Our week-long (summer) and single-day (Saturday and holiday) horse camps offer school-age children with disabilities an extended chance to connect with a very special therapeutic partner: their horse. In addition to therapeutic riding, campers get a chance to bond with each other while learning more about horses and enhancing their life skills by participating in our special education curriculum, "Strides to Success." At camp, students learn how to ride and care for their horses and participate in many fun equine-related activities.

Hope Springs' new therapeutic driving program, dubbed “Cricket’s Carriage Class,” extends the benefits of equestrian therapy to individuals unable to ride horses. Therapeutic driving gives participants a riding alternative, allowing students the rewards of interaction and control of a horse or pony while driving from a carriage seat. The program imparts knowledge of safety, horses, harnessing, and driving skills to students with disabilities using teamwork. Each student progresses at a rate that that challenges them while facilitating feelings of accomplishment and physical benefits. To inquire about this program, contact us.

Siblings of children with disabilities often experience stress and lack positive attention. Including them in our program can boost confidence for both siblings while promoting deeper understanding of equestrian therapy and how it enriches the whole family. Siblings who might benefit from this program are identified by instructors in consultation with parents of children with disabilities.

Most participants in this program have behavioral issues such as attention deficit disorder, substance abuse, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, relationship problems or many have suffered abuse, and are at risk of failing school in traditional classroom setting. Hope Springs staff collaborates with mental health experts to work with children and teens at risk of developing emotional behaviors and/or exhibiting behavioral problems. For these students, the horse becomes a welcome addition to their lives as a new, non-judgmental friend. To inquire about this program, contact us.

As an Pennsylvania EITC-approved Educational Improvement Organization, we provide equine-facilitated special education programs to help local students develop new abilities and life skills. To contribute to Hope Springs through the PA Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program, contact us.