Kids build reading confidence with the help of a 4-pawed audience
“Ready to go read to the doggos?”It’s not a question most 5-year-olds hear before story time, but Noah Witter isn’t reading to most audiences.Today, his listeners are covered in fur, and unlike some kindergarten classmates, they never talk during the story.”Some of them are cute and, uh, fluffy,” Noah said.It’s no wonder Maricopa County, Arizona, Animal Care and Control’s reading program has become one of summer’s most unique classrooms.”It really gets him to open up and want to read books,” Noah’s mother said.Throughout the month of June, kids like Noah have sharpened their literacy skills while dogs waiting for adoption get some much-needed attention.”Animals are a little bit more comforting to him, and it gets him to read the text a lot easier. He’s a lot more engaged in the book,” his mother said. “Reading out loud in class can be a little intimidating. Reading out loud to a dog, they’re just happy you’re there.”The best part: no book reports and no grades, just a growing confidence and wagging tails, leaving most wishing they could take one home right then and there.“Every time we come, we take pictures,” she said.By the end of each session, it’s hard to tell who’s enjoying it more — the child discovering their voice or the pup feeling a little less alone.
“Ready to go read to the doggos?”
It’s not a question most 5-year-olds hear before story time, but Noah Witter isn’t reading to most audiences.
Today, his listeners are covered in fur, and unlike some kindergarten classmates, they never talk during the story.
“Some of them are cute and, uh, fluffy,” Noah said.
It’s no wonder Maricopa County, Arizona, Animal Care and Control’s reading program has become one of summer’s most unique classrooms.
“It really gets him to open up and want to read books,” Noah’s mother said.
Throughout the month of June, kids like Noah have sharpened their literacy skills while dogs waiting for adoption get some much-needed attention.
“Animals are a little bit more comforting to him, and it gets him to read the text a lot easier. He’s a lot more engaged in the book,” his mother said. “Reading out loud in class can be a little intimidating. Reading out loud to a dog, they’re just happy you’re there.”
The best part: no book reports and no grades, just a growing confidence and wagging tails, leaving most wishing they could take one home right then and there.
“Every time we come, we take pictures,” she said.
By the end of each session, it’s hard to tell who’s enjoying it more — the child discovering their voice or the pup feeling a little less alone.
