Galloping Into Learning: How Horses Inspired Curiosity and Creativity in PreK Students

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It was a chilly fall morning when Prekindergarten teacher Jen Agro saw horses at King School for the first time. Her students were way ahead of her, galloping around the schoolyard on cushions, bucking and neighing to each other.

Over the next several days, stables sprouted up in the PreK classroom, and horses were present throughout the school day. Within the week, Agro could see a course of study come into focus.Horse art at King School.

For the next several weeks, the students studied horses. They explored different types of horses and watched their behavior, parsing how they move, play, and eat. They also discovered the numerous jobs horses can have and the sports they are used for. Students built a stable in their dress-up area. Some even made hobby horses, named them, and built stalls, which they decorated with nameplates.

“We focused on process art, life drawing, and storytelling to explore the unit’s content,” said Agro. “These experiences and materials support our learning goals such as story recall and sequencing, empathy, one-to-one correspondence, number sense, critical thinking, representational art and drawing, and fine and gross motor development.”A horse stable play set.

In an inquiry-based environment that lets students inform the learning process, the curriculum is borne out of moments when a watchful teacher plans activities and lessons based on students’ interests. King School’s early childhood program for children ages 3 to 5 puts kids’ natural development front and center.

“I am always surprised at how much children learn and how capable they are in being protagonists for their growth when we listen to their interests and let the curriculum follow suit,” said Agro. “This unit reflects our Reggio-inspired and play-based approach because it came from carefully watching the students play and catering the curriculum to match their interests.”Making a horse art project.

The culmination of the research was displayed throughout the Lower School, where artwork lines the walls, reflecting the many skills the children cultivated throughout the course. Through observational line drawings and three-dimensional paper-mache art pieces, students learned horse anatomy and developed fine motor skills. They made horse heads and practiced braiding, twisting, and decorating as they explored horses’ different features and hairstyles.

Students also collaborated on a musical composition, writing a chorus about horses. Once the chorus was in place, each child wrote a verse, which they also illustrated. Agro recorded the chorus and the solos and assembled them into a digital piece.Drawing a horse.

At King School, they create an environment that elevates wonder, curiosity, and joy. From the wide variety of active, immersive learning experiences to intentional efforts to reach each and every child, King students embrace learning in a diverse community where multiple backgrounds and perspectives are celebrated. 

King students leave school full of possibility — ready to succeed and better prepared to better the world.

King School is a PreK-12 independent, co-ed day school located in northern Stamford that educates students of Fairfield and Westchester counties. Discover the power of a King education by visiting kingschoolct.org

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