Reading Buddies
The purpose and policy of the Humane Society of McCormick County is to extend humanity to all animals through shelter, training, and education. To that extent, the society is engaging in an animal socialization program called Reading Buddies.
During Reading buddies students engage in reading texts and activities where they have an opportunity to:
Demonstrate empathy and perspective-taking.
Learn how to pay attention and understand animal behavior.
Gain knowledge to promote positive behaviors between animals and people.
The program is currently available to scholars in the public school system, Pre-K-12.
During Reading Buddies, a Reading Buddy will be in the presence of an animal(s) to read a text. The reader does not need to be in the same room as the cat/kitten(s) to engage in the program. The purpose of the program is to make the animal feel more comfortable around people.
The HSMC at the present time has a library of over 40 humane education texts for readers. However, readers may bring their own texts. Currently, Reading Buddies is only available for our cat/kitten(s).
All Reading Buddies participants MUST attend the Reading Buddies 101 training. During Reading Buddies 101 participants will learn about cat body language to better understand how potentially the animals are feeling. We will also go over responsibilities, check-in and out procedures, and what it means to be a Reading Buddy. Once you have completed the program, you will be able to come read to the animals.