Robertson County is a largely rural county with many features to attract its residents to outdoor activities.  However, many families have one or both parents commuting to jobs outside the county, which results in their not having as much leisure time to spend outdoors with their children. The children may be at home by themselves and outdoor time exchanged for indoor pursuits.  This results in children spending too much time indoors and not being aware that their body needs proper nutrition and guarding against exposure to the elements when outdoors.

A local horse owner, Kim Bryant, hosts series of Horsemanship Day Camps consisting of 5 weekly session during June. With the instruction of Extension agent Sue Hughes, assisted by Extension Intern Julia McCloud, campers were exposed to a once weekly afternoon session of nutrition and hydration information, as well as being taught exercise techniques to improve balance and flexibility.  This educates campers about their body’s need for hydration, nutrition and guarding against overheating during outdoor summer activities. Many of those participating were very surprised to see three thirty ounce water bottles, then be told that’s how much water their age group needed to be drinking per day.

  The exercises demonstrated related to the horseback riding taught during the week of camp, and would help participants improve their riding skills as well as add to their overall fitness even after the camp concludes.

The program concluded with a scavenger hunt using clues related to the lesson with prizes for the winning team.  Over 75% of the campers surveyed after the session felt they knew more about the importance of hydration during summertime outdoor activities, and 86% of participants surveyed said they learned things they didn’t know about correct ways to stretch and how importance exercise was in relation to other sports activities.  Ninety-five percent of those involved planned to use some part of the information they attained in their everyday activities.

Camp director Kim Bryant said, “They loved it, especially the scavenger hunt.  They learned things and so did I!”