Horse anatomy for kids is wonderful for the horse-crazy learner, and hoof anatomy is one of the most satisfying topics to dig into. Also, look at my page Free Horse Unit Study for Your Horse Loving Kids.
A hoof looks like a solid block from the outside, but it’s actually built in layers, each with its own job, like protecting bone, absorbing shock, and helping a 1,000-pound animal move quietly across almost any terrain.
This felt hoof craft turns those hidden layers into something kids can see, touch, and stack together with their own hands.
Horses are prey animals built for speed, and everything about the hoof supports that.
It’s often summed up as “no hoof, no horse”, a phrase farriers and vets use because a horse’s whole body depends on healthy feet.
Making a model helps kids grasp why each layer exists instead of just memorizing these labels.
BOOKS ABOUT HORSES FOR KIDS
Also, look at some of these books about horses for kids.
9 Books and Resources for Horse Loving Kids
Whether you add a book or two to use as a spine for your study or just for fun, your horse loving kids will enjoy them.
A Homeschooling Journal for Horse Lovers! 365 Lessons and Activities. This Journal has a special focus on learning through logic and creativity!! It also covers every required subject! Perfect for 2nd to 4th grade, but fun for all ages.
This is the perfect Fun-Schooling Journal for students who love horses!
There are 365 activities in this book, and you can require your student to use 1, 5 or 10 pages per day, along with 6 library books, and your favorite math, history and science curriculum. You are free to use it any way you wish. That is the joy of fun-schooling with Thinking Tree Books.
Did you know that a miniature horse weighs just a few pounds, while a giant draft horse can weigh well over a ton? Or that from a standstill a mule can jump, kangaroo-like, more than five feet high? With answers to hundreds of questions about behavior, physiology, training, and special breed characteristics, Knowing Horses has all your horse quandaries covered.
This book is designed for all those who love horses. Tracing the evolution of equines, this guide also explains the difference between horses and ponies, looks at how different breeds evolved or were selectively developed, and examines equine anatomy and behavior. Packed with 250 vivid full-color photographs of more than 100 horse-breeds, it uses a systematic approach from Dorling Kindersley and the Smithsonian Institution to train readers of all experience levels to identify and appreciate the wide variety of horses in the world.
Learn the difference between a farrow and a barrow, and what distinguishes a weanling from a yearling. Country and city mice alike will delight in Julia Rothman’s charming illustrated guide to the curious parts and pieces of rural living. Dissecting everything from the shapes of squash varieties to how a barn is constructed and what makes up a beehive to crop rotation patterns, Rothman gives a richly entertaining tour of the quirky details of country life.
The complete beginner’s guide to horses and riding for kids 8 to 12
This ultimate guide to horses for kids teaches you all about the basics of equine care―from anatomy to housing to bathing and feeding. Whether you’re just starting out or already have a horse of your own, you’ll learn how to ride, how to stay safe around horses, and how to develop a healthy and friendly relationship with them.
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Black Beauty is a perennial children's favourite, one which has never been out of print since its publication in 1877. It is a moralistic tale of the life of the horse related in the form of an autobiography, describing the world through the eyes of the creature. In taking this anthropomorphic approach, the author Anna Sewell broke new literary ground and her effective storytelling ability makes it very easy for the reader to accept the premise that a horse is recounting the exploits in the narrative. The gentle thoroughbred, Black Beauty, is raised with care and is treated well until a vicious groom injures him. The damaged horse is then sold to various masters at whose hands he experiences cruelty and neglect. After many unpleasant episodes, including one where he becomes a painfully overworked cab horse in London, Black Beauty finally canters towards a happy ending
Marguerite Henry’s beloved story of a wild horse’s gentle colt—winner of a Newbery Honor!On the island of Chincoteague, off the coasts of Virginia and Maryland, lives a centuries-old band of wild ponies. Among them is the most mysterious of all, Phantom, a rarely-seen mare that eludes all efforts to capture her—that is, until a young boy and girl lay eyes on her and determine that they can’t live without her.
