The mission of the R.E.A.D.® program is to improve the literacy skills of children through the assistance of registered therapy teams as literacy mentors.
The Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.) program improves children’s reading and communication skills by employing a powerful method: reading to a dog. But not just any dog. R.E.A.D. dogs are registered therapy animals who volunteer with their owner/handlers as a team, going to schools, libraries and many other settings as reading companions for children.
Today, hundreds of registered R.E.A.D. teams work throughout the United States and Canada. R.E.A.D. is one of those ideas that, in the words of Bill Moyers, “pierces the mundane to arrive at the marvelous.”
Intermountain Therapy Animals, a nonprofit organization, launched R.E.A.D. in 1999 as the first comprehensive literacy program built around the appealing idea of reading to dogs, and the program has been spreading rapidly and happily ever since!
Other R.E.A.D.® News and Information
The R.E.A.D. Brochure
Download the R.E.A.D. brochure here (Adobe Acrobat, 117 KB)
R.E.A.D.® Presentations
ITA's Kathy Klotz presented R.E.A.D. to teachers and reading specialists at the 22nd Annual Technology, Reading & Learning Difficulties International Conference January 29-31, 2004 in San Francisco, California. Keeping the focus on Technology, Reading & Learning Difficulties, TRLD 2004 shows new topics and state-of-the-art technology to help people with reading and/or learning difficulties.
The presenters demonstrated R.E.A.D., a program designed to improve the literacy skills of children in a unique approach: reading to a dog. Intermountain Therapy Animals is the first to build a structured literacy program around this classic idea, with models for schools, libraries, and other settings. R.E.A.D. uses volunteers with registered therapy animals that are tested and trained for temperament, skills, and health. Children who have participated in R.E.A.D. have shown dramatic gains in reading levels and impressive improvement in self-esteem and other social skills, as well.
ITA member Sandi Martin and Dana Tumpowsky, Director of Public Relations at the Salt Lake City Library, made a presentation on R.E.A.D. to a packed house at the Public Library Association's annual conference in Seattle, Washington on Friday, February 27th.
R.E.A.D. training will be going on the road starting this summer, as ITA presents workshops as part of Delta Society's regional workshops all around the country.
We are thrilled with these opportunities to share the wonders of R.E.A.D. with interested people across the country!
Created: March 1, 2004 by Intermountain Therapy Animals
Other R.E.A.D.® press and articles
- Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D. ) Frequently Asked Questions
- Libraries and Schools that ITA R.E.A.D. Teams Visit
- "Tails for Tea"
- R.E.A.D. Training Package a Success!
- R.E.A.D. Program - 'Tails From The Field'
- READING IS FUN-DOG-MENTAL
- R.E.A.D. Featured on Westminster Dog Show Broadcast
- R.E.A.D. Associate Programs and Regional Workshops
- ITA Wins Major Award
- Purchase a Lucinda pin and support the R.E.A.D. program!
Press and Articles
A page of references to recent press and articles about Reading Education Assistance Dogs.
Links
Links to other Reading Education Assistance Dogs and literacy resources on the Internet.
R.E.A.D. Photos
Photos of Reading Education Assistance Dogs at work.
R.E.A.D.® Program Contacts:
For more information about R.E.A.D., please contact Intermountain Therapy Animals at 801-272-3439