Sometimes I think you believe in me
more than I do, said the boy ...
You will get there, said the horse.
~ Charlie Mackesy
What we do
Feel Your Body ... Find Your Heart ...
Where Horses Bring Learning To Life
Welcome to The Turning Point, where the wisdom of horses has evolved to foster a new learning and wellness experience for everyone, regardless of your interest in horses as a sport or hobby.
Located in one of Connecticut’s most beautiful areas, our Equine Assisted Learning program focuses on the vital skills of emotional recognition and creates healthy responses through exercises in learning with the oldest breed of horse in the world, the Arabian horse.
- Unlike recreational riding programs, Equine Assisted Learning is an educational opportunity grounded in building social awareness and life skills, moving beyond the scope of traditional riding lessons to gain skills directly related to life-success.
- It recognizes the human–equine bond, positioning horses as co-educators to improve interaction and collaboration.
- The horses create a strong relationship of trust between participants and their equine and human facilitators, in a safe space free of judgment
- Equine Assisted Learning addresses physical, behavioral, social, and emotional aspects through the experiences with horses that will apply to all aspects of your life.
- EAL teaches non-verbal communication, empathy, and the ability to remain present in the moment–important life skills missing from the virtual experience of today’s educational platforms .
- Collaboration is enhanced through shared experiences, activities, and dialogue, and by learning how to nonverbally connect with another sentient being.
Whether you’re young or seasoned, our program invites you to explore a fresh approach to learning and life. And the best part?? No prior horse experience is required!
- Our focused EAL program focuses on improving the ability to recognise and respond appropriately to emotions in ways that will apply to virtually every area of our lives.
- Emotional agility is the skill of being flexible and open to experiencing a wide range of emotions without personal judgment or avoidance. Rather than suppressing or denying our emotions, individuals with emotional agility recognise and know how to respond to them, allowing for better work, school, and personal relationships through healthier, life-enhancing coping strategies and responses.
- Emotional agility is not a skill we are born with. It is primarily an environmentally impacted coping skill that can be improved and fine tuned throughout our lives. There is actually limited emotional-agility focused education available today for family structures, the workplace, schools, or sports, and yet our emotional coping skills have virtually everything to do with our success or failure in our daily activities and interactions.
- Horses are Emotional Experts. As prey animals (dinner), they have honed their emotional awareness of those around them, and their partnership as a group, as their chief means of survival. They are adept at detecting emotional tension, increased heart rate, and inauthentic behavior in others from upwards of fifty feet away. Because of this, they can show us how our “inside emotional state” doesn’t match our outsides, and give immediate positive feedback when we recognise it.
- Horses have been engaged in improving our lives for over 5000 years. Their entire survival is based on their innate emotional recognition and response skills, their willingness to connect with humans and their ability to facilitate our forward progress in life.
- All horse activities occur on the ground and require NO horse experience!
- Our Professional Facilitators and Assistants use the highly regarded and evidence based Equus Effect Facilitation curriculum in partnership with our Arabian Horse Schoolmasters.
- Lessons from Horses in Life and Well-Being: Experience insights from homo-sapien’s oldest life-partner that will enhance your life at home, school, or in business and increase your well-being simply by being in their presence ( a scientifically proven fact!)
- Team Building and Leadership: Horse's social strategies and emotional communication within their herd combine with our interactive equine/human activities to create an exceptional team building and leadership training environment. Our unparalleled farm atmosphere, the inspiring connections and exercises with the horses, and the beautiful setting all combine to produce an unparalleled experience that creates stronger partnerships within any environment, and with ourselves.
- Family Interactions: Our sessions assist with family dynamics, both emotional and communicative, fostering better relationships and communication skills. Learning to stay present in the moment, boundary skills, and empathy for another’s perspective are just a few of the skills the horses and our trained facilitators will explore with you and your loved ones.
- Individual Growth: Learn skills through the horse experiences that improve your ability to remain present in the moment, and expand your personal, professional or team relationships and skills. Broaden your personal horizons with an experience that is rare in todays fast paced world.
- Evidence-Based Approach: Our curriculum has been scientifically proven effective for processing trauma, and is an evidence-based learning tool for all ages
Our Programs
Designed for corporate leadership, athletes, and simply individuals who want to better define their focus and skills, this program will help you break through barriers and habits the horses help to identify. Learning from their herd mentality, and the knowledge of flight or fight, these sessions will help you identify what is holding you back and make choices for the good of the group.
The Recover Program offers support to those in recovery from addiction and trauma with sessions led by Licensed Drug and Alcohol Counselor, Robert DiRoma Jr. Whether you have been in recovery for multiple years or are newly sober and clean, this experience provides an opportunity to strengthen your recovery program. Gain life-long tools from equine-facilitated emotional experiences.
The community and relationship horses have with their herd greatly influence their survival. If you want to gain the tools that will strengthen your relationships, this program will help. Designed for couples, families and the workplace, these sessions will promote harmony, empathy and productive boundaries.
A Unique Environment and Experience
What is Equine Assisted Learning (EAL)?
Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) is an experiential approach to teaching interpersonal skills and emotional agility through guided interaction with horses. They offer us a finely crafted mirror for our complex emotional reactions or lack thereof to situations as they arise, enhancing our work, scholastic and life interactions.
Horses’ highly tuned awareness, recognition and reaction to potential threats, along with a highly evolved social structure make them exceptional teachers. Thousands of years of close human interaction has made the horse an exceptional reader of human emotions, and a kind, non-judgemental teaching partner. Their compassionate, clear and unambiguous interaction shows us clearly when we get it right, and where our opportunities are for growth.
Our Certified Equine Facilitators guide the process in conjunction with our beautiful Schoolmaster Arabian horses and professional staff for an engaging and life changing experience.
the question
Why Horses?
The species chose to partner with humans over 5000 years ago. It is universally recognized that without equine’s participation, today’s world would be a vastly different environment.
As prey animals, emotional awareness and its physical responses are their dominant survival skill, and also the way they communicate with each other as well as with human beings.
Able to recognize differences in heart rate, muscle tension, and respiration from upwards of forty feet, horses are able to be a “Mirror” for our emotions, showing us exactly how we are feeling even when we do not recognize or are trying to “act as if” instead of being authentic about ourselves and how we are feeling in any given situation.
Horses do not require us to change our behaviors, only to recognize them.
In order to interact effectively, we MUST be present in the moment–they require us to recognise them and ourselves at the same time.
Horse’s metabolism includes a scientifically proven physical effect when in their presence which release hormones in the brain, stimulating emotional well being and greater awareness to recognize and respond appropriately.
Horses have a highly developed social system that works in a dependable partnership for the good of the group. They expect humans to interact authentically, just as they do other horses, in that we must be aware of our feelings and connected with our own bodies in order to interact with them.
A Unique Environment and Experience
The point of new return
Our farm is one of the oldest Arabian horse breeding and training facilities in the country. We offer a beautiful vista, with amazingly sensitive and interactive animals who welcome and embrace their opportunity to interact and improve our lives.
