We all know stories of a special connection between children and dogs, where the sensitivity and delivery of animals has helped the little ones to overcome difficulties, emotional problems or even to improve their diseases.
Encourage the Self-esteem and reading skills of some children with problems It is Nora's goal, a five-year-old Golden dog trained to read with children and that is part of the "READ - Dogs and Letters" project.
Reading dogs, confident children
For a week, students at Jorge Juan de Fene School, in La Coruña, receive a visit from Nora every morning, a dog accompanied by her trainer goes through the classrooms picking up students with reading difficulties, with lack of self-confidence or with other specific problems such as autism spectrum disorders or language disorders.
Its mission in this school, until next June, is that of accompany the children while reading stories, helping to improve your verbal fluency, concentration and vocabulary and improving your confidence and self-esteem.
The little ones see in Nora a friend who finds them patient, who does not interrupt and who does not judge or laugh at them if they are wrong, and this motivates them especially to continue reading despite their difficulties.Nora is part of the "READ - Dogs and Letters" project, an association that was born in 1999 in the United States and that little by little it has been extended to other countries until it reaches Spain, where it carries out projects in Albacete, Alicante, Castellón, Galicia, La Rioja, Las Palmas, Murcia, Madrid and Zaragoza.
They work with several dogs in schools and libraries, because the objectives of the project are both therapeutic and animation and promotion of reading habits among children. They are also carrying out a research project with the Complutense University of Madrid, to validate the efficacy of animal-assisted therapies.
Results of the project
At the moment, the schools that have worked with the "READ - Dogs and Letters" project talk about great benefits for students, such as:
They reinforce their self-esteem and gain self-confidence when reading dogs without interruption, pressures or judgments.
Show a greater motivation and enthusiasm for reading, something that in children with language problems or reading difficulties is an important step.
Be encourages interaction and communication, sharing experiences, asking about the dog that accompanies them and socializing with other children.
They improve your concentration, since all his eagerness is to read the dog as long as possible during the therapy.
You feel confident, relaxed and calm Because it creates a warm and comfortable environment that leads children to think that the dog really understands them and likes what they read.
Children should read aloud, with all the benefits that this entails.
In the case of students with ASD, those responsible for the educational centers that have worked with these dogs say that the therapy helps them improve eye contact, interaction (because they caress and hug the animal) and regulate the volume of their voice .
But apart from all these therapeutic benefits, there is also an emotional benefit that directly impacts the small reading habit, because the special bond that is created leads students to face the moment of reading in a natural, relaxed and fun way.
And in parallel to all these, through dogs, children learn to love and respect animals and interact with and care for them.
The "healing power" of dogs
It is not the first time that we echo the healing power of pets and the so special relationship that is established between children and dogs, and that has led us to witness precious stories of help and mutual improvement.
We have seen how dogs can become a great help for children with chronic diseases, how they accompany and calm them, or how they are even able to detect health problems.
And it is that these faithful companions of adventures of the little ones always remain by their side, they give everything without asking anything in return and on many occasions they help them to overcome fears, to foster their self-esteem or, as in this case, to instill in them the reading habit from accompaniment and listening.
Via Antena 3
In Babies and More The moving story between an adopted child and his inseparable Labradoodle dog that look like brothers, The precious story of a child with vitiligo and a dog united by the same disease, Sometimes a pet is a necessity: the child who sneaks at her neighbor's house to hug her dog
