Our Ranch for Troubled Boys
Uses Recreational Therapy
About Our Recreational Therapy Program
Teen Challenge Adventure Ranch believes that teenagers should be actively engaged in life. Our outdoor adventure program, ropes course, physical strength training and an active outdoor recreational program will provide students with many challenging and enjoyable experiences. These experiences build confidence and help create positive momentum toward life success.
Our ranch for troubled boys uses Adventure-Based Learning throughout our program. Troubled or addicted boys are often resistant to more direct methods of communication (i.e. talks, lectures, etc.). Parents and helpers often feel shut out or completely ignored. Adventure Based Learning helps students learn through discovery and experience. Students are encouraged to conquer their personal fears and surpass their preconceived limitations. They are challenged to take new approaches to problem-solving, and they learn to work with others toward a common goal.
Students at Teen Challenge Ranch participate in many different kinds of indoor and outdoor physical activities and adventures. These include camping, backpacking, rappelling, canoeing, and spelunking (cave exploration). We have even traveled to the Rocky Mountains for mountain climbing, white water rafting, and other activities. Students regularly play basketball in our gymnasium, use our weight-lifting equipment and CrossFit training exercises, play Frisbee golf, play flag football, or use our low ropes/adventure-based training course, etc. We have also taken ministry trips and performed service projects outside of the United States. All of our activities help students to re-engage in life. They build character and provide amazing experiences that they will remember for the rest of their lives.
Our ranch for troubled boys is built around providing the boys with adventure and physical activities indoors and outdoors. Outdoors, we go horseback riding, camping, backpacking, rappelling, canoeing, swimming, hiking, and spelunking (rock climbing and cave exploration). Upon entering our ranch for troubled boys program, the boys are taken on a three-day camping trip with staff and several seasoned residents. Additionally, there is one outdoor adventure a month, and twice a year; we spend a week at Camp Orr, the Arkansas Boy Scouts Camp.
Our Recreational Therapy Program Also Includes Equine Therapy
The goal of equine therapy at our ranch for troubled boys is to help your son develop needed skills and attributes, such as accountability, responsibility, self-confidence, problem-solving skills, and self-control.
The interaction between horse and client often unlocks blocked emotions, allowing them to be processed and healed. Equine therapy also provides an innovative milieu in which the therapist and the patient can identify and address a range of emotional and behavioral challenges. Both during the activity and after the patient has finished working with the horse, the equine therapist can observe and interact with the client in order to identify behavior patterns and process thoughts and emotions.
Many of the benefits of equine therapy at our ranch for troubled youth are likely due to the nature of the animals with which the patient and equine therapist are interacting. Horses are typically non-judgmental, have no preconceived expectations or motives, and are highly effective at mirroring attitudes and behaviors of the humans with whom they are working.
Research shows Equine-Assisted Activities are an appropriate therapeutic approach for teens. Some conditions or disorders that respond well to EAP or related equine-assisted therapies include:
- Substance Abuse
- Addiction
- Depression
- Anxiety
- PTSD
- Stress
- Trauma
- Eating Disorders
- Behavior Disorders
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Learning Challenges
- ADD/ADHD
- Learning differences
- Grief/loss
- Bipolar
Transforming Troubled Boys
into Young Men of Character
Our Teen Challenge ranch for troubled boys in Arkansas offers a nurturing environment where teenage boys 14-17 can find unconditional support and guidance. If your child is suffering from behavior issues, depression, or is making choices that cause harm to himself or others, we are here to help. Since 1973, we’ve been here to help boys suffering from a variety of personal issues, especially including: self-destructive behavior and thoughtless attitudes, failing in school, or school expulsion, addictions and drug use, reactive attachment disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD), PTSD, and depression.
To Find Out More About Our
Ranch for Troubled Boys,
Please Complete Our Inquiry Form.
We look forward to talking to you about how we can help
you, your son, and your whole family.
Our heart’s desire goes beyond just impacting your son
but the restoration of the entire family.
