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All Ears Reading Webinar

  • May 12, 2011
  • PetSmart Charities Online Webinar
All Ears Reading® Program

A FREE online webinar brought to you in part by APHE
Register at http://petsmartcharities.webex.com
 
Presented by: 
Mary Jo Bernardo, Chief Operation Officer, Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation; Dr. Martin Smith, Program Director, Animal Ambassadors, UC Davis; Cheryl Meehan, Researcher, Consultant, UC Davis

Three opportunities to attend this 2-hour webinar:
Monday, May 9:  6:00 a.m. Hawaii; 9:00 a.m. pacific; 10:00 a.m. mountain; 11:00 a.m. central; 12:00 p.m. eastern

Tuesday, May 10:  7:00 a.m. Hawaii; 10:00 a.m. pacific; 11:00 a.m. mountain; 12:00 p.m. central; 1:00 p.m. eastern

Thursday, May 12:  8:00 a.m. Hawaii; 11:00 a.m. pacific; 12:00 p.m. mountain; 1:00 p.m. central; 2:00 p.m. eastern
 
Description:
Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) is a directed process that is designed to promote improvement in the physical, social, emotional, and/or cognitive functioning of human participants. Multiple benefits of interacting with animals have been reported for children, including reduction in distress during mildly stressful activities, improved self-esteem, and improved motor skills. Animal-assisted therapy has been applied in education settings with a wide range of positive results including reduced heart rate when reading aloud, improved attentiveness and cooperation with adult teachers, and improved student self-esteem.

Reading is an essential skill in order for full participation in today’s society. However, outcomes from a national reading assessment have revealed that more than 50% of U. S. students demonstrate incomplete mastery of the skills necessary for reading proficiency. There is a growing need to find alternative strategies to improve reading success by increasing motivation and engagement in the learning process, and introducing canine companions to reading practice is one promising avenue for addressing this need.  In addition, creating opportunities for positive interactions with dogs may serve a further purpose by facilitating the development of positive attitudes towards animals.

This webinar will present the results of two studies conducted to determine the impacts of the All Ears Reading® on reading fluency and attitudes toward animals among elementary aged students in traditional classroom and home-school settings. The All Ears Reading® program was developed by Tony LaRussa’s Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) and this workshop is presented in partnership with researchers from the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis.

 
This presentation is brought to you in part by the Association of Professional Humane Educators (APHE).
For more information about how webinars work, or to set up a test run to make sure your computer is set up and ready to go, please feel free to contact Suzy Hayton at shayton@petsmartcharities.org.

© Association of Professional Humane Educators