A "Hands-On" Course - Online?
By The Bowman Prints · October 23, 2026 · Science, Curriculum
Equine Sciences and Stewardship of the Horse was written and illustrated by me, Bev Hill, a homeschool Mom for 18 years, now a Grandmother! I had an unsatiable hunger for knowledge of the horse when I was a youth, but at that time there was not much available for students my age. I finally got to own and raise horses, learn, and make mistakes as a teen and young woman. I desired to go to Vet school but didn't think I had the confidence or academic abilities it would take. I married, sold my horses, raised a family, and homeschooled my kids. When my oldest graduated, my youngest and I moved out of state so that I could work on my Associate of Applied Science degree in Equine Sciences while homeschooling my youngest. When we returned home I began teaching equine sciences to the local homeschool community. This was a lightbulb turning on moment for me as I found out there are lots more students out there who had that same unsatiable hunger for knowledge of the horse! I finally realized I could reach more students who had this desire if I would write what I had been teaching. I wanted it to appeal to the young at heart so I used comic book style illustrations on almost every page, and many of the illustrations are drawn from pictures of my own horses I owned.
The course was hands-on and the online version did not come about until a few years later. So the online students will need parents to get them supplies to go with the course. The list of supplies is in the introductory film of the online course in Google Classroom. The PDFs are all there in each unit so you may print as much or as little as you want. I recommend printing the hormone chart in the 1st unit, the Endocrine System and taping it together so it can be hung and referred to as the student learns what each hormone does.
The course includes 10 body system units, a parasites unit, a "horsessentials" handbook, and a vital signs unit. The main activity is the "Build-a-Horse" project. As the student learns the purpose and placements of each of the body systems, they print their blank horse sheet, draw and label the placement of each part of the system, and then trace with an ULTRA Fine Point Marker the outline of the horse and the system parts onto a clear acetate sheet. The sheets are placed in a clear, side-spine folder and laid on top of each other as the student works through each body system. Mare or Stallion must be chosen before starting the project. The Parasites unit gives the life cycles of the major parasites and the cover of the unit can be printed and laminated or covered with clear contact so that a dry erase marker can follow the path of the life cycle of each parasite. The Vital Signs unit consists of flash cards that can be printed front and back, and used to learn the how, what is normal, what is abnormal, and why of taking vital signs. It helps to practice on a horse but you do not have to have one to take this course!
Practice tests can be printed if desired to use before doing the online quizzes, and if parents wish they can allow students to take the after-lecture quizzes with "open book."
The lectures videos are all short and can be watched as many times as you wish. I set up the classroom to give a grade, mostly based on quiz answers, but an end of unit project counts for a small portion of the grade. Students post their project presentation in the classroom. They also have access to ask questions or comment within the classroom. So even though it is online, it is still hands-on as well. And if you have a horse to learn with it is even more so!
To purchase the course, TEFA families will want to go through the Odyssey portal and be sure you have your email available to me so I can send you the codes for the classroom. You can also buy there the printed version which comes in a notebook and has everything you need to do it on your own except for your markers and dry-erase marker. Other families can use my website or contact me about purchasing printed, online, or local classes.
Happy Equine learning!