At the beginning of Term 2, 2018, the Primary School was excited to commence a canine buddy (therapy dog) trial. The benefits of therapy dogs in an educational setting are supported by many research studies as being an extremely positive initiative.
Mrs. Nicola Paton in 5.2 kindly agreed to support this trial in her class, using her own dog Murphy. Murphy is a non-allergenic, mini Labradoodle and is patient, gentle, calm and above all, affectionate in nature.
A benefit of utilising a ‘therapy’ dog is that they can serve as non-judgmental companions in the process of learning and development. They can also help students who are experiencing emotional difficulties which may affect them at school such as grief and personal crises.
There is growing evidence for the use of therapy dogs in school settings. Research has shown that dogs can reduce student stress and increase focus on academic tasks. Having a dog in the school setting can also encourage positive pro-social behaviours and inclusiveness. Therapy dogs can also be particularly helpful for children with learning differences or autism and there is an increasing number of schools in Australia that now have a therapy dog.
The goal of having a dog in our School is to help improve the lives of our students in the classroom and provide emotional support, working as part of a team. Murphy has been used for everything from helping with lessons to teaching social skills and responsibility.
So far, the experience from the classroom teacher and students has been overwhelmingly positive. Mrs. Paton has said that it creates a sense of calm in her class and the students really look forward to coming to School. Murphy is seen as a wonderful motivator and encourager to the students as he roams about the class, visiting each of the students who then give him a pat and then get on with the task they are completing.
Murphy comes in 3 to 4 days per week and the trial has been an enormous success in 5.2. We would love to receive any feedback by email to Mr. Wood about this trial from a parent’s point of view. Any thoughts, concerns and questions in support or not of this initiative would be most helpful in determining whether we expand this idea in the Primary School.
Written by Mr Roderick Wood, Associate Principal of Primary School