Testimonials

Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization 5 out of 5 based on 2 ratings. 2 user reviews.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
It's always been a struggle to get my child to read each day. I've never seemed to be able to find the right topics to draw him in. Reading with Rover has been a HUGE help! My son will read almost any kind of book during Reading with Rover, and he wants to read for the entire hour! This is so different from how he is at home. I highly recommend this program for any child who is not a fan of reading!
05/13/2015
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Testimonial about Reading with Rover program

This winter, I was living in southern California and had an opportunity to visit a first grade classroom at the Seneca Elementary School in Moreno Valley. Barley wore his little RWR vest and we visited the classroom once a week for about 3 months. There were quite a few children in this first grade for which English was a second language and of course, reading was a struggle for them. The teacher had 30 students and no teacher’s aide or any parental volunteer, so she was very challenged every day to teach and to keep them under some control.

Barley and I would usually have 15 or 16 students each week. They came out two at a time – one was there to pet Barley and the other read him a story. Then, they switched places. It seemed to work very well. Having Barley come to the classroom was like having a rock star visit them. They were always so excited and happy to see him and he seemed to feel the same way. To lose the privilege of reading to Barley was just about the worst punishment they could receive. As our visits progressed, I was able to see that about 6 children were having trouble reading even the simplest of books and at least 2 of them – Oscar and Cristina - were not able to read at all. Oscar slowly progressed but Cristina did not. That is, until our next to last visit when it was again Cristina’s turn to read to Barley. She came out and as usual, just wanted to know what she was going to get for reading and so forth. I explained that this would be her last opportunity to read to Barley and he was really looking forward to hearing her read at least one or two very simple pages. Up to this time, she had not read one single word and instead just guessed at the words. On this day, she became a little more serious and opened the book and with an enormous effort on her part was able to read very slowly 3 or 4 pages. I was so shocked and almost moved to tears. It just reinforced my dedication to this reading program….to think that this little dog could inspire this little girl to try and read was just so wonderful. I took her picture with Barley that day so that she could kiss him and love him.

On the last day we visited the classroom, I read “Cool Dog, School Dog” to the children and then I presented each of them with a certificate (that I found at the dollar store) that said “Super Reader”. I put each child’s name on the certificates; then the teacher and I called each one up separately to receive their little award and a bookmark. I also gave each child a book from a collection of books I found at a garage sale (as many as I wanted for $1). I told them that Barley was counting on them all reading every day. When they came up to get their award, they had the opportunity to pet Barley for the last time and I saw a few tears in their eyes.

It is my privilege to be a part of this program and share these experiences with Barley.

