Come to the library and read to a dog! Studies have shown that reading to dogs improves children's' reading skills. Please call 962-4003 to register your child for a time slot or for more information. We will supply the dogs, you bring the children!
The program is designed to help give kids a different motivation to read. Children will come to the activity room of the library and choose a dog to read to for about 10 minutes. In the presence of the dog, some children will feel more comfortable reading, and may try harder material or more difficult words. Children can bring their favorite book to share with the dog, or can choose from books provided by the library. Chairs and mats are provided, or you can bring your own pad or blanket to sit on. Make sure to call the library to reserve a reading time so that you don’t miss out on the fun!
Sponsored by the Kenton County Library
Co-sponsored by Friends of Kenton Paw Park
Children participating in the reading program will receive a certificate containing their reading dogs picture.
Below is a paper written by Dr. Valerie Wheat which explains the dog reading program.
Valerie J. Wheat, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences
Gateway Community and Technical College
(859) 442-4172
valerie.wheat@kctcs.edu
Animal-Assisted Literacy Education Programs
There is a new movement in literacy education aimed at helping students overcome fear and anxiety about reading aloud. When reading to a teacher, parent, or even a peer, reading students can become anxious and fear that even a small mistake will bring correction or ridicule. This new movement uses therapy dogs as the readers’ audience. Observation of a reader-therapy dog team working for as little as five minutes can show the visible signs of success of the idea. Children are more willing to work on harder material or words instead of just giving up. Tears of frustration turn to smiles as the student attempts to entertain the dog with the book they are reading. Most students even exhibit lessening of physical signs of stress while reading to a dog.
Most libraries and elementary schools are developing their own “animal-assisted literacy” programs. These can be as simple as inviting a few well-behaved dogs to the library on a Saturday and setting up 10-minute appointments for one-on-one reader-dog interactions. Some organizations have gone much further and have developed entire therapy dog programs aimed at education and literacy assistance. Links to websites of these organizations can be found below. In King County, Washington, there is a “Reading with Rover” program at each county library. An organization called Intermountain Therapy Animals hosts a program called READ Reading Education Assistance Dogs, who not only visit libraries but also visit schools. Their website contains extensive links to newspaper articles with interviews with participants of the program. They post a weekly schedule so that avid followers of the program know where to meet up with the therapy dogs at school or at the library.
The psychological research supports the idea of using pets to alleviate anxiety. One study looked at the effect of a pet present on the anxiety levels of college students reading aloud. They saw a reduction in anxiety in the presence of the pet when reading quietly aloud (J Nerv Ment Dis. 1991 Aug;179(8):482-9). There are also documented studies looking at the presence of dogs in the elementary school in counseling settings, although they did not specifically address the issue of reading anxiety (Elementary School Guidance and Counseling 1995 Feb 29(3):223-34). Another publication that I have not been able to review, although the title seems to lend itself to the subject, is “Behavior of children with learning disabilities interacting with a therapy dog” Anthrozoos 10 (2/3): 84-89.
The largest obstacle to starting an animal assisted literacy program is probably selecting appropriate dogs. Some organizations only use dogs specifically trained as therapy dogs. While there are benefits to this approach, I suggest another route to selecting the dogs to be used in the program. The reason that using certified therapy dogs is a good idea is that these dogs have been behavior tested in a variety of settings and found to be unaggressive and friendly. However, the testing used usually only confronts the animal with adult humans and medical equipment. Dogs who are friendly with children but simply afraid of an umbrella may not pass a therapy dog certification test, but would be ideal for a position in an animal assisted literacy program. I do recommend that the dogs invited into the program undergo behavioral testing. This can include the Canine Good Citizen Test, the Dog Scouts of America behavior test (which is more extensive) or a modified version of a therapy dog certification test. Each test should include an additional component that specifically addresses and emphasizes interactions with children. An orientation session should be planned that outlines rules for the dog-handler team. If appointments are set, they should be 10 to 15 minutes in length, and time should be allotted for bathroom breaks and walks outdoors for the therapy dog at the discretion of the handler. When students are enrolled into the program, they and their parents should be given a list of rules of how to treat the dogs, and should sign a waiver form for participation.
The following websites reference more extensive information covering the benefits of reading with dogs programs, and the way these individual programs have been implemented. A simple web search garners a large number of newspaper articles denoting the success of such programs, particularly in the eyes of happy participants and proud parents.
King County, Washington
Reading With Rover
http://www.readingwithrover.com/rover/
Salt Lake City, Utah
Intermountain Therapy
Animals
R.E.A.D. Reading Education Assistance Dogs
http://www.therapyanimals.org/read/ps-pa-02162000.html
Fidos for Freedom
D.E.A.R. Dogs Educating and Assisting Readers
http://www.fidosforfreedom.org/therapy-dogs/dear-teams/dear_intro.php
From their website, students have the ability to send an email to “their” DEAR Dog. This has proven to be a popular area of the website, according to program administrators.