Private lessons vs Group lessons

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horseygal90

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Aug 27, 2004
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I'm trying to get back into riding, after having a few months off with all the palava about uni and what not, but I can't decide whether to go for private or group lessons!

I've had group lessons all my life, apart from the odd private lesson when no-one else turned up! When I was younger a large part of riding was the social side, so group lessons fitted in great with that. However now I'm getting to the point where I just want to ride and build skills as much as possible, without bothering with the 'trot to the back of the ride' business!

Only thing that is bothering me is the price - The one school I've enquired at is £25 for a half hour lesson. I've heard good things about the school, but it still seems very expensive considering my old lessons were £22 for an hours group! I've got a few more schools to phone but at the end of the day I can't afford to be paying £100 a month really.
 
Can you alternate private one week, group the next, or do semi-private (i.e max: 2/3 in the group)?

I enjoy a mix of both private and semi-private.
 
to gain the most out of a lesson, i prefer private lessons, but as mentioned they can be expensive and they are not very long (it doesnt take me long to get warn out quickly though:p)
but i also love having group lessons as it is benificial to learn to ride with others and also gain a lot from watching others weaks and strengths as it can help me with areas i struggle with.
 
I get private lessons at £20 (1/2hr). TBH i felt i benefitted more from 30min of private instruction than i did from an hour group so i definately recommend private lessons but like Bessy said you could always alternate between groups and privates. Gives you the best of both worlds really!

ETA i also get group lessons with the uni (when they aren't cancelled like the past 3 weeks :rolleyes:)
 
I'm a self concious wuss so have always had private lessons.

However, if I wasn't a wuss I'd have a mix.

If you have a private lesson one week you can practice what you focussed on whilst in a group lesson which will be for longer and give you time in the saddle. Then go for another pricate lesson again either every other one or one in 3. :)
 
Group lessons at this stables are £20 for an hour, so not a large amount in price difference. I would still be paying £90 a month which is just too much in my current finances, since I've got driving lessons and living costs to fund on top of that too! Would be cheaper to buy my own I fear :p
 
I think both are invaluable. Private lessons target your specific problems but you learn from other mistakes in group lessons and learn to work with a larger group of horses.

I personally do private lessons, but get my group lesson fix by watching my friends' lessons. Another nice way to learn, especially for disciplines you don't necessarily do, is to go watch the warm-up arena at a show. I mostly do dressage and my horse doesn't jump, so I go watch the warm-ups at jumping shows. More often than not, there'll be a few instructors teaching pupils before their class and you can learn alot from listening to them. I've learnt quite a bit of how to approach fences correctly and dealing with odd tings horses do before take-off by watching these warm-up lessons.
 
I take group lessons and I'm not that social. I don't mind the chitchat before the lessons but when I get on the horse, I tune the other riders out. I like the idea of getting more saddle time in the group with less money.
 
I think personally I would prefer group lessons.. with maybe a private lesson thrown in now and again.
Private lessons are, in my opinion, too expensive really, especially for a shorter time riding. If it's a really productive lesson then maybe it's worth it? But I think I prefer the atmosphere of a group lesson where you can encourage each other and learn from watching everyone else.
 
Xandoz said:
I think both are invaluable. Private lessons target your specific problems but you learn from other mistakes in group lessons and learn to work with a larger group of horses.

I personally do private lessons, but get my group lesson fix by watching my friends' lessons. Another nice way to learn, especially for disciplines you don't necessarily do, is to go watch the warm-up arena at a show. I mostly do dressage and my horse doesn't jump, so I go watch the warm-ups at jumping shows. More often than not, there'll be a few instructors teaching pupils before their class and you can learn alot from listening to them. I've learnt quite a bit of how to approach fences correctly and dealing with odd tings horses do before take-off by watching these warm-up lessons.
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I watch everyone else's lessons when I can and also take note when we're out and about at shows - credit crunch and all that - it's a bit of free advice/info!
 
i've only had private lessons (like 3 so far :eek:), apart from once where they asked me if i wanted a ride while my dad was shoeing the horses, i said yes and it was good, but far too slow :eek:

would maybe be better and more of a social event if i knew the other riders, but still i think me and the horse benefit greater from 1:1

same as when im taught in school, i do much better in either lectures (so lots of people and your just talked 'at') or 1:1 (maybe 2 or 3:1 at a push)

i personally think one private lesson once a fortnight would be of more benefit than a group once a week.

unless you want the horsey time and more hours in the saddle, where i think you wold benefit becoming a sharer or even loaning :)

(i take it you have lessons at a RS, not on your own horse :) sorry if i've got wrong end of stick)
 
horseygal90 said:
I've had group lessons all my life, apart from the odd private lesson when no-one else turned up! When I was younger a large part of riding was the social side, so group lessons fitted in great with that. However now I'm getting to the point where I just want to ride and build skills as much as possible, without bothering with the 'trot to the back of the ride' business!
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not all group lessons are trot to the back of the ride 90% off my lessons are conducted in open order so we are riding /learning for the full hour
(minus some rests, we say it is for the horse but know it is more for my benefit!!)


also means that different people can learn at different pace :)
 
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I have a lesson a fortnight at the moment (all I can afford for now!), and I'm tending to have two group lessons (working in open order, so proper riding for the full hour), then a private lunge lesson, over the course of six weeks. That woks out very well in helping me to progress without breaking the bank!

