"It's a great opportunity for them to read to a patient, non-judgmental animal who provides them with unconditional love and support," said reading teacher Jill Brown.

The Reading to Dogs Program started here at the school last spring. Students read one-on-one to the dogs for about twenty to thirty minutes twice a week. It's been a continued success for several reasons.

Students learn reading with the help of some furry friends

Meet Ben and Molly. They're here at the Peter B. Coeymans School library. It may be an unusual for two dogs to be seen among the rows of books, but they're here for a reason. They're specially trained therapy dogs, and in they're own way, they help students with their reading skills.

Canines taking part in the program must pass a test administered through the American Kennel Club. Before they became friendly reading partners, Ben and Molly went through various levels of training.

"They first train them in Canine Good Citizen where they have to lean who to sit and stay and learn to be touched, meet strangers, meet other dogs, just in case there's other dogs in the program," said dog handler Terrie Ann Lasinaski.

This program has expanded since it began last spring, and there's more planned for the future. In fact, if you have someone like Ben or Molly at home, you can get involved as well.

Brown said, "If there's any other people that have therapy dogs and are interested in volunteering their time, we'd be more than happy to have them come in and set up a schedule for them, even if it was just an hour once a week."

A time when a dog becomes a student's best friend.