A little boy sat on his mom’s lap as he read a book to a poodle and sounded out words during the Vancouver Community Library’s Read to the Dogs event Wednesday.
Every second Wednesday of the month, the Vancouver Community Library, 901 C St., hosts the two-hour event for youth ages 5 to 9. Kids choose whichever book they want to read aloud to one of the three certified therapy dogs.
“It helps kids practice reading out loud in a nonjudgmental setting,” said Molly Blalock, the Vancouver branch manager.
For a while, Blalock said, only two dogs were part of the program, but a third was added at Wednesday’s event. Gigi the 8-year-old poodle started coming to the event with her handler in 2018. Later, the corgi Teifi, 3, joined the program. The newest addition is Nutmeg, the friendly 6-year-old golden retriever rescue.
Read to the dogs
Read to the Dogs events are held Mondays through Thursdays at various FVRLibraries branches in Southwest Washington. For a complete schedule, visit clbn.us/ReadtotheDogs
Each dog settled on a blanket next to its handler awaiting a child.
Teifi’s first reader, Jesse Rader, 8, of Vancouver, laid beside the corgi and read “The Very Worst Ever.” Teifi looked enthralled by Jesse’s every word.
One third-grader grabbed the book “Puppy Cam” and sat in front of Nutmeg. As he started to read, Nutmeg perked her head up to listen. The word “squirrel” got the dog’s attention. She got up, started wagging her tail and licked her handler’s face.
Each family spent 15 minutes with one of the dogs, assigned to them first come, first served by Traci Escher, a senior library assistant who runs the event.
“Some of them are barely reading. Others are reading very well,” Escher said.
“It’s a place where there’s no judgment.”
The event at the Vancouver Community Library dates back to before the switch to its C Street location in 2011. Other branches also host a read-to-dogs event, including La Center, Cascade Park, Three Creeks, Ridgefield, Washougal and Woodland.
Oftentimes, kids will attend the program to help them read in English, Escher said.
Students attending Franklin Elementary’s Mandarin-language program frequently participate in the read-to-dogs events, Escher said. They may speak English as their first language but enjoy the practice reading aloud in their native tongue because their focus at school is on Mandarin, she said.
“We hear over and over about how the therapy dogs with their calm presence inspire confidence in readers who are just starting out,” Blalock said.
