READS Can Mean More Than Reading
By Nancy Hoke, Kindly Canines Handler

Most of us know about READS.  Therapy dogs go to meet with children in their setting be it school, library, Boys and Girls Club, or Day Care, and the children read to the dogs.  Research has shown that children can improve reading scores this way, but the magic that happens between the dogs and the children can’t be measured.  In a fifth grade classroom we visit, something else happened: one little girl found a way to blossom in a way we least expected.  Her name is La’Keisha and she can be seen in the picture on the left.

            My Kindly Canines READS Teams arrived at Scotland Elementary School the last Friday of February anticipating another afternoon with students reading their library books to their canine friends.  The kids often brought a writing assignment to read in addition to their books, but that day La’Keisha brought a story she wrote and illustrated entitled, Puppies Have a Daycare Too.

            I immediately knew we had to do something special for this child who responded very positively to the attention and praise we had for her story.  I approached her teacher and her Guidance Counselor about the possibility of having the story bound into a children’s book that La’Keisha could present to the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter.  They were willing to prepare the book, and I contacted the Kindly Canines President to begin planning a way to make this all happen. 

            On May 16, 2007, La’Keisha presented her book to Jennifer Vanderau, Community Outreach Coordinator of the Animal Shelter.  The small gathering included her family and friends in addition to school, Kindly Canines and Shelter representatives.   A “VIP” tour of the facility followed the presentation, as this was the first visit La’Keisha made to the Shelter. 

            La’Keisha gave me a personal copy of her book, and I took it with me the next day when I went to a Pennwriters Conference in Pittsburgh where writers from all over the state would be gathered.  My intent was to have the book reviewed by a friend who works with high school student writers and is now publishing an annual compilation of their stories.  By the end of the weekend, I had shown La’Keisha’s book to friends, many of whom are published authors, and they wrote personal notes of encouragement and praise to her.  Their enthusiasm for her work validated what I believe about this child’s gifts and abilities.

            When our Kindly Canines READS Team returned to Scotland the end of May for our last visit of the year, I had a gift for La’Keisha:  an album with pictures from the day of her presentation, and the collection of notes from the authors.  It isn’t clear as to who was more excited that afternoon, as the teacher and classroom assistants quickly recognized the album contained much more than published author autographs.  Before we left that day, the teacher was discussing plans to make a library and bookstore search for some of those authors. 

            When we, READS Teams, enter into the life of a child through our work with our canine “therapists,” we always know much more happens than seeing a child read to a dog.  We may not always realize such an immediate outcome from that relationship as occurred with La’Keisha, but we must keep in mind that we do have an exceptional opportunity to make a difference in the child’s life.  In that is the blessing.