Coco spent another great week helping the students and staff at the Robert E. Melican Middle School. Here’s her report…
I went to school with Mom this week on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Things are certainly heating up as the year winds down. Mom says May and June tend to be that way, but she says I am helping students and staff remain calm.
Monday was great! It was so nice outside that I took many walks with students and Mom, students and the behavior specialist, and students and the guidance counselor. I was also able to spend a study period outside with students as they completed work. At the end of the day, Mom and I visited the sixth grade learning center, where students were more than happy to take a break and spend some time with me.
On Wednesday, I spent most of the day with the guidance counselor and the behavior specialist with lots of students. I started the day with Mom and the principal signing out MCAS materials to teachers after my obedience work. After school, Mom and I went to Greenfield, where we spent some time visiting a friend in the nursing home, and then attended class. Even though I was exhausted, Mom says I did pretty well in class. My sister, Sophie, and Dad did pretty well, too.
Thursday was an interesting day. I started early with Mom, working on obedience and delivering coverage slips to classroom. Next, I attended the combined Leadership Team – Academic Council Meeting. We had a visitor, Pamela Seigle from the Center for Courage and Renewal, for the day that was working with teachers and students, and wanted to talk to Mom about my work at school. After the early-morning meeting, Pamela met with the assistant superintendent, principal, Mom, and me. As usual, the assistant superintendent gave me a ton of attention, letting me kiss her on the mouth. I relaxed at her feet during the meeting, and she petted me.
After spending some time with the behavior specialist and students, I met with Mom and Pamela, who sat on the floor with me, petting me. She remarked about how calming it is to pet me, how we could all learn so much from dogs, and she applauded Mom and me for incorporating my calm and gentle ways into a middle school. I was able to take some walks and spend time with several students for the rest of the day.
After after-school activities, Mom brought me to the cafeteria to help her with late buses. There were between 35 and 40 students there, many of whom do not generally get to spend time with me. Everyone was excited to see me, swarming me, which I absolutely loved. Students took turns taking me for brief walks outside the cafeteria while we all waited for the late buses. I could feel how happy and excited the students were as they left after a long day.
Mom gave me Friday off. She said I had worked enough for the week and she wanted me to rest and relax before Saturday, when we will visit Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, and visit our friend in Greenfield. ~Coco