During mid-terms, many Darien High School students took a break from studying to meet with a furry friend.
Photo from the Darien Public Schools Newsletter
Therapy dogs at school
Inside the “Chill Zone,” a designated hang-out spot for students, registered therapy dogs have been on site for two hours a day during mid-terms, which end this week.
The location of the “Chill Zone,” and glass windows into the room, offered high visibility for students join in the event or just watch from the outside.
Many students decided to come in to visit and pet the 10 dogs scheduled over 8 different sessions.
The canines are connected to two local organizations, Healing Hounds and Paws for Friendships. Both organizations participated in the DHS Wellness Day in November 2016 and the response was positive, said Assistant Principal Ellen Spark.
Photo and caption from Healing Hounds post on Facebook
Java Joe on his new homemade blanket from the students at Darien High School. where he helped them to de-stress during exams.
“When we reviewed the surveys from the Wellness Day, students really wanted to have the therapy dogs back,” Spark said.
Piera Cronin, a DHS School psychology intern, coordinated the mid-term event to help students relax and relieve stress while preparing for and taking midterms.
According to Cronin’s proposal for the therapy dog visitations, numerous studies have been conducted to look at the effectiveness of therapy dogs in counseling and more recently there have been studies interested in therapy dogs providing stress relief in schools.
— This article is from the Darien Public Schools Newsletter