me. I need exercises to be set up so that I can feel what I am doing work or not work. I definitely agree on the no nastiness/ yelling thing, though-- and I would walk away if it ever became an issue.

I ride with an UL eventer and pay $75 for a lesson-- either 30 minute private or 45 minute group. Haul-in fees vary by location. Her farm is free, but the jumps are on grass so it doesn’t always work if the ground is very hard or muddy. She teaches at several other farms locally-- some are free, some are $15-$25.

[Scribbler]

I find the analogies are not very effective for me. I get caught up trying to imagine the analogies, and completely lose track of the ride! When I read Sally Swift, I realized that my coach was using some of her techniques, and told her right out that they didn’t work for me. I don’t always have the best mind/body connection, so sometimes having someone actually position my leg correctly with their hand is more useful than loads of verbal instruction.

I don’t do well with being yelled at. If I’m not doing something right, either I misunderstood or I am not physically capable of it yet. I am able to “suck up” being yelled at, but again the effort of sucking it up means that for a good five minutes or so, I am not totally focused on the work. Different of course if it’s an emergency.

I also find that it is a fine line, between doing what your coach wants, and what is best for the horse and the ride that day. My coach can push my horse harder and get a good result, than I can. If I push the same amount, I might very well come across to the horse as brutal, because I don’t have the same amount of tact as my coach. Sometimes my coach in the past has pushed me to keep riding a figure to see if we will have a breakthrough, but maresy and I can get stuck in a loop. I’ve learned that taking a walk break will reset us both, and she will be much better when we resume. I told my coach that and now I call time out when I feel like the resistance is building.

I appreciate theory behind the riding, though it’s best to have those chats when we are standing taking a rest break!

[kcmel]

I sometimes think my trainers are too nice. My dressage trainer was joking the other day that my neighbors must find it amusing that I pay someone to come tell me to “carry my right hand” for 45 min! I wonder if it would be more effective if she screamed “carry your mf gd right hand or I am going knock you off that horse and kick your gd a**”. Lol.

[gypsymare]

I like an instructor who can break things down to the basics. More leg, raise your right hand, less opening rein, etc. I’ve had some instructors that tried to teach through repiitition without being able to drill down to what exactly I was doing wrong and adjusting those basics. I also don’t like analogies. I am very mechanically minded and want to hear exact terminology and not elusive conjecture about energy flows.

I prefer a supportive personality but am ok hearing that I rode that line like a sack of $#!? as long as it is in a tone of mocking camaraderie and not a mean-spirited, scathing dressing down.

[HiJumpGrrl]

I do not respond to discussions of riding THEORY when I am riding. I want practical, applicable in THAT MOMENT instruction when I’m on the horse. Later, we can talk about why she told me to do xyz, but I need to be told “put your outside leg on” or “relax your knee” when I’m actually doing it.

Yelling, or rather “firm” instruction, actually helps me. I hold myself to a certain standard, and like that my instructor does as well.

[Mango20]

I pay $65 for a private dressage lesson, plus $10 haul-in fee, about every other week. I like her encouraging style, and tenacity to get through to my sometimes argumentative horse. I sometimes dislike when she throws too many things at me all at once, like “more on your right seatbone, send your hip forward, lift your left hand, make her quicker with her hind end”, but I guess the problem with that is me, not her. I love that she never checks her phone during lessons, and you get her full attention for the entire time.

She also teaches our pony club at a discount, and her style works very well for the kids. She is very encouraging and enthusiastic, which the kids respond well to and actually don’t think dressage is so terrible anymore. She incorporates a lot of pole exercises. I have, however, heard her get a little harsh with a student about twice in two years - stuff the student needed to hear, like “either RIDE that horse, or get off and go home”

[Ponylady27]

I’ve worked with all kinds of trainers and I find that I love the ones who give me the “why” as well as the “how.” I want to know why this action causes that reaction. I want to know why we’re doing this pole exercise and what we’re trying to achieve. Tell me to lift my hand, but tell me why to do it, too and I’ll understand better. Tell me why engaging the hind end this way leads to a better result for the next movement. I tend to very analytical, so this helps me. I’m also an experienced rider, so what works for me might not work for a beginner.
Recently, my dressage trainer let me ride another student’s upper level horse (with her permission) so I could feel what half-passes and real trot and canter extensions were supposed to feel like. This was so helpful not only because I got that feel in my head, but also to make sure I’m asking correctly when I go back to my horse. (Holy extended trot, Batman! Totally different feeling.)
My jumping trainer tends to be great about just giving me one or two things to think about - not piling on as I’m on course. This is so helpful as it doesn’t overwhelm me with things to do all together. We work on those things and move on.
I pay $70 for a private lesson at the trainer’s facility. No haul-in. That being said, I’m in a very expensive area working with upper level trainers.

