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Children of the Asha Stevens Hillside Christian School will attend emotional coaching classes at the Discovery Farm. Photo Today / Hilbert Haar
St. Maarten News – In their search to provide a wider range of experiences to children facing behavioral challenges, Lucky Stables/Discovery Farm’s Alexandra Halley-van Luijken and Powerful You Myriam Haar entered an innovative partnership in October of last year.
“The purpose of their association is to complement the emotional aspect of Myriam’s coaching with Alexandra’s expertise in psychology,’ the partners said in a press statement.
A reputed developmental psychologist, Alexandra Halley-van Luijken divides her time between her family, her practice and her horses, having gathered a deep knowledge in these majestic animals’ beneficial therapeutic influence on children and adults alike. Her program with horses empowers children to acquire new skills while learning or enhancing their ability to connect, communicate and generally interact with the world around them in an exciting way.
Myriam Haar has over ten years of experience as an awareness and personal development coach for adults; she started her emotional coaching for children in 2013. She also mentors children with energetic sensitivities (Attention Deficit, Attention Deficit with Hyperactivity and children on the autism spectrum).
Looking to expand the Discovery Farm with arts and wellness Alexandra Halley-Van Luijken concluded that Lucky Stables/Discovery Farm provided an ideal venue to co-create a unique program to support specific groups of children in their mental, physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual development. Myriam Haar readily agreed as she shared a similar vision.
On Wednesday Lucky Stables/Discovery Farm will open its doors to Asha Stevens Hillside Christian School’s first group of eight children to attend the brand new program Think Before You Ride for a period of five months. The sessions will take place on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 2 to 5 p.m. with four children per session. The students will first learn to brush, saddle, and mount their horses before the ride. Working with horses provides an ideal tool to enhance behavioral and social skills.
The emotional coaching to (re)connect with the emotional aspects of their being through games and various art projects, vital elements of the sessions to help children enhance their social skills, will take place in the second half of the afternoon.
The program will end in June with a performance by the children to exhibit their acquired skills to their parents, their school and other guests, in a festive atmosphere with a meal and drinks provided by Lucky Stables/The Discovery Farm.
Ms. Asha Stevens the initiator behind this special project together with the Hillside Christian School Board, decided to make the program available to this group of students in an effort to facilitate a smooth transition to middle school later this year.
For more information about this program, please contact:
Alexandra Halley-van Luijken at 1721 588 30 50 or at intervision@hotmail.com
Myriam Haar at 1721 553 11 92 or at powerfulyou@rocketmail.com
