Celia Rodd began her Winnipeg Humane Society volunteer experience four years ago with a very benevolent purpose—she’s doing it for the kids.
A retired pediatric endocrinologist, she spent her career treating children with diabetes, stature issues, or puberty problems. Over the years, she became keenly interested in children’s literacy.
“I was the Founding Chair of the Early Literacy Program at the Children’s Hospital,” she said. “I knew that getting children to learn to read well by the time they’re in Grade 3 sets them up to be productive adults. And if you don’t have those reading skills mastered by the time you are in Grade 3 you can fall behind in so many areas of life.”
Several years ago, Celia read about the See Spot Read program at the WHS on the Manitoba Volunteer web page. “I told myself when I retire, this is what I want to do, and here I am,” she said.
See Spot Read is an animal companionship literacy-based program that benefits children struggling with their confidence when it comes to reading.
Dogs offer a judgment-free safe space for students to practice their reading skills. Children read aloud to the behaviour-assessed WHS Therapy dog for 10-week sessions and participate in activities designed to boost their enjoyment of using literacy skills.
Students spend half of the hour reading to a dog and the other half doing a fun literacy-based activity. When they participate at our shelter location, students also get to see what we do at the WHS to help animals. The Humane Society also hosts sessions at local Winnipeg libraries to help with the schools’ transportation concerns.
The goals of See Spot Read include having participants gain confidence as readers, build on their reading skills, and develop an increased interest in reading. But it also opens up kids’ eyes to the concept of pet ownership and can help reduce any fear or uncertainty about pets.
In the fall of 2020, newly retired Celia took her West Highland Terrier dogs Kena and Finn (both rescues) to the WHS for therapy dog training and testing. Kena, the older of the two dogs, passed right away and began See Spot Read participation immediately. Finn wasn’t ready yet because he was just too active. But he matured and within a couple of years, he passed and was being read to by children as well.
For close to two years, Celia took Kena one week and Finn the next week. “The kids enjoyed the contrast in the dogs,” explained Celia. “Kena was more docile and sometimes would softly snore while sitting next to the child. And Finn was more lively.”
Kena passed away last spring at the age of 15. Now, for three 10-week periods a year, Finn joins Celia once a week for See Spot Read.
“During the pandemic, we brought the dogs to the schools to work with the children,” Celia added. “There we would see maybe 100 kids in the hallway, and they would all be asking if they could pet the dog.”
Initially, some children are afraid of the dogs, Celia pointed out. “I’ve had a couple like that. At the start of the program, they feel they have to be maybe 10 feet away from the dog but by the end, they’re tightly hugging the dog and saying ‘I love dogs.’” Finn and Kena were less intimidating, Celia added, because they’re small and white. Some of the other dogs in the program are much larger and can initially be more intimidating. But by the end of the program, there are usually hugs for the dogs.
Celia said WHS staff is very supportive and the program is “nicely organized” with three volunteers working with their dogs and a den person who engages with the children. At the same time, three other children are doing related activities. After 30 minutes, the children reading to the dogs switch places with those participating in other activities for another half-hour.
Celia is a strong believer in the value of See Spot Read. Somebody once said, ‘Up until Grade 3 you are learning to read; after that, you are reading to learn,” she explained. “Reading is such a basic foundation and it’s important for me as a health care provider that people could read the information we give them. But there’s so much more in terms of jobs and other opportunities in life. So, I love dogs, I love reading. Reading is important and this program is just great.”