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13 November 2014

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You are in: Northamptonshire > People > Your Stories > Reading to the dog

Scotts the dog being read to by some kids.

Some kids reading 4 Gran to Scotts

Reading to the dog

Young people learn to read with the helpful assistance of an ex-racing greyhound.

Scotts and his owner Tony Nevett will be travelling to schools around Northamptonshire, where children will be able to meet him.

He is the UK’s first trained Reading Education Assistant dog (READ). Children will get the chance to sit or stand while they read books to him, which works well with children who are shy or have special needs. Tony said, "Anything that helps to promote reading is a good thing for children".

Tony, Scotts and a young man reading.

"The reason why greyhounds are good is because they are placid, they don't have a doggy smell and they only have one coat of hair so they are good for children with allergies".

Using an animal is particularly good because they don't judge and by their very nature encourage people to be calm. Reading to animals can help some children build confidence and self esteem. All the work that Scotts and Tony do is voluntary.

Animal Assisted Therapy has been going on in America for a number of years with over 1400 teams there. Dogs, cats, rabbits and their owners go into hospitals and nursing homes and allow people to pet them. They also help in some physical therapies where a simple game of fetch can help someone build their upper body strength.

Scotts will be touring around schools in Northamptonshire including The Avenue School in Wellingborough.

last updated: 19/05/2009 at 11:22
created: 13/05/2009

You are in: Northamptonshire > People > Your Stories > Reading to the dog



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