Photo courtesy of the Upper Arlington Public Library
There’s an adage about teaching old dogs new tricks, but what about the other way around?
Dogs at the Upper Arlington Public Library are helping local children to read.
Reading can be an intimidating experience for kids, whether it’s sounding out letters or gaining confidence with tougher books. The UAPL’s Reading to Rover program gives children a receptive – and always patient – audience to grow their skills without stress: dogs.
“A dog isn’t going to judge them for mispronouncing a word or having trouble reading,” says Sue Emrick, the youth librarian at UAPL on Lane Road. “They might be intimidated by reading out loud in front of their peers or in a group, but with the dog, they’re much more relaxed.”
The Reading to Rover program invites Therapy Dogs International volunteers to bring in their dogs for reading time once a month. At a typical event, the dogs will show up with their owners, get comfortable and wait for the kids to arrive. Children arrive between 7-8 p.m. and stay for as long as they like.
The readers get to control how the event goes. Kids can pick their favorite dog to read to, bring their own book or borrow one there, and switch books or dogs if the furry face in front of them isn’t their preferred listener.
Photo courtesy of the Upper Arlington Public Library
“We let them dictate the flow of the program because we want them to feel successful in reading,” says Kate Albers, branch manager at Upper Arlington’s Miller Park library. “That really is what the program is about – them gaining that successful feeling about their reading skills.”
The program is recommended for children in grades K-5, but is open to other beginner readers and welcomes younger siblings to accompany, even if they’re not reading.
For young readers who aren’t used to being around pets, these dogs contribute to a calming environment and adjust to the energy level of each child. The dogs come already well-trained and adjusted to social settings from their backgrounds with Therapy Dogs International. However, the time with kids can be good for the dogs as well.
“It’s a wonderful experience for them to be around the other dogs, No. 1, but also to learn how to be with different types of children and read what the different types of children need from them,” Albers says. “The dogs tend to fill in whatever need that child has.”
Reading helps children in many aspects of their lives, Emrick says, and the program has been successful in helping young readers overcome their insecurities. Thanks to dogs, Reading to Rover has seen kids grow from shy readers to confident public speakers.
“The main reason we do it is we just want to give kids another place that they can comfortably practice their reading skills,” Emrick says. “It just seems to relax the kids.”
Reading to Rover takes place from 7-8 p.m. at the Miller Park library on the second Tuesday of each month and at the Lane Road library one Monday each month. Visit the event calendar at www.ualibrary.org for upcoming dates.
Cameron Carr is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
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