Briar Patch Ranch For Kids
4.3(74)4.3 out of 5 stars, 74 reviews Columbus, OH
About Briar Patch Ranch For Kids
Briar Patch Ranch For Kids functions as a specialized program for children experiencing significant social, emotional, or behavioral challenges, often serving as an alternative educational or therapeutic placement. It integrates animal interaction to promote responsibility, care, and positive behavioral development.
What parents should know
Summarized from real visitor reviews.
Best for: Families seeking an alternative educational or therapeutic placement for children with diagnosed behavior issues.Children struggling with social anxiety, bullying, or experiences of discrimination in conventional school environments.Parents who are looking for a highly structured environment that incorporates animal interaction for behavioral development.Families considering 'last resort' options for challenging child behaviors.Suitable for children with behavioral issues; an 8-year-old's experience is noted.
Why families love it
- Effective program for children with diagnosed behavior issues, leading to positive changes.
- Provides a supportive environment for children with social anxiety or past experiences with bullying and racial discrimination in traditional school settings.
- Some parents report teachers are compassionate and helpful.
- Incorporates animals as a tool to teach responsibility and care.
- Has a structured environment designed to address and improve behavior over a long term (one reviewer attended for 'like a decade').
- Therapeutic approach that leverages animals for teaching responsibility and fostering emotional development.
Insider tips
- Parents considering this program should explicitly inquire about all disciplinary policies and methods, including the nature and extent of any physical intervention by staff.
- It is advisable to ask about staff training in de-escalation techniques and behavioral management strategies to ensure they align with your child's needs and your parenting philosophy.
- Seek detailed information on student-to-staff ratios and staff qualifications for children with specific behavioral or social challenges.
- Understand the process for addressing child complaints regarding staff conduct or perceived unfairness.
Good to know before you go
- Parents expecting a typical recreational 'farm for kids' or light entertainment venue.
- Families who are uncomfortable with strict disciplinary actions, potentially including physical intervention or what children might perceive as punitive measures (e.g., forced labor, physical retaliation).
- Children who may not thrive in a highly structured environment where accountability and compliance are enforced with clear, and sometimes firm, consequences.
- One reviewer describes it as a 'horrible environment' and claims the 'school is not equipped to handle the kids that they claim to be helping.'
- An 8-year-old reviewer reported harsh disciplinary measures, including being made to push a wheelbarrow for 3 hours without a break, and a teacher throwing a large snowball back at them.
- Accessibility
- Addresses issues of bullying and racial discrimination, suggesting an inclusive focus on supportive environments for vulnerable children.
- Safety
- Operates with a structured disciplinary system to manage student misbehavior and non-compliance.
What parents say
"My daughter has had a hard time attending Teays valley East because of the bullying and her race. She has social anxiety she hasn’t gone to school in person for this school year except a few days. She really feels she will like this placement. The teachers and other workers are very helpful the kids seem very happy and eager to to their tasks."
a year ago
"Genuinely horrible environment for kids. School is not equipped to handle the kids that they claim to be helping. Only use as a last resort."
11 months ago
"They are so mean I go there and I hate it its stooped i throw a snowball at a teacher and they throw a snowball back at me in the face and it was a big snowball and I'm just 8 and I got in a little trouble and they made me push a wellbarel for 3 hours and they wouldn't leat me take a brake so u runaway and they cot me and I got in more trouble and I got back in class and I got in trouble for something I didn't do and they had no proof the only hade the kids lies si mean right"
a year ago
Reviews sourced from public Google data.