Flying Dust students learn life skills with horse program
Students from Kopahawakenum School on Flying Dust First Nation are learning more about large animals with a program incorporating life skills.
The informal program was started by teacher Jon Mirasty last year. On Tuesdays and Thursdays throughout the fall, a number of students from Grades 1 to 4 accompany him to his family farm to learn everything from cleaning and upkeep, to building a relationship with the animals and eventually learning to lead and ride them.
Mirasty said the program instills positive values like leadership, responsibility and respect.
“Overall it helps give them confidence in all aspects of life to be successful,” he said. “I’ll talk to them about different things in life. They all look forward to it. It’s nice to see the growth in their personalities.”