Grove students find benefits in reading to dogs

Charles M. Schultz, the creator of the much-loved comic strip "Peanuts," is credited with saying, "Happiness is a warm puppy." Anyone who has witnessed the mutual delight of dogs and children interacting might find it hard to disagree.

Research indicates Animal Assisted Therapy can lead to a drop in stress hormones and an increase in healthful ones, behavioral improvement, and modeling of positive relationships.

An example of this can be seen with the Read to the Dog program at Grove Junior High in Elk Grove Township Elementary District 59. The dogs are provided by Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy, the largest animal assisted therapy program in the Chicago area.

Read to the Dog was brought to District 59 by Lynne Donald, an Educational Life Skills Teacher at Grove Junior High. Donald herself owned a certified therapy dog and she thought ELS students would benefit from the program. Among children who participate in such programs, studies have shown a 12 percent increase in fluency, increases in motivation and engagement, improved mood, and decreases in anxiety and blood pressure.

Twice a month, 20 students read to dogs from Animal Assisted Therapy. Most students who attend the sessions are from the education life skills and English language learners programs at Grove. Those who participate have shown great enthusiasm and enjoy sharing their experiences with classmates and teachers.

"Mrs. Donald provided a well thought out plan with clear rationale for her ideas, so it just made good sense to implement it," said John Harrington, principal of Grove Junior High. "I wholeheartedly support this kind of innovative and creative thinking that allows us to better serve our students' needs."