Independent Learning Project week 2

Photo by

Hi everyone,

You might remember that I decided on the following;

I will spend 4 hours each week for the next 7 weeks in pursuit of discovering more on Passion Based Learning.

• I would like to have a Sailing 101 Lesson
• I would like to experience life inside of a Muslim Mosque
• Learn how to build a rock retaining wall (landscape)
• Study 1-2 separate stories that are in the bible
• Visit 2 museum’s any that are in my location
• Spend 4 hours learning about horse racing
• Leave 2 weeks open to learn about a new discovery I have made while on this journey.

These are not in order and I would like to also leave room for adjustments due to weather or health.

Specifically, I went to Fonner Park, which about 1.5hr from my home to learn about horses and racing.  It was much different at Fonner Park in Grand Island, NE.  from what I seen in the Disney movie The Secretariat .

In my opinion it was not a child friendly atmosphere, as is the movie.  Therefore I was not able to learn about horses with children as I had planned.

Between races I had about 45 minutes to research on my laptop, walk around the facility and view others.

The races themselves were intense.  My heart raced each time the gates opened.  The crowd roared and there was a burst of excitement that lasted for under two minutes.  Some people in the grandstands where I was seated, were high spirited if they won a bet and like you all may know, others were devastated by a loss.  After viewing this over and over throughout the afternoon I learned that Horse racing is not a model for childhood learning as portrayed in the movies.

I did learn about Thoroughbreds which are a breed of horse.  Much like a dog in that a dog can be a Golden Lab or a German Shepard.  Thoroughbred’s themselves were introduced to England in the 3^rd century.  They stand ’13-15 hands high’ and have a heated temperament.  To my untrained eye, they are beautiful creatures.  They have legs that lift them with ease and grace.  Their heads are held high with pride and their bodies are a mass of shiny fluid muscle.

If I spent my time learning about this sport again I would start my lesson on a ranch or in the fields with these beautiful animals and not in the Grandstands. What I expected to learn and my outcome are very different.  I thought I would learn about horses, instead I learned about gambling.  I witness one of the gentlest most dependable animals on earth turned into objects of exploitation.

In this reflection of my learning I would like to offer that I can now share with children the great responsibility we have as humans to care for animals.  A while back I read a book about animal sensitivity, this experience reminded me of the Gorilla’s story in The One and Only Ivan .