When do You Teach a Rider to Put a Horse on the Bit?

I am an instructor new to a more-or-less beginner barn. Many of the students are concerned with “framing” the horse, which results in a lot of see-sawing on the face to create a false frame. I feel like I’m struggling to bridge the gap between teaching the rider to be balanced, and teaching the rider to be effective and balance the horse. I know how to ask the horse for a lot, but not necessarily how I learned or what was said to me to make certain concepts “click,” let alone what order I was taught those concepts in. I feel like I see so many things at once! How do you prioritize what problems need to be corrected? When is it appropriate to start introducing concepts (for example lateral work) to the rider?

The progression of teaching a student good basics is so important for the correct development of a solid foundation. Unfortunately, this country is obsessed with pulling a horse’s head down with zero knowledge of theory on what it means to properly engage the hindquarter, lighten the forehand, and get a horse to accept the rider’s aids. Novice riders need to learn only about contact. They aren’t ready to learn how to get a horse on the bit until they are almost at a college level of riding. So many horses are ruined by ignorant instructors or riders attempting to pull or see saw a horse’s head down. For more information, please check out the article I recently wrote for The Chronicle Of The Horse on my website about this subject.

Novice level riders should be taught basics, which become tools for their toolbox, as well as building blocks for a solid foundation. The USHJA’s Trainer Certification manual outlines many of these. The TCP also offers many clinics around the country that are invaluable in providing continuing education for professionals. I can not recommend more highly the excellent video library accessible through EquestrianCoach.com for all levels of riding and teaching.

You’re on the right track! Stick to basics and don’t put the cart before the horse 🙂