Tucker, a sweet, docile Great Dane, headed back to his reading corner in the library at the Westhampton Elementary School (WES) today where he meets one-on-one with students to listen as each reads him a story or two. Tucker and his pal, Lilo, also a Great Dane, both spend a lot of time at WES. They meet with students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, 3rd grade, 4th and 5th grade. Tucker covers one day of readers and Lilo covers another. Each child is assigned a day to read to the dog. He then prepares for his reading day by selecting a book which he practices reading at home. This is the second year the Bright Spot Reading Buddy Program is running at Westhampton Elementary. Reading Buddy Lily, a gentle English Setter, will start working with the 1st and 2nd graders at WES next Tuesday.
The Bright Spot Reading Buddy Program has spread to schools in the western Massachusetts towns of Haydenville, Sunderland, Whately, and West Springfield. Trained Reading Buddy teams will be heading to the elementary schools there as the success of this unique, all-inclusive program – that promotes a love of reading – continues to grow.
All dogs participating in the Bright Spot Reading Buddy Program are certified through Bright Spot Therapy Dogs, Inc, and have received special training to become certified Bright Spot Reading Buddies. All Reading Buddy Teams are covered by Bright Spot volunteer liability insurance. Visit our website to learn more about our special Bright Spot Reading Buddy Program.