Doyle visiting with kids during a Sit, Stay, Read. TCPL/Instagram
Every Monday afternoon, children of all ages are invited to the Tompkins County Public Library (TCPL) to share a story with a canine companion through the Sit-Stay-Read Program. Created in collaboration between the TCPL and Cornell Companions, Sit-Stay-Read aims to help kids gain early literacy and a love for reading by reading out loud to the perfect non-judgmental listeners: dogs!
Sit-Stay-Read provides a safe, supportive environment for young readers to improve their skills while also creating opportunities for social time among families and therapeutic activities with animals. Each Monday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., TCPL staff prepare a table in the library’s BorgWarner room with a wide variety of books that children read to the dogs. Children receive a sticker on a reading tracker each time they attend and are rewarded with a free book after collecting six stickers.
The eight dogs currently participating in Sit-Stay-Read—Doyle, Avery, Piper, Ruby, Omar, Maui, Tumbier, and Archie—are wonderful listeners. The Sit-Stay-Read team prides itself on bringing an environment of support and encouragement to everyone, according to Karen Howarth, the team leader and a member of Cornell Companions. “There is no judgment, just love,” she said. “The dogs are wonderful listeners who meet each child where they are at.”
Sit-Stay-Read started in January 2015 as a six-week summer program at TCPL created by TCPL and Cornell Companions, an animal therapy program in the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine that is dedicated to developing the human-animal bond. The program expanded over the years, eventually growing into a valuable part of the Ithaca community—in 2024, Sit-Stay-Read held forty-six sessions totalling 1,728 participants. According to Howarth, the program’s growth is mainly due to the Sit-Stay-Read team’s dedication to its mission. “The program has become so popular because we all want to help children improve their reading skills and help each child build confidence and self-esteem,” she said.
For the members of the Sit-Stay-Read team, this program holds personal meaning. The team loves the program just as much as its young attendees do. They know each kid by name and develop personal connections with the families that attend. “Piper, my nine-year-old Shih Tzu, and I enjoy this program so much because of how happy the kids are that come to read,” Howarth said. “The kids and their parents just light up when they see all the dogs and they are so excited to spend time with them and read to them.”
It’s not just the dogs that make a difference—the team members are also dedicated to helping kids learn to love reading. They celebrate whenever a kid becomes “a reader.” “A favorite memory is when a four-year-old child, who has come to our program for a year and always picks a book to have his mom read to him, started reading on his own,” Howarth said. “He was so proud to show the dogs that he knows how to read!”
Similarly, one young attendee of Sit-Stay-Read began by memorizing books before learning to read. “One day she said that she wanted to learn to read—so we all began to make sure she actually looked at each word,” said Marg Pough, Avery’s owner. “It worked! She has a library of books at her group home. She has not come in as often recently, but she is really reading on her own now.”
For Pough, one of the best aspects of the program is working personally with young readers and seeing its effects. “I do often break down words into parts, and remind them they just saw that word the page before,” she explained. “It is lovely to see kids blossom. I remember non-readers becoming readers, and older kids coming back and helping when we were swamped.”
In addition to introducing kids to new books and helping them improve their reading skills, Sit-Stay-Read has also helped kids in other ways. Piper, a small and calm dog, has helped a three-year-old conquer her fear of dogs, according to Howarth. Eglantina Lucio-Belbase, Maui’s owner, saw her kids begin to love both dogs and reading through the program. “My kids were pretty scared of dogs growing up,” she said. “When we moved back to Ithaca, we went down to the library and the dogs happened to be there. As huge readers, they found a captive audience and walked out saying we needed a dog […] And here we are with [my daughter] loving dogs and being part of the program. She still loves to read.”
The Sit-Stay-Read team always looks forward to each session, especially as many children and families return every week to read to the dogs and connect with each other. “In a sense we have become a community within the community,” Howarth said. “When you hear a child say ‘See you next week,’ you know you are making a very real and positive difference in that child’s life.”
Doyle. TCPL/Instagram
Ruby. TCPL/Instagram
Piper. TCPL/Instagram
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