Page 45 - DistanceLearning

As an ESL teacher in Holmdel, New Jersey and age of canoodling either.
a mother of two, I have seen first-hand how But then Covid-19 happened, Our SPCA facilitated
connections with special-
helpful reading aloud can be to boost reading and like everything else, our ly-trained service dogs to
Read to a Dog time came to an
skills and English language acquisition. But I nev- end. Luckily, however, an as- come into my class once
er thought to add a dog into the equation. As it turns out, reading sistant principal, Jessica Vier- a month for one-on-one
to a dog can reap additional rewards for students learning to read. schilling, volunteered to contin- reading time with my ELLs.
I quickly learned about its benefits when I reached out to my local ue our Read to a Dog time with In no time, the students
SPCA about their Read to a Dog program for schools and librar- our ELLs and her dogs using were hooked as well.
ies. Research shows when students read to dogs, it improves their Google Meet. Now, every other
reading fluency, self-confidence, public speaking skills and their week, our students sign up for a scheduled time using a shared
attitude towards reading. Not to mention, it is a natural stress re- Google Doc. They pick a book from their home library or from one
liever. My first, second and third grade English Language Learners of our online resources. At their scheduled time, each student logs
need all of that. The ELLs in our program at Village Elementary into our “meeting” and reads to our Assistant Principal’s dogs, who
School represent six different languages with proficiency levels sit comfortably on their pet beds and look at the computer screen.
ranging from “entering” to “expanding” according to the WIDA A little petting and attention helps things go smoothly too.
standards. After reading some studies on the Read to a Dog pro- We haven’t done any studies on how much our ELLs’ skills have
gram and its advantages, I was hooked. improved as a result of the Read to a Dog program, nor if it has

Our SPCA facilitated connections with specially-trained service helped to relieve any stress. And of course, reading to a dog on a
dogs to come into my class once a month for one-on-one reading computer is not the same as reading to one in person, yet we are
time with my ELLs. In no time, the students were hooked as well. still seeing positive results. Our students are excited to read each
Each student picked out leveled reading books from our class time. Our students are carefully picking out books to enjoy. They
library to match their interests and reading level. Each child had are reading to the dogs with fluency and expression in their voices.
a designated amount of time in a private and cozy corner of the And in this current climate, who couldn’t benefit from a little one-
room with a dog and his owner. The children read their books and on-one time with a furry friend?
shared the pictures with their canine reading buddy. Fluency im-
proved and reading had an exciting purpose. There was no short-

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