If I could afford it, I'd have one of each a week.
 
-x-laurrie-x- said:
I think personally I would prefer group lessons.. with maybe a private lesson thrown in now and again.
Private lessons are, in my opinion, too expensive really, especially for a shorter time riding. If it's a really productive lesson then maybe it's worth it? But I think I prefer the atmosphere of a group lesson where you can encourage each other and learn from watching everyone else.
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If you get a good instructor, they can give you more immediate feedback and instruction in a private lesson. I love my group lessons and my teacher but there are six of us and its impossible for her to catch every mistake we all make at the moment we do it. She also doesn't have time to sort out a persistent problem with one student. That's what the private lessons are for.
 
When I learnt to ride as a kid we always had an hour's group lesson (except when I first started to learn, lessons cost £5!). Since returning to riding this year, I have had private lessons purely due to the time that I ride and it costs £25 for half an hour. But, in this short time, and bear in mind I've only had 4 or 5 lessons since returning, I'm practically back to where I was when I gave up.

The big thing that I have realised is that when you have a group lesson and you're asked to ride something like a 20m circle, it's very easy (unless you're first) to follow where everyone else rides. Now I actually have to think about the circle myself, and mostly my circles are shocking(!) but eventually I'll get there as I have to do it for myself and have no-one else's lead to follow.

I am very lucky with my instructor -she's very good-, and now she sits back and leaves it to me do the first 10 minute warm up, so again I have to think for myself and afterwards she'll give me pointers and we'll discuss how well the horse is going. If I was still in group lessons, I'd probably be lazy and follow everyone else but in my private lesson I am really having to work and think! Half an hour is enough for both horse and rider by then :D
 
I personally much prefer private lessons. I always used to have group lessons, but would very quickly get bored of the same format every week (trot to rear of ride, trot as a group, canter to rear of ride, canter with some shape i.e 20m circle, then do some jumping), then moved to a new riding school at uni and had semi-private lesson (3 of us), where we worked in open order which was much better. Now at a different uni I have private lessons, and have learn't so much since starting. I do the 10 minute warm up myself, so I decide when to start trotting, when to start cantering etc., and what figures I want to do. Each lesson progresses from the previous one, and I'm working for the full 30 minutes so always come out very puffed and sweaty, whereas in my group lessons I never felt I worked that hard! Because in private lessons the lessons are purely focused on you, I think you progress much faster.

Of course, the quality of any lesson depends on the instructor, a good instructor should still be able to tailor a group lesson to individual's needs.
 
I do think that sometimes in private lessons, unless you have your own at home, you don't have time to work things out for yourself. In group lessons when the spotlights on someone else you get the chance to think for yourself and put into practise what is being said. In private lessons you just get told what to do and I don't think it sinks in as much:eek:
Having said that I think the above only really occurs when working in open order, I personally will only really go to a RS where you are allowed the freedome to work in open order and work up for yourselves. I'm not really a fan of "trot to the back of the ride":eek:
 
I do think you need "practise" time for some things - an easy example is rising trot, where - once you have the basic movement and balance down - you just have to keep going until you crack it, and build the right muscle strength - and for those types of things, private lessons aren't really economic; you'd be better off paying for a group lesson on even a hack, because it's more about time spent in the saddle than constant reminders.

OTOH, if you're working on something where you do need constant reminders - hands down, lower leg still, whatever - private lessons would crack that much more quickly than group lessons, because the instructor will keep at you, until hopefully it becomes habit forming!
 
Zazabelle said:
The big thing that I have realised is that when you have a group lesson and you're asked to ride something like a 20m circle, it's very easy (unless you're first) to follow where everyone else rides. Now I actually have to think about the circle myself, and mostly my circles are shocking(!) but eventually I'll get there as I have to do it for myself and have no-one else's lead to follow.
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I know what you mean, at the RS i've been going to, me and my friend have semi-private lessons together. But the horse i ride is alot slower than hers if put in front, especially at walk! So i always end up behind. But then again, i find riding with a friend more fun than alone because i love the after lesson chat!!
But i'd say in your case it sounds like you benefit from private alot more than a group. ( Also, not a fan of jumping lessons in a group, so much time wasted waiting for the other 4ish riders to go over!) x
 
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