On October 20th, Our South School students were greeted by a special visitor this morning: a one-and-a-half-year-old Newfoundland therapy dog named Miya. During her time, Miya visited all of our first-grade classrooms and stopped by many of the small group counseling sessions to interact with the students and help bring comfort and smiles throughout the day.
To receive her certification, Miya underwent an intensive 4-week program training to observe her behavior in various settings. During this time, evaluators take note of the dog's responses to anticipated stimuli, such as their disposition in large crowds, her response to having their face, ears, and nose touched, as well as their demeanor and attention to those in emotionally challenging situations. This was done through in-person testing and observations at the local hospital, where Miya's gentle disposition truly shined when interacting with patients.
"I really believe that therapy dogs in schools can be hugely beneficial to both staff and students, "said Kimberly Stati, Miya's Handler and Social Worker at South School. "...They are a calming presence that make people feel happy. My hope is that one day, New Canaan will have therapy dogs in all of their buildings on a daily basis!"
In preparation for Miya's arrival, students were shown a unique presentation outlining guidelines and behavior expectations for interacting with Miya. This included the "ABCs" of interacting with Miya, like reminding students to ask before they pet, showing her the back of their hand to sniff, and remaining relaxed, calm, and quiet when they pet her.
Research has shown that therapy animals have a significant impact on regulating emotions, especially with anxiety and mood. By interacting with therapy dogs, students can shift their focus away from negative emotions and create an opportunity to express their feelings clearly. Therapy dogs also enable students to work through other complicated emotions, such as learning-induced anxiety behaviors, which can help improve school attendance rates, interpersonal interactions, and behavior in classroom settings.
Many thanks to Kimberly Stati and Miya for visiting South School and providing this wonderful experience for our students.
For more information on the benefits of Therapy Dogs in Schools, please visit The Alliance of Therapy Dogs website for a range of helpful articles.
