On this episode, Nature Speaks' Founder, Rachel shares her love for raising and nurturing horses, how important it is to learn self-sustainability, the benefits of horse manure, the healing capabilities that horses possess, the many programs they offer homeschoolers, and she gives us a tour of the farm.

https://www.nature-speaks.com/our-story.html

Nature Speaks was created from a very personal tragedy that changed who I am. While riding my leased horse Jazz, in the woods of Palm Beach Gardens, the horse collapsed underneath me  and I slid on my face in the sand where I landed superman style. When the horse stood back up she stepped on the back of my hand breaking my pinky finger in half. Three days later, while I was in and out of plastic surgery  to put my face back on in the hospital, Jazz was hit by lightning in her pasture and killed. I was devastated. Now in addition to my body being broken, my spirit was too! I cried for days.
​At the time I owned a public relations firm called NozNewz Communications, Inc. I represented businesses, non profit organizations and government entities in Palm Beach County for almost 20 years. 
During my recovery I read voraciously! The book that changed my life is called the Tao of Equus by therapist and horsewoman Linda Kohanov.  She writes about her experiences living with her herd of horses and using those experiences to help others through the practice of  equine therapy. I studied her model of equine therapy and  those of other practitioners but I felt a little empty. Equine therapy is ground work with the horse only. It does not include riding. But to me and the kids I wanted to work with, riding the horse is an important component to empowerment. So I created a life skills program called "Who's in Your Herd?" which teaches about making good decisions in life in a very simple way. Decisions which will affect the future path of a youngster and we use the horses as our facilitators/teachers assistants. As horses live in herds, so do people but our herds change throughout the day and throughout our lives. We use the  philosophy of taking care of the horses as a metaphor for taking care of oneself. 
So my future path became more clear and I took a risk by taking an equity loan out on my home and started Nature Speaks with the money. I knew that horses helped me in my recovery and I was desperate to share that with others who needed personal growth.  
Rachel Ibarra is an approved contractor for all Florida public schools and was a member of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office COP Mounted Unit for five years. Nature Speaks offers western riding lessons, homeschool programs and field trips, Equine Assisted Learning workshops and summer and winter break activities. 

Homeschool Yo Kids Podcast shares organic conversations that promote confidence, a growth mindset, and are filled with inspiration and good energy. Sharing stories from the classroom, their home learning journey, and other reflections and life experiences, come grow and learn with Jae.

Homeschool Yo Kids Organization is a 501c3 nonprofit that provides families with tools to aid unconventional learning experiences, helping to create a positive home learning environment. In addition to this, we are missioned to help families in traditional schools build a healthy collaborative relationship between the school and home.

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Jae is a former public-school teacher, now homeschooling her 2 little people. She is the founder of the 501c3 nonprofit Homeschool Yo Kids Organization. Join Jae as she chats with homeschool families, homeschool resource providers, and others that support the homeschool community on this journey of 'reimagining what learning looks like'.