Monty started his third week of training this week, he has made excellent progress and, after only two days practice he has mastered the art of wearing a saddle! He was a little bit scared of it at first, and his reaction was very dramatic the first day, but by day three he was walking and trotting around quite happily. Today we have been for a walk up the road and he has learnt that snacking from the hedges is not good when wearing a bridle!
It may not look like it but this is a church, welcome to church in the 21st century! Check out some of our team at the Abundant Life Church Bradford getting ready to listen to some great teaching and spend some quality time in the powerful atmosphere that exists when these people gather each Sunday. Cherish womens’ conference was a great chance for the ladies to enjoy the journey as we laughed, cried and learnt together. Together we are strong. With God, nothing is impossible!
To check out all that goes on at this church go to www.alm.org.uk, or to partner with some world changing organisations check out www.yoururbanangel.com and join a global movement of women who are revolutionising the world.
The Learning To Listen team got a lovely visit this week from two graduates from a recent Warrior programme. It was great to see them and hear about how much progress they have made towards their goals. They are definitely leading their lives in a very proactive way and we are so proud of them! We had a lovely catch up over a bbq and went to paddle in the river to try and cool down in the scorching heat. What a treat to see you both, all the best for the exciting times ahead, cant wait to hear all about your adventures!!
We were back again this week with our fifth group of teachers from the school we are working with. And what a week it was. The weather was spectacular with several BBQ’s and suntans during break times.
If Leadership is nothing more than influence and connection is the key to this, watch our video to see how our teachers got on. I would say very well with horses feeling so comfortable around them that they wanted to greet them on the school house veranda!
Watch for the body language as they work their way through their feedback sessions learning how to deliver ‘Honest Communication by Adding Value’.
And don’t forget to look out for how ‘Quality Time’ in your relationships will get you that magnetic connection you’ve been looking for.
We started another group of teachers off this week from the school we have been working with. And boy was it a fun week.
Learning how to ‘Make Mistakes’ & the benefits of this was a great lesson for our teachers this week. The benefits of making mistakes far out way the fact that you have made one. The fact that you are moving into new waters shows growth and a willingness to learn. So many of us these days have become too afraid of making mistake for fear of: letting others down, failure or even rejection. I see many more benefits to making mistakes & find growth is always achieved through ‘Evaluated Mistake Making’.
Take a look at the video to see just what great connections this team had made with their new students and how sometimes when your student leaves the classroom, this gives you the feedback you needed to create more exciting learning environments. Getting the body in the classroom is one thing, getting the brain in is a different matter.
Look out for more of our blogs to see how the rest of the teachers get on.
Check out the cutest part of our team! The horses we work with are such a pleasure to be around, see them chilling out here with the teachers who have been with us over the last few weeks. It’s such a treat to work with such gentle creatures, i’m constantly amazed at the way they daily show us our reflection with an honesty that most humans would struggle to ever achieve. These horses give us continuous insight into what those around us are seeing and react to our truest feelings and actions. Here they are taking many well deserved breaks…they are such a gift to us!
Learning To Listens new Instructor Sarah Ellis has got off to a flying start with her new Introductory Horsemanship students. Sarah E has been working with Sarah for over 5 years now and was awarded her Instructors Certificate in March this year. She was examined by Sarah and Anna Twinney. No mean feat to get past those two!
The Intro course is a year long course where the students are awarded a Lantra Awards certificate when they have passed written and practical examinations. The course covers many areas of horsemanship, including the basics such as stable management, horse anatomy, feeding and nutrition, teeth, farriery, the natural horse and of course specialises in horse psychology and behaviour management. The course is mostly practically based.
NEW for 2010 are Sarah’s most up to date concepts on the horse courses. Sarah has been developing her revolutionary concepts for over a decade now and has been creating a format that can be easily learnt using our hands-on exercises to help the learning process. Sarah believes that evaluated experience is our greatest teacher and has lasting results.
Look out for the next blog to see how Sarah E gets on with the second week of the Intro course.
We are very proud of the Learning to Listen intake of ‘Intro to Natural Horsemanship’ students who all passed their exams a few weeks ago. Instructors Sarah Kreutzer, Sarah Ellis and Alex Pearson were thrilled to see all of their students do so well. Check out the video to see what their exam day looked like…WELL DONE LADIES, AMAZING WORK!!
This week saw the addition of staff from a second school to the process in an exciting development. It is great to have two ’short-stay schools’ on board. Two staff from the school we have been working with were joined by two staff from another school in a week long Warrior Training Course. It was a great opportunity for them to learn about team work and to apply the concepts they were learning in daily discussions about how to be more creative in their teaching environments. They developed their own leadership skills and learned to empathise with thier leaders as they discovered how many different qualities they each expected a good leader to have. Well done guys for being such good sports and getting involved in everything we threw your way, it was amazing to watch you all develop in skill and confidence, all the best as you go back into your schools this week!!
The first group of teachers completed their week at Learning to Listen on a high note. They are excited about life and about making a difference at their school. The journey wasn’t smooth by any means but the journey was worth it as they were stretched and challenged to grow and become the best that they can possibly be in life and in their workplace. They learnt about the importance of making a connection with the students and about setting their environments up for success. They have since re-entered the school and we have heard great reports of them putting thier learning into practice with brilliant results. It was a privilage to work with you guys, well done for hanging in there and for ending so strong, we are really proud of you and expect great things!! See you this week, we are coming for a visit!
