Jan 2, 2020, Pomeroy (OH) Daily Sentinel: Canine provides support, comfort for students https://www.mydailysentinel.com/news/48819/canine-provides-support-comfort-for-students MIDDLEPORT — Students at Meigs Primary School have had a new addition at the school this year — Axel the Therapy Dog. Axel is a trauma informed therapy dog. Axel is the personal dog of librarian Kim Wolfe and has been taking part in training to be a therapy dog. He is one year old Great Dane. In addition to the trainings, Axel has a lot of social experiences, allowing him to be around people in a variety of settings. According to Pet Partners, “Therapy animals can provide physical, psychological, and emotional benefits to those they interact with, typically in facility settings such as schools.”… Wolfe explained the benefits of the program, including, to enhance children’s psychological development; to improve social skills and interactions; to increase self-esteem; to teach responsibility, compassion, and respect for other living things; to calm fears and relieve anxiety; to promote greater self-esteem and well-being and focused interaction with others; to stimulate memory and problem solving; to enhance reading; and to decrease anxiety and enable students to work through issues such as anger management, bullying tendencies and other psycho/social problems.
Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Loss of Brain Trust features over 9,000 news stories published worldwide since January, 2017
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