Everwood Elementary School’s first school year is well underway, and its students are adjusting to the new building with the help of some four-legged friends.
Everwood SEARCH teacher Dana Patterson created a partnership between the school and therapy dog teams to help students relax throughout the week. This Friday, Robin Herron and golden retriever Reesy went from classroom to classroom, giving students a chance to interact with her.
Patterson formerly taught at Oakwood Elementary School, which closed after the 2024-25 school year to combine with McEver Arts Academy into Everwood. Patterson explained the program was a staple at Oakwood that she wanted to carry on at EES.
“I noticed how much the kids enjoyed it, and so, I made sure that we continue to have therapy dogs, because studies have shown that being around dogs increases the dopamine in our brain and makes us happy and happy, kids do better at school, ” Patterson said. “They perform better on tests. They do their work better. They’re more compliant. And so if I can bring dogs to school, that’s just another tool that we can use to help our kids be successful.”…