 
05/06/2015
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I met you about a month ago at Borders while my son with special needs read with Moose. We were there to see our friends, Aimee and Aaron Shriner and Koa. When I got there I was so impressed.
As I mentioned to you at the time that this program goes to Woodmoor, where my son attends school. It was Mark and Annie that made school something to look forward to and gave my son the confidence to speak to others about Annie, whom he was so proud to be walking! My son has among other things severe speech apraxia, which means he understands what you say to him, but he has a very hard time with enunciation, and most of the time no one understands him. At the age of 5 1/2 he has started to notice that he is different, actually tells me other people's ears don't work when he talks and has become very shy around children.
With the help of Annie, Mark, and your Reading with Rover program, my son can't wait to tell all the other kids about this great dog he has! When Annie is there, he forgets about his speech issues and they have a reference for what he is talking about... a dog.
I know you have done so much to get this program into the schools and I as a parent wanted to thank you! I have always been a dog lover and to see my son have the same love gives us a real special connection! I always knew dogs had a magical draw to them.
I have started with another Mom, called Northshore Special Families. We have many events with one of them being a playgroup every third saturday of the month. I would love to find out if any of you would be interested in coming to one of these events and sharing this experience with others. I can explain more to you when we speak.
Sorry if I seemed to go on and on. I have been meaning to e-mail you for quite some time now.
Thank you for finding such a great way to connect people, dogs, acceptance and self esteem.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I have been meaning to write you guys and let you know that Toryn this year was doing 8th grade reading level. When she started LC and Reading with Rover in 3rd grade she was almost 2 grades behind. I can not even begin to tell you how much the program and all the dogs have meant to us and helped her. She is in 5th grade and reading/writing 3 grade levels ahead. Amazing!!!! Please share with the owners/dogs - they deserve to know that they are so appreciated and I am forever grateful to you and Dave. Thanks Becky for caring and taking the time to put this program together.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
How can I say thank you enough for everything that Reading with Rover has done for our daughter. I have always known that animals can have remarkable effects on humans and your Reading with Rover program just proves it.
Our daughter has NLD a Non Verbal Learning disorder which effects her in many ways. One being reading and another is non verbal social cues. She is very smart and so sweet but she realizes she is different and making friends is very hard for her. She is self conscious about reading out loud but when she read to the Reading with Rover dogs it was amazing. She wanted to read to every one of them that very first night and ever since then we have made it to every Reading with Rover event and will continue to do so.
Our daughter gets headaches every time she reads so it makes it very hard to motivate her to read but not at Reading with Rover. She doesn't feel judged and that is so wonderful for her. We have seen a big improvement in her fluency and she has even started to read a little to her own puppy now, which we hope to train to be a Reading with Rover dog in the future.
I would recommend this program to any parent whether their child loves to read or not, it is just a great experience all around. Every one of the dogs and their handlers is so wonderful with the kids. My husband and I are avid readers and we have been reading to her since she was a baby and when we couldn't seem to break through that barrier to get her to enjoy reading by herself we felt helpless but we don't feel that way anymore and it is all due to your Reading with Rover program! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping our daughter raise her self esteem and know the joys of reading.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I wanted you to know what a hit Reading with Rover was in our house. Our son LOVED reading to the dogs. He was very excited about going and reading to them more. It is so great to see how excited he is about reading to them. I have not seen this excitement about reading. He doesn't even like going to the library and I haven't pushed it much for fear he will not like reading.
Thank you so much for doing this program. I am so excited myself about going to see all the Rovers this summer. I was working tonight so I didn't get to meet all the Rovers.
Thank you for the loan of the books as well. I am sorry it took me so long to get them back to you.
Have a great day!
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed going to Reading with Rover at the Lynnwood Barnes and Noble last Saturday. The children seem to truly enjoy themselves and the dogs were adorable. I was able to sit with 5 different handlers to "shadow" how they dealt with the children. All the handlers I met were very enthusiastic about what they were doing and were very easy to talk to. I definitely would like to belong to this group of wonderful people.
Thanks Becky, for starting this group. It is a wonderful feeling knowing that you are helping the next generation.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
We just wanted to thank you for your very kind and very generous $1000.00 donation to our school! With the money you donated, we were able to purchase a new reading program, as well as a new writing program, we had had our eyes on. This year’s Rose Hill second graders will definitely benefit from your generous gift, as will upcoming second grade classes! We feel so honored and blessed to have Reading with Rover as part of our school program!
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
My granddaughter is in love with your program! And when I was first introduced to it at Third Place Books last month, I totally understood her delight and enthusiasm. In the 40 years that I’ve been involved with education, I don’t think I’ve experienced a more exciting and rewarding program. I had tears in my eyes as I walked around and watched the various children read to these wonderful dogs! I have told anyone who will listen about it! I applaud all of your special efforts to make this so magical!
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Wow, was it a hit!!! Nate had a blast. Read to 5 dogs and finished 2 whole books. He was so proud of himself. He talked about the dogs all the way home. He is also trying to figure out how our unruly dog, Norton, could be a Reading with Rover dog. When we explained that Norton didn’t behave well enough to be around all those other dogs, he kept thinking. He’s now convinced we can start our own reading with rover at home with the neighborhood kids! I had to laugh. That should be funny.
Thank you again for recommending the program. Nate’s reading or at least his attitude is taking off. I couldn’t be happier.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
My son Oliver is part of Camp Sparkle at Gilda's Club this week. I just wanted to thank you for bringing your dogs to visit with the kids yesterday. My son talked about the dogs all evening and said he had a wonderful time meeting the "team." I appreciate your willingness to bring some happiness to some kids who really need it.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Dear Reading with Rover,
Our team at Windermere Green Lake recently started a campaign to keep low-income kids academically engaged this summer. We felt passionately about this cause because our office sits in the center of the vibrant Green Lake community filled with many family activities, and as we approach summer, this is a reminder that for many, the cost of these activities can be too much.
This campaign is about giving to low-income kids in the Green Lake area elementary schools (grades K-5) a way to stay academically engaged in the summer through a variety of donated school supplies.
We never anticipated such a quick response and generous donation. From the bi-lingual coloring books, bags, and monetary donation, your incredible generosity has touched us all. I wanted to personally thank you for taking the time out to support these kids who do not have the same means as other kids do, and because of your participation, they will be able to access these resources this summer.
Your giving spirit is an inspiration to us all.
"Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love." - Martin Luther King Jr.
From everyone at Windermere Green Lake, we thank you for all your hearts full of grace.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I wanted to mention a really happy story that a mom at a school age program told me this week.
She has a child who has been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (age 6). She recently began bringing her to our Reading with Rover program. At one particular visit, while the daughter was reading to a dog, she was reading fluently in a way that she was never able to do with her parents or other adults. The mom had no idea that the daughter could read that well, because she has seen no evidence of that capability herself. The mom was overwhelmed.
To me, this spoke of the relevance (with a capital R) of the special bond children can have with animals, especially children who may have other challenges to deal with on a daily basis. I’m so thankful for Reading with Rover, what an awesome program! May it live into infinity!
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
I've been looking at some data regarding students in your Reading with Rover program and thought you might enjoy hearing the news. All your students made gains in both the number of words they could read correctly in one minute and in their overall reading accuracy! This all gets back to how fluently they can read, which relates to how much they can attend to the meaning of what they are reading. Four of the 5 students in your program doubled the number of words they could read correctly, and overall the entire group had an average improvement in reading accuracy of 7%. That's awesome!
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Yesterday, Bella and I passed our renewal test for Pet partners!

