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Students practice, improve skills by reading to adoptable dogs at City Dogs Cleveland Kennel

Students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School read to dog at City Dogs.
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CLEVELAND — A group of students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School went to City Dogs on Read Across America Day to practice their reading skills in front of a four-legged audience.

Elementary students, with their favorite books in hand, sat in front of attentive dogs as they read to them, page by page, practicing their reading skills.

Students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School read to dog at City Dogs.
Students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School read to dog at City Dogs.

Once a month, the students walk from the school on West 98th street to the kennel. Each student spends about 30 minutes reading to the dogs in their cages.

Students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School read to dog at City Dogs.
Students from Marion C Seltzer Elementary School read to dog at City Dogs.

In the beginning, the dogs almost always start off excited at the sight of new visitors, but within minutes, they relax and listen to their stories.

There are 20 students who are part of the Seltzer Pup Star Reading program. The program was started by Lisa Swet, a 2018 Excellence in Teaching Award recipient.

“A lot of our students are language learners,” said Swet in a news release. “They're learning English as a second language, so they're oftentimes shy or reluctant to read, especially to read out loud. So not only does it build the confidence of our students, you can read a book to somebody who's not going to care if you say the word wrong or what you read to them.”

To see adoptable pets at City Dogs, click here.