The third graders at Erving Elementary School in Erving, Massachusetts, just finished a unit of study about therapy dogs and assistance dogs. James and I were invited to visit the third graders today so they could see a therapy dog in person.
James showed them what therapy dogs do best…. he walked into the classroom and politely greeted each student seated at his or her desk. After he had worked his way around the room of 20 students, he lay down at my feet while I talked to the students about Bright Spot Therapy Dogs – how these dogs are specially trained, then evaluated to become certified therapy dogs that visit in nursing homes, hospitals, schools, and lots of other places. 
Every student had prepared one or two questions to ask. Great questions! This was a group of doglovers, almost every student had a dog of their own – and a story to tell. Some had three, four, and five dogs. One question asked was: How old do you have to be to visit with a therapy dog? The answer: 18 years old. So – 9 years from now, I think we’ll see many former Erving Elementary School third graders out there visiting with their trained, certified therapy dogs thanks to their teacher who introduced them to this meaningful form of community service.
Thank you, Laura George, third grade teacher and photographer, for taking such great photos of this event.
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