Reading to a friend can be helpful, especially if that friend is a four-legged companion.  Faithful Friends are joining readers at Bales as part of the Bales Reading With Rover Program.
      The Bales Reading with Rover program started October 7.  It will be held weekly in the Bales library from 3:15 to 4 pm.   

      Eight students were invited to participate in this reading program. 
      “Our Reading with Rover is modeled after the program started at Henderson Public Library in Henderson, Nevada,” Laura Trellue, Bales librarian said.
      Trellue is the program’s organizer. Rosemary Machtemes (Reading Specialist) and Traci Lowe (Special Ed) are also part of the team. 
      Students are assigned to therapy dogs and will read aloud to the dogs and their owners. Trellue is using this program to help her students build confidence and find the joy in reading books.
      Faithful Friends is a therapy animal group.  This group has been going to hospitals, nursing homes, and pediatric wards since 1993 with their trained dogs, ferrets and cats.  In order to be a therapy animal, the owners and pets must go through special training before accepted in the group.
      After the first 5-10 minutes of getting acquainted, the children read a book selected by them to the dog. The last 15 minutes of the session, the owners will read a book to the student.