Children at a North Tyneside school are boosting their reading confidence with help from a four-legged friend - Berta the Bloodhound.
She is offering a friendly ear to Monkseaton Middle School's 250 students as they read and also offers a soothing presence during the academic day. The Spanish rescue Bloodhound Cross is owned by Monkseaton Middle’s headteacher, Kirsty Nichols-Mackay, and has been coming into the school on Vernon Drive, since September 2020.
Students and teachers have both fallen in love with the 10-year-old canine companion, who is trained as a therapy dog. Berta is one of a number of animals cared for by the children in the school, including gerbils, guinea pigs, snails, and a tortoise.
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She doesn’t just make reading and books more enjoyable for the students, however. She also helps children struggling with low self esteem, confidence and emotional issues.
Kirsty said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has been a very unsettled time for our pupils and Berta has been a real comfort to children who might be struggling emotionally – and staff too. She is also a fantastic listener and really encourages pupils to read out loud.
“We listen to all our children read, but some can feel less confident reading to an adult. However, they feel less worried if they are reading to a non-judgmental dog.”
The children love having Berta around. Year five student Megan said: “I like having Berta in school because she helps to make me happier when I’m sad.” Another Year 5 student, Emmie, said: “Berta is fun to read to. She lets me play with her ears when I’m reading too.”
On Monday lunchtimes, students can take part in an animal care club - one of many extra-curricular activities offered at Monkseaton Middle. Year 5 student Daniel attends the club and said: “What I like about animal club is that I can learn how to be responsible for our animals and have fun while we feed them and clean their homes out."
The variety of activities Monkseaton Middle offers recently won the praise of Ofsted inspectors, who gave the school an overall grading of ‘good.’ The report said: “Leaders have raised the bar,” and added “the curriculum is now suitably ambitious.”
They commented on how older pupils take on many responsibilities, such as serving as Year 8 mentors, animal technicians or school librarians, and set a good example to younger students.
The school also has science clubs and offers a Monday STEM Cafe where adults working in science, technology, engineering or maths come in and give talks about their jobs. They've recently played host to a satellite engineer, a phlebotomist and a radiographer.
Kirsty said: “After two years of lockdowns, it’s never been more important for our young people to have the chance to gain as wide a range of life experiences as possible.”
