Central Library’s Paws-to-Read Program a Success

“Hi, my name is William, and this is the book I got you — Dogzilla,” the youngster told Humphrey, as he settled on the floor of a storytime room at Central Library to read aloud on a recent Monday. But Humphrey, William’s reading partner, isn’t a librarian or a teacher—he’s a half Bichon Frise, half King Charles Spaniel that participates in .

Twice a month on Mondays at Central Library, elementary school-aged children can sign up for a 15-minute session to read aloud to Humphrey or another trained therapy dog that attends the Paws-to-Read program along with volunteer handlers from People Animals Love (PAL), a local animal therapy organization.

On the night that William met Humphrey, the Paws-to-Read sessions were fully booked with a waiting list, said Julia Karell, the youth services librarian who coordinates Arlington’s Paws-to-Read program. As the dogs sat quietly on beds or towels, children read openly and clearly with few signs of self-consciousness as they occasionally sounded out new words. Kids scheduled for later time slots perused the books in the library’s children’s section for the perfect book to read aloud to their new canine friends.

Toni, a fourth grader who had attended two Paws-to-Read sessions, read Pirates Don’t Change Diapers to Humphrey, then second grader Gillian shared a story about a dog before William took his turn with Humphrey. Gillian’s mother said that she and her daughter planned to attend the next Paws-to-Read session.

In addition to Humphrey, the other dogs attending the session were Tavish, Petra and Cana. Tavish quickly became popular among the children participating in the evening’s sessions because of his exuberant licking of their faces and bodies. At the end of each reading block, each child received a bookmark featuring a photo of the dog he or she had read to and facts about that particular dog. Central Library also distributes bookmarks featuring all of the participating PAL dogs as a publicity tool for the Paws-to-Read program.

Dogs that participate in the program are certified through PAL after completing an orientation and supervised visits, said PAL volunteer Cynthia Power, Humphrey’s owner. The dogs should be friendly, quiet and obedient, she described.

Reflecting on the program’s success, Karell said, “We have lots of kids who are repeat attendees.” When it comes to choosing books, sometimes children pick books that are already familiar to them, while advanced readers may decide to choose new books, she explained. Books featuring dogs are popular choices, she added.

Karell said that the library plans to continue offering Paws-to-Read sessions based on PAL volunteer and handler availability.

In addition to Central Library, Columbia Pike Branch Library also began holding Paws-to-Read sessions recently, and the Shirlington Branch Library will soon implement the program, Karell reported.

For more details about Paws-to-Read or to learn how to register your child for a session, see http://arlingtonvalib.blogspot.com/2011/07/dogs-help-kids-learn-to-read.html.