Educational Programs for Schools, Libraries, Universities & Colleges

Children who enjoy reading have a world of joy and adventure at their fingertips. Making reading fun is a challenge for both educators and parents. A program that helps with this is “Children Reading to the Dogs”, offered worldwide by a number of therapy dog organizations.

Independent Therapy Dogs, Inc. offers a volunteer-driven reading program entitled “Ruff” Readers. This program is currently in place in several schools and libraries in San Diego County. The “Ruff” Reader program is provided free to schools, libraries or any other facility that wants a program designed to help children of all ages improve their reading skills. The program can also be incorporated into hospital pediatric wards to help kids learn while they recover.

The University of California at Davis, California did a study of a Children Reading to the Dogs program at libraries in Contra Costa County. They found that “elementary school students who read to dogs once a week for ten weeks showed reading fluency increased on average 36%. Below grade readers improved a startling 46%.”

“Ruff” Reader Teams of one handler + one dog are available for children to read with on a one-on-one basis. Therapy dogs help students relax, allowing them to learn more at a faster rate. Tests show comprehensive skills also improve when students are involved in “Ruff” Reader programs. Therapy dog Teams can also design classroom projects or activities to go along with class study phases throughout the year. And, some students have even started reading to their own dogs at home, which helps them progress even further!

Teachers have found inventive ways to use this program. It offers a new resource for students. It can be used as a reward for positive behavior. It can also be used to help with students who have learning challenges and/or behavioral issues.

Children sit with the dog and actually read their story to the dog. Each child gets from 10-20 minutes to read. The handler will gently encourage kids to sound out unknown words, or help them to pronounce those words to difficult to sound out. The child gets to hug or pat the dog through the entire process.

Grossmont Community College in El Cajon - Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) students are required to fulfill fieldwork hours for their course work. The Grossmont College OTA program has partnered with Independent Therapy Dogs, Inc. to assist students in meeting this requirement.

During the pediatric phase Grossmont OTA students had the unique opportunity to observe a variety of children of different ages and abilities interacting with therapy dogs through the "Ruff Reader" program which allows students to observe children in a specialized reading program within the classroom setting. Students saw the non-threatening and excepting manner of the dog and how this interaction inspires a child to want to read.

Future plans will have OTA students shadowing ITD, Inc. Teams in action in a variety of settings including hospitals, convalescent homes, active retirement communities and a variety of skilled nursing facilities.

Starting on August 1, 2012 and continuing through the entire month of August Independent Therapy Dogs, Inc. brings their "Ruff" Readers Program to the Marine Corps Recruiting Depot Library in San Diego.