Eight-year-old Rosie Pollack refused to read out loud until she was introduced to some nonjudgmental listeners—furry friends at The Jewish Library of Baltimore.
The dogs, known as Mitzvah (Hebrew for “good deed”) Mutts, appear at a monthly program that is especially helpful for children who are struggling with their reading skills.
The Jewish Library of Baltimore isn’t the only organization using animals to inspire reading. The Baltimore Humane Society and other area libraries have also tapped into this phenomenon with reading programs that are gaining popularity with kindergartners to middle schoolers.
“It was designed for struggling readers, kids who don’t read often and kids who could just use some reading practice,” says Jessica Fink, executive director of The Jewish Library of Baltimore. The program is attended by a diverse group of children and parents.
“We also have some kids that come because they are scared of dogs. They are working their way to getting closer and closer to the dogs,” Fink says.
As for Rosie, she has progressed from reading a couple of pages per session to well over 50 pages, according to her mother.
“She’s just so excited to be there,” says her mother, Chana Dena Pollack of Pikesville. “I’m so thrilled that she really looks forward to it and is happy to go.”
“I love dogs, and I love to help them because they love this,” says Rosie, who attends Ohr Chadash Academy in Baltimore.
Pets on Wheels, among its many programs, brings certified therapy dogs to libraries for reading sessions, which parents book in advance. On the first Tuesday of the month, they provide the Mitzvah Mutts that come to The Jewish Library of Baltimore.
Pets have been shown to have a calming effect on people and reading to them can be a relaxing and enjoyable experience for children, says Gina Kazimir, executive director of Pets on Wheels. The organization’s Paws to Read program is active in three dozen libraries across the state.
This can be especially helpful for children who are experiencing stress or anxiety. Reading to pets can provide a sense of comfort and security, and it can help children feel more relaxed and at ease, Kazimir said.
“The dogs are relaxing and concentrating on the story so much that they’ll fall asleep as the kids read to them,” she says.
The pets are docile and leashed. Their owners are always nearby with treats and water. “The dogs, for the most part, are sitting still and ready to be read to,” Fink says.
Research shows that pets can be beneficial to young readers. In a National Institutes of Health study, regular participation in a read-to-a-pet program increased the desire of children to read and search on their own for a book.
“We have children who have started as struggling readers and now are confident and able to pick up books at higher levels,” Fink says. “The pets give them more of an incentive to read. We see kids have less anxiety being around dogs. We see so many benefits.”
Reading to a shelter pet at the Baltimore Humane Society “builds confidence and helps kids become great readers,” says Alexa Jones, marketing and public relations director. “It also gives that one-on-one attention to shelter dogs and cats. That human companionship is there for them to share with one another.
“Every animal deserves to feel comforted and loved,” Jones says. “Just being around a human, just being able to be there physically with them and pet them and talk to them, it really just helps them while they’re here in kennels at the shelter.
“There’s something about the tone of the reading or the reading process that affects the animals in some way. I believe that it’s just them sitting right there on a stool with the dogs through the kennel doors and the child making eye contact with them and focusing on reading.
“You never know if these animals lived with children before,” Jones says. “Maybe they love kids or it’s just a relationship they can develop while sitting there and knowing that a kid wants to read with them. There’s an opening, an opportunity to show that these little humans running around are pretty great too.”
The Baltimore Humane Society recommends signing up for a reading session on their website. Participants bring their own reading material. Weekdays, when the shelter is less crowded, is preferred. The program is popular with youth groups like Boy and Girl Scouts.
Pet owner Suzie Levin has brought her dog, Mooshu, a Japanese Chin, to the reading program at The Jewish Library of Baltimore and other libraries for the past 13 years.
“I’ve seen kids who were struggling with their reading just grow with their skills,” Levin says. “And the program is for kids at all reading levels. Some don’t need any assistance at all. Some are more challenged.”
Reading to pets helps children develop empathy and compassion, Jones says. Children can learn to be more patient and understanding as they observe the dogs’ reactions to their reading.
Reading to pets can also be a fun and engaging activity that can spark children’s imagination and creativity, Kazimir said. Children can choose books that they are interested in and read them to their pets, creating their own stories and adventures. This can help children develop their creativity and imagination, and it can foster a love of reading that can last a lifetime.
“It’s wonderful when libraries do this,” Kazimir says. “Watching kids read to animals is a very special thing. We really love it when the libraries have a little bit of distance from their child because parents often get very anxious especially when their child is not very skilled at reading or they’re having some challenges and they want to try to help. Pets don’t help. They’re just right there, and they enjoy what’s happening, and that gives the kids a chance to discover reading as an activity that isn’t demanding, that doesn’t require that they be perfect.”
