I am a volunteer of Story Dogs. Rosie and I began our Story Dogs journey at a local elementary school in Term 2 this year.

Story Dogs is based on the successful American literacy program, Reading Education Assistance Dogs, which was built around the appealing idea of children and young adolescents reading to dogs.

Reading sessions take place in a quiet area of the school grounds, such as the library or outside the classroom. A reading session is about 20 minutes long, where each child is one-on- one with the dog team. Books are chosen to suit the student’s reading level.

Jayon, a Year 2 student, is such a good boy as everyone likes. No one is perfect. Jayon, however, wanted nothing to do with reading! That made Jayon’s teachers and parents feel helpless. His wonderful teacher used all kinds of teaching methods, but none of them improved. At the same time, his parents trembled with his reading performance. Jayon struggled to stay focused, which meant he was disinterested in his school work... until he met Rosie!

When Jayon first came to read with us, I noticed a few things about his reading. For example, he would guess the words and become distracted very easily. He was unable to hold the book still, which would obviously make it difficult for him to read and he would lose interest very quickly, which meant I would have to read to him.

So I came up with a plan. I decided I would hold the book instead and point to each word and helped him to sound the words out instead of guessing. To keep him focused and still, I asked him to pat Rosie’s back, which helped keep his hands busy. Rosie certainly didn’t mind a bit!

Using these methods, Jayon’s reading improved every week! He developed a beautiful bond with Rosie and she would show him so much love and affection! She knew he needed her and it was lovely to watch them together. With weeks passing by, Jayon’s enthusiasm for reading became stronger.

Jayon finally loved reading.

I was told that Jayon would receive the Growth Award at the end of year.