Yani Goes to School

Earlier this month on Monday, April 7th I had an opportunity to observe Ms. Celotto's second grade classroom at Deep River elementary school for my capstone project for my Writing for Interactive Media class. The focus of my project is on the Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation and their tireless work to provide assistance to visually impaired people. I was fortunate enough to have been put in contact with Ms. Celotto and gain permission to observe her class for half a day. In addition to her role as a second grade teacher, Ms. Celotto is also a foster parent for her two-year-old German shepherd named Yani who attends class with Ms. Celotto and her 15 students.
I arrived a few minutes early to meet Ms. Celotto and Yani and to get acquainted before the students arrived. I could quickly see how comfortable Yani was in a class room setting and how he felt right at home as he freely walked through the classroom. Though his leash was always attached to his collar in case Ms. Celotto needed to gain control of him, it was never used in the time I was there. His comfort level was really amazing.
Once the kids arrived they greeted Yani just as they would any other student. He was excited to see them and welcome them to another day. The kids were very comfortable interacting with Yani and treated him just as another student.
After a little bit of observation time is was quickly evident how adapted Yani was to his environment. Whenever there was increased movement in the room as the kids moved to their reading groups, got up from their desks for reading circle, etc., Yani perked up and walked around the room making sure everything was running smoothly. When it was time for reading circle he would go around the room and round up the kids and herd them over to the carpet for reading time. Once all the kids were round up he would sit down right in front and relax until it was time to get up and move around again. I was amazed at how well he not only knew the daily routine but how well he anticipated it.
When it was time for lunch and the kids were gathering their lunch bags and getting ready, Yani's ears perked up and headed right to the door to be first in line. The kids then followed in right behind him.
As a foster parent your primary responsibility is to raise the dog, teach them basic obedience and to socialize them with people and other dogs. The classroom provides fertile grounds for socialization and adaption to a more human environment. But it also provides a great learning experience for the kids. Ms. Celotto said that having Yani in the class has helped to expand the student’s reading interest to include guide dogs.