Celebrating Reading with Furry Friends! by Mary Noschese

Celebrating Reading with Furry Friends! 

by Mary Noschese

Personal Experience and Dreams

Bringing reading dogs to my classroom has been a decade-long dream for me. My late mother, Joanne, a special education and elementary teacher herself, brought many reading dogs to her school throughout her long career. My sister, Ann, and I always try to find ways to honor her through her love of reading, children, and dogs. Now, that love of reading (and dogs) lives on as her legacy reignites at WPSD! 

Reading Dogs

Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.)Ⓡ are trained therapy dogs with even more training than the typical therapy dog. They are taught to sit quietly for extended periods of time, look at a book, and pay attention as students read aloud. Children who take part in this type of reading program have improved their reading skills and confidence. They can read at a faster rate, concentrate longer, and increase their reading comprehension. Reading to dogs helps students relax and enjoy the reading experience. 

The Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf

The Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf (WPSD), a non-profit, tuition-free school, provides academic and extracurricular programs to deaf and hard of hearing children from birth through twelfth grade. Founded in 1869, WPSD continues its tradition of excellence through services to children across Pennsylvania. WPSD’s barrier-free, all-inclusive communication environment meets the needs of the individual student. American Sign Language, Sign Supported English, and Spoken English are all incorporated to promote the academic, social, emotional, and physical development of our students. 

Read Across America for Older Readers

Every year, the WPSD middle school ELA team adapts Read Across America day for their more mature readers. Students read books, classroom magazines, passages, or articles throughout the morning. They create a *Thinking Map to show what they have learned from their reading (**student work below). Each map earns them 5 tickets to enter the change drawing for different prizes. Students can also earn tickets by reading with a friend who needs support or taking an Accelerated Reader quiz from their library books. Students have a chance to win many different prizes from gift cards and graphic novels to sports equipment and other teen-trending accessories. 

Furry Friends

In February of this year, the WPSD Middle School ELA teachers prepared a fun and surprising unit for their students! Each class read about all kinds of dogs: working dogs, guide dogs, therapy dogs, search and rescue dogs, police dogs, fire dogs, military dogs, and even R.E.A.D dogs! Students created different types of research projects and presented them to their peers. Unbeknownst to them, they were preparing for their surprise guests for Read Across America Day. On March 3rd, the Humane Animal Rescue and Animal Friends surprised our students with their teams of READING DOGS! These lucky and very grateful students spent time reading to Lyric, Tigger, Clancy, and Captain Crunch (“Cappy”) in a safe and non-judgmental environment. Students could relax and practice their reading skills in the company of a soft and cuddly friend. Each dog earned many belly scratches and hugs for their patience and listening skills. It truly was a terrific experience, and PAWesome memories were made! Our students had a great time reading to such a loving, attentive non-judgmental audience.  

How to Bring Reading Dogs to Your School

Does this sound like an event you would like to host at your school? The first thing I did was write a small proposal to our administrators for permission to host this type of event. After the pandemic, I saw that our middle school age students could really benefit from an experience like this, and our administration agreed! I started by contacting a close colleague of mine that volunteers at the Humane Animal Rescue and Animal Friends. She reached out, and several dog teams responded! We were so thrilled to have groups from each organization come to read with us. 

We were thrilled to have WTAE-TV capture this magical event!  Check out their wonderful story!

*Thinking Maps© are similar to graphic organizers; which promote student activity, in that they are visual representations, but they do much more than that. They are visuals that support representations of an actual thought process. Thinking Maps© are visuals of our eight cognitive processes we use to make sense of the world. Created by Dr. David Hyerle, each of the eight maps are linked to specific higher order thinking patterns. Dr. Hyerle states that “Thinking Maps are eight fundamental thinking skills defined and animated by maps and introduced as a common visual language for thinking and learning across whole learning communities.” They help students become aware of and create mental operations in their learning environment. They do not work only for students. Thinking Maps© are great for educators, as well. These maps aid in the writing process and for planning instruction. 

**Student work: As you can see, these Thinking Map scaffolds can be modified to fit all level readers. Some students could draw their story, while others could develop their own categories and details. 

Author Bio:

Mary Noschese is in her twentieth year as an ELA Middle School Teacher, Reading Specialist, and Instructional Coach. She has spent most of her career at WPSD, helping students find their love for reading. She is currently a second year doctoral student at Indiana University of Pennsylvania for Curriculum and Instruction. She loves exploring and traveling with her husband Aaron, daughter Lucy Jo, and big red dog Copper.