[pologirl27]

As a pony club person, I think it is very important to have someone who wants to fix the rider, not the horse. Chances are, if the horse is going poorly the rider is to blame! But not all trainers teach that way.

Definitely need someone who, while interested in improving me, is positive. No yellers. If I’m not getting something, it’s because I can’t make my body and brain cooperate, not because I’m ignoring you. I HATE instructors yelling out instruction right before a fence. It totally distracts me and I personally find it unsafe.

I really like my current instructor because she’s sympathetic to my horse’s physical limitations and very specific in her instructions. She’ll explain things really in depth while I am on a walk break and then give me specific cues as I’m riding out an exercise. If something is really happening for my horse, she is totally willing to change course and try new things.

Logistically, I haul in and pay $80 (hence why I don’t lesson often) for 45 minutes private. I keep my horse at home so I don’t know what her boarders pay.

[Groom_amp_Taxi]

I read a lot about riding. I look at a lot of pictures and videos of people riding horses. I understand the theory, and I have a picture in my head of what it is supposed to look like. I do not need that stuff while in lessons.

I need a trainer who can tell me very simple things (put your hands lower and forward) that improve things in the moment. And I need for the trainer to let me fix one thing and get a solid feel of that before they move on to the next thing. I am a sort of re-rider whose childhood riding was mostly on trail horses that neck reined with the sophistication level of “kick to go, pull to stop”. I have muscle memory of sitting on a horse and what the gaits feel like, I don’t have muscle memory of coordinating seat, leg, and contact with the bit.

I think trainers hate me when they say all excitedly “did you feel that?”, and I answer honestly “nope”.

[Mukluk]

Teaching is an Art. I believe that the best teachers are those who really know about riding and horsemanship as well as how to explain it (in different ways if need be) to suit the learner. I am a very visual learner so seeing things is helpful. Providing a rationale for what we are doing is also very helpful. I am one who gets a lot out of analogies. I want someone who is knowledgeable, patient, and kind. I absolutely will not deal with someone who yells. A sense of humor is also very helpful!

[Covergirl15]

I also like to know the why, but I really appreciate trainers that will take time to talk to me after the lesson to explain the why, assuming she doesn’t have a lesson right after me. I also don’t like a lot of constant talking during my lesson. Please correct me (multiple times if needed ) and then observe. My last trainer, who sadly moved, had the perfect teaching style for me. She was positive, but didn’t sugarcoat things, and told me what to do/change w/o a constant stream of chatter. It drives me crazy when trainers talk the entire time, and then, when they ask if I felt such and such (the split second when my 4 year old was perfectly connected and lifted his back, etc), it’s like no, I was too busy trying to listen to what you are saying. Obviously they to talk, but you really don’t need to tell me to change my diagonal every time, I know.

[piedmontfields]

Like Covergirl, I detest constant chatter. I really enjoy quiet, focussed instructors with excellent timing who can “ride through me.” I’ve been fortunate to experience that from several people.

I can learn from others, but it is aggravating to me.

[Right_on_Target]

I like a few different styles of coaches. For dressage type topics, I like a “nagger”. I seem to forget what I’m doing after 5 seconds and I like to be reminded in a non-aggressive way. I think it is because dressage coaches seem to pick on a million different things. While I prefer coaches to focus on at most 3 things, I do appreciate the reminder.

For jumping, I don’t like to be nagged as much. I like to have one concept that I need to focus on and that is all.

One of my favorite coaches started each lesson with a mini-lecture which was a theme. She’d talk about what we were looking for and demonstrate it, and then during the lesson, the individual exercises would relate back to that theme.

I like a coach who listens to me and we can talk through concepts together. I also appreciate a coach who listens to what I think is going on with my horse.