Horse and book set: National velvet is Enid Bagnold's unforgettable tale of a horse-loving girl with aspirations of jumping Glory. A story about perusing dreams and taking chances, National velvet follows the adventures of 14-year-old velvet Brown.
Whether you are a veterinary nurse or student preparing for an exam or just an ordinary horse lover seeking to learn more about this amazing domestic animal called ‘horse’ this colouring workbook is for YOU!
This book has been designed and structured to make you learn horse A&P easily and effortlessly. By colouring the images contained in this book, you will easily make visual associations with key terminologies and concepts.
Before we get to the craft, let’s look at some facts and get some more horse themed ideas to round out a fun, interest-based unit.
HORSE ANATOMY & LEARNING ACTIVITIES
- Check out my Free Horse Unit Study for Your Horse-Loving Kids
- Trace and label a full horse skeleton on butcher paper
- Compare hoof prints to human footprints in a nature journal
- Horse String Art – The Joy of Sharing
- Visit a stable or ask a local farrier if kids can watch a trim
- Daily Life Of A Blacksmith In Colonial Times And How To Make A Horseshoe Craft
- Make a horse height chart using the “hands” measurement system
- American History That Starts With K For Kentucky & Easy Derby Craft
- Build a horse anatomy lapbook with foldable flaps for skeleton, muscles, and hooves
- Horse Anatomy Coloring Book
ABOUT HORSE HOOF LAYERS
- Hoof wall- The hard, curved outer shell, made of the same material as our fingernails (keratin). It extends from the coronary band and bears most of the horse’s weight.
- Coronary band- The soft band right where hair meets hoof, where new hoof wall constantly grows from, similar to the base of a human nail.
- White line- A thin, pale ring on the underside where the wall meets the sole. It’s a helpful landmark farriers use when trimming or shoeing.
- Sole- The slightly curved underside of the hoof. It protects the sensitive inner structures but isn’t meant to bear much weight on its own.
- Frog- The soft, V-shaped rubbery pad in the center of the underside. It helps the hoof grip the ground and cushions each step.
- Digital cushion- A springy pad tucked inside, above the frog, that absorbs shock every time the hoof hits the ground.
This felt hoof layers craft is a perfect craft to learn the structure packed into one foot.
FELT HOOF LAYERS CRAFT
You can go as simple or as detailed as you like on this depending on your child’s age and ability.
They can just the labels for wall, white line, sole, and frog, or go deeper and have them create and label the toe, bulb, heel, digital cushion, collateral groove, central sulcus, etc.
You will need:
- Felt sheets in several colors – black, cream, white, pink, brown, tan
- Scissors
- Fabric glue or a hot glue gun
- A pencil and paper to sketch a hoof outline
Sketch and cut the base shape. Draw a rounded, slightly oval hoof outline (view from underneath) about the size of your child’s palm out of black felt. Cut this shape from the felt; this becomes the hoof wall layer.
Add the white line. Cut a thin ring of white slightly smaller than the wall shape and lay it inside the wall’s edge, so a sliver of it peeks out all around.
Layer the sole. Cut a cream-colored oval, a bit smaller than the white line ring, lay it on top, leaving the white line visible around the edge.
Cut the frog. Using pink or gray felt, cut a “V” or wedge shape and glue it in the center-back of the sole, pointing toward the front of the hoof.
Get all your pieces ready to assemble.
Glue each layer together if you wish; I prefer to leave it loose so it can be built and rebuilt over and over.
Label it. Have kids write the name of each part on a small paper flag or sticky note, turning the finished craft into a working diagram.
While it is optional, it is fun to add a piece to the horse’s leg using a brown piece of felt to give the impression that you are a farrier standing behind the horse, lifting its foot up toward you.
I also really like to present these activities on a nice tray with a supporting book, images, models, etc.
