Quotes

• Speech by the Hon. JAN BURNSWOODS
  ”People who do not achieve literacy early are presented with incredible difficulties later in life. Probably most of us have had the experience of meeting an adult person who is illiterate and we have gained some understanding of just how difficult life is. If these basic building blocks are not provided, not only in the early years of school but through a range of interlocking programs prior to a child going to school, then the children who are likely to have difficulties will have difficulties. I finish by repeating the statistics that the social issues committee used not only in the report I referred to but also in other reports, that is, that a dollar spent on early intervention, or a dollar spent on those basic building blocks, saves $8 spent later by a community on a range of different remedial programs, including, of course, in our prisons. There can be no doubt that literacy and numeracy programs are amongst the most important things we can do”.
  Note: Jan Burnswoods was a Labor Member of the NSW Legislative Council from 1991 to 2007.

• More suffer life-harm from illiteracy than from parental abuse, accidents, and all other childhood diseases and disorders combined (Whitehurst, 2003).

• Low literacy leads to early school leaving (Business Council, 2003)

Dog-themed Children's Books

Resources For Parents

• Some useful resources for parents to help their children become better readers:
  Reading Magic – Mem Fox
  Rocket Your Child into Reading – Jackie French
  The Reading Bug and How to Help Your Child to Catch it – Paul Jennings
  The Ultimate First Book Guide – Books for 0 -7 year olds. – Leonie Flynn, Daniel Hahn & Susan Reuben

Links

• Click here if you would like to read about what teachers have to say about the Sit Stay Read program operating in Chicago.

• Article: ‘Tales from the Field’ has more information about the R.E.A.D program in the USA.

• Information about the NSW Reading Recovery program

  National Assessment program – how are our kids going?

  Reading Education Assistance Dogs web site

  Sit Stay Read website

  uniDap Solutions website

  roofDog graphics website

  Tweed River Canine Club web site

  Bambrick media web site

  Friends of the Pound

  Friends of the Hound

Story Dogs is seeking more volunteers who have a well behaved, obedient, child friendly dog and would like to spend a few hours a week helping kids discover the love of reading.

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Articles

• Article: ‘Dogs helping children to read’
  Joy Heath, a teacher at Menai Primary School in NSW takes her Labrador cross dog, Reg, into the classroom.  Joy also credits Reg with helping children with learning difficulties in the class.  She states that “the children are more attentive and eager to learn; it also helps their language and self expression” (Adapted from: Dogs’ Life Magazine issue 86 Nov/Dec 2007)

• August 2010 - Story Dogs now at Centaur Primary

  

• August 2010 - Kingscliff vet sponsors two dog teams!

  

• July 2010 - ‘Honey’ and Liz start at Centaur Primary

  

• June 2010 - From wagging tails to telling tales

  

• May 2010 - Story Dogs visit the Friends of the Pound fun day

  

• March 2010 - Story Dogs expand to Kingscliff Primary

  

• August 2009 - Story Dogs first reading session