I just want to again express my gratitude to you for all the training I received over the years. You provided us with all the skills necessary to be a successful therapy team.

Now that I have updated our certification I will work on getting certified with RWR. I will schedule my dogless shadows soon. Then do my floor time with kids.

Bella did superb on her aptitude part of the test! The examiner, loved the "hug" part of it. A very big change from her testing last time 2 years ago when you tested us. Not sure if you remember, but she was challenged with the aptitude exercises during her initial testing. I think her maturity helped with her ability to be more relaxed, despite testing in a new environment.

The two of us, although not perfect, showed our ability to recover and be successful.

I really can't thank you enough!

Look forward to the future with RWR in addition to our nursing home visits .

Best regards!
05/26/2016
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Today my daughter participated in Reading with Rover, and it was such a gift. Reading has been a bit of a challenge for her, and something she usually does because she has to. However, today she was all smiles as she read to all three dogs at the library. She cannot wait to do it again. Thank you so much for this valuable service and delightful literary opportunity you gave to my seven-year old.
12/10/2018
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Diana and her team (human and 4 legged) always do such a wonderful job when you present here at the Museum. We love having them come for our Paws for Applause Dog Appreciation Day!

Every one of you are so engaging, patient and encouraging to families. On behalf of all our visitors and staff Thank you to everyone who participates in the Reading with Rover program.
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Thank you Leslie,

I think my worry about Kaylee being nervous was extra 🙂

She surprised me that she wanted to read the books alone and actually she didn't want us to be around. I am happy she likes it.

This program will let her be more confident to talk in front of people she doesn't know.


Many thanks to you, your program and your dogs !


12/16/2020
Reading With Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization
Thank you for today's event. My son really loves it. He's more confident and likes to read/talk to dogs instead of talking to people!

 

My son hasn't been to school since last March after the pandemic. We speak another language at home so after staying at home for 6 months with a minimum social interaction with others, we suddenly found it's so hard for him to speak any English, even when we talked in English, he wouldn't respond to us at all. We've enrolled him in several English online classes, joined library story time, read English picture books since September, but it seems there's no big progress. He understands most of English, but he still refuses to speak. I have a feeling that he's not confident and very shy to talk in English. Last week, I told him we would try to talk/read to a dog, and he was very excited and once he saw the dog in zoom, he started to speak English and he tried to read some books to the dogs. The 30 minutes was amazing and he said he would love to talk and read stories to dogs next time!

 

Thank you again for the event! I really appreciate it!
02/03/2021

 

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