St Joseph’s Tranmere’s newest member of staff may not be able to read or write but she is proving extremely pup-ular.
Bonnie, a 10-month-old mini Groodle, is the school’s wellbeing dog, tasked with supporting students experiencing anxiety to overcome their fears and engage with classmates and students. It’s a task she takes seriously.
“Bonnie and I are outside at the gate in the mornings to greet the children as they come into school,” says Tanya Barrett, Bonnie’s owner and the school’s director of teaching and learning.
“We visit classes during the day and work with individual children who need that extra support. She’s a really good talking point for children who don’t have the social skills to join in a game or have a conversation.
“Children with anxiety will seek Bonnie and me out. Previously it could be a struggle to get them into the classroom, but now if you tell them they can have 10 minutes with Bonnie and she will walk them back to their classroom, they tend to go back to their class quite willingly.”
For principal Adrian Grbin, having Bonnie on site bolsters the school’s renewed focus on student wellbeing to counter the impacts of the recent global pandemic.
“One of the things we’re noticing more since Covid is the growing importance of ways to support children who may be anxious coming into the school,” he says.
“It’s very traumatic for everyone when a child is anxious and has difficulty coming through the gate or going into the classroom. Being a smaller school gives us the ability to get to know each child extremely well and determine what support they might need. With a support dog, we have something to help them.”
She’s also a hit with staff. Bonnie frequently attends executive meetings and staff meetings and enjoys a wander through the staffroom.
“When she comes through the staffroom at recess or lunch time, there’s a lot more laughter,” Ms Barrett says.
Bonnie’s success is due in no small part to the commitment of Ms Barrett, who has invested her own time, research and money into bringing this fluffy bundle of joy into the children’s worlds, with the school funding her training. Both puppy and owner are learning their skills through Dogs Connect, an organisation that introduces wellbeing dogs into schools.
“It’s all about safety for Bonnie and the children – it goes both ways,” she says. “It’s a lot of work but I’m learning how to do that best with Bonnie and training the children at the same time.”
Year 2 students Ava, Tilly and Oscar are thrilled to have Bonnie on board.
“She walks around our welcome circle and lets us pat her. It makes me feel happy,” Oscar says. It’s a feeling shared by his classmates. “I feel lucky to have Bonnie at school,” Tilly says while, for Ava, “It makes me happy to have Bonnie here and I talk about her with my friends.”
It’s this kind of feedback that Mr Grbin cherishes.
“I like to think the children are proud we have a support dog in our school and it’s something they can tell their friends and families about. It’s been a wonderful experience for us.”
Students at two Catholic schools are working together to design and build new equipment to develop their skateboarding skills.
