More than 300 children and adults gathered on Gilroy Prep School’s playground June 11, forming a large circle around a very special guest of honor. At the center of the circle sat Booker, a 4-year-old golden haired comfort retriever patiently eying his smiling audience as the crowd burst forth in song wishing their favorite canine a happy birthday.
Booker, a registered therapy animal with the Reading Education Assistance Dogs program, and his owner, Gilroy resident Donna Pettit, volunteer as a team and serve as reading companions for children.
“Gilroy Prep just kind of dropped in my lap,” Pettit said of the encounter that led her to the school.
When a school associate approached the two in downtown Morgan Hill, Pettit explained that Booker was a reading assist dog. Soon after that initial meeting, Booker and Pettit made their debut appearance at Gilroy Prep.
“When Booker and Donna walk onto campus, it brightens everyone’s day, adults and children alike,” said Karen Humber, resource teacher and one of the school’s three founders.
By reading to a dog, children’s reading and communication skills improve and help increase their love for books and reading.
“When I first met Booker and Miss Donna, I was a little bit nervous,” said Santiago Segura, 9. “But then I started to read and Booker would listen.”
The undivided attention of a special reading buddy like Booker provides the core element of motivation that some kids need to want to read.
Jennifer Hiser, mother of one of Booker’s readers and first grade English language arts teacher at the school, said her son Jason can’t wait to pick out a book when he knows it’s Booker’s reading day.
“The best part about the R.E.A.D. program is the one-on-one consistency with the same students,” Pettit explained. “This is called AAT—animal assisted therapy.”
Marco Salazar, 9, explained the success of AAT in his own way.
“He helps a lot of people read if they have problems with reading,” he said. “You get to cuddle with him and
hug him.”
Booker’s readers consist primarily of students in second, third and fourth grades. Through the help they receive by reading to Booker their chances for continued success in school multiply.
When ELA teacher Jessie Hill discovered Booker’s birthday coincided with the end of the school year, she decided it was the perfect time to celebrate their furry friend’s special day.
“It was fun work,” Hill said. “We couldn’t have asked for it to go
any better.”
Booker, surrounded by a throng of children and his tail wagging out of control, led Pettit to her conclusion of his take on the birthday bash.
“I think he’s a very happy doggie,” she said. N
