What type of Animal-Assisted Interventions does K9TEACH offer?
Experience
To date, Melissa and Boofred have worked together in 5 different primary schools, a high school, attended a nursing home and tutored a primary aged student. Melissa has trained a second therapy dog, Otto, who has recently passed his therapy dog certification and has started working in a primary school. Melissa is currently studying a Diploma of Counseling, as she wishes to extend her knowledge and skills in a way that allows people to use her programs to work through their problems by combining the use of animal therapy and teaching methods with counseling methods such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy etc Animal-Assisted Education K9TEACH is largely designed as a Animal-Assisted Intervention (learning assistance using a trained animal) program for primary school children. Melissa, Boofred and Otto are passionate about meeting with students, and their teachers, to set learning goals and develop a plan to work towards achieving them. K9TEACH are more than happy to set up individual plans that meet the diverse needs of each school/student/customer, whether it is a one-time visit or a regular occurrence. Choose from the following or contact K9TEACH today to discuss an individualised program: Whole Class Therapy Session Melissa takes Boofred into a classroom to interact with children while they complete work set for them by their teacher. Therapy, in this sense, is for Boofred to create a calm and relaxed environment that motivates and engages students to learn while reducing behavioural issues (this is not therapy as given by a psychologist). Students will be encouraged to interact with Boofred while continuing their work. Small Group Animal-Assisted Intervention Melissa plans a lesson for a group of children to align with the curriculum, what the classroom teacher wants the students to learn, what their IEP goals are and how Boofred can be effectively incorporated. Melissa and Boofred will deliver the lesson and keep records of student progress to write a report for the classroom teacher. Individual Animal-Assisted Intervention Melissa plans a lesson for an individual child to align with the curriculum, what the classroom teacher wants the students to learn, what their IEP goals are and how Boofred can be effectively incorporated. Melissa and Boofred will deliver the lesson and keep records of student progress to write a report for the classroom teacher. Reading Intervention Sessions Option 1) K9TEACH uses a range of resources to re-engage students who are at risk of disengagement from reading. This can be planned independently by Melissa or in conjunction with the classroom teacher. Option 2) K9TEACH comes prepared with a range of books that cover different reading levels and students practice reading these books to Boofred. This can be done with a range of different students across a selected time or with a focus on a small group or individual student. Option 3) Same as option two, however, Melissa assess each students reading and writes a report on student progress for classroom teachers. Animal-Assisted Activities in Schools Animal-Assisted Activities are any activities that do no involve any official documented education (e.g. no specific learning goals identified and not working to an education plan). The school/teacher may have an activity in mind or they may ask Melissa to create an activity for the school, class, small group or individual. Animal-Assisted Activities out of School K9TEACH is additionally happy to offer learning assistance, activities and/or therapy in non-educational settings. In this context, the term 'therapy' is based on the natural calming effect that dogs have been proven to have on humans, rather than Animal-Assisted Psychotherapy given by a psychologist. You may have a primary aged child who needs tutoring in a particular area and believe that this process could be enriched and enhanced by animal therapy. Or your workplace may benefit from a visit (or regular visits) from Boofred or Otto in order to reduce stress and anxiety. You might work in an aged care facility and know that your residents would get a real mood lift by a visit from a furry friend who always wants a pat. You may be experiencing a stressful situation or know someone who is (someone suffering from anxiety, depression or PTSD) and believe a therapy dog may help. You may even have your own bright idea/s about how K9TEACH could help you and/or your family. TUTORING K9TEACH offers tutoring for primary aged children at a well set up home office that is equip to provide students with the extra help they require across subject areas. As a teacher, Melissa knows the curriculum well and will use a range of differing methods to find what best works for your child to reach their full potential. Additionally, this experience comes with a therapy dog, who will serve as a relaxing presence and non-judgemental friend for your child to reduce any stress and/or anxiety they might experience about learning and enable them to feel comfortable and safe. If you think a visit from K9TEACH might benefit you, your child, your school, hospital or workplace, please visit the contact section of the website to get in touch today! |