I Want This Book!

I was trying to research some activities that one can use within the classroom with a classroom pet for AAT purposes, and I stumbled upon this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Assisted-Therapy-Activities-Motivate-Inspire/dp/0976696584

It seems like an awesome book that can be used by educators wanting to use AAT within their classrooms, as well as therapists that use animals for therapeutic purposes. It just seems like a very helpful resource that can be right at your fingertips, so that you don't have to do a ton of research on the Internet...I wonder if there are more books out there that are just as helpful on this topic??

News Clip

I wanted to find another good video clip that discussed AAT and its importance :) I feel like I am posting too many articles, so I'm trying to spice things up a bit...Anyway, this is what I found:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbBguMj7bEg

It discusses different cases of animals working with children with disabilities to encourage independence. I found it extremely interesting and inspirational :) I really want to be part of an AAT program so that way I can include it within my classroom from time to time.

I also found this website when researching animal assisted therapy and its use in a classroom:

http://www.chimoproject.ca/s_5.asp

The site lists ways that animals are beneficial in a classroom environment. There were two things that stuck out to me on this site. A child that has disruptive tendencies can be seated to a calming classroom pet to help distract the child and soothe their behaviors with its calming personality (i.e. a rabbit, fish, etc.). The other thing that caught my interest was the fact that an animal can encourage children to be more social. A teacher can assign a shy or withdrawn child to be the animal's "guardian" so that other children will socialize with the particular child about the classroom pet :) These are some very great ideas to use in the classroom with class pets! Sometimes children with disabilities can be withdrawn and shy when interacting with their peers-so I find these methods to be very beneficial in creating a more cohesive classroom environment...

Why is AAT So Important for Children with Disabilities?

Found another good article with some interesting stories inside about the benefits of AAT with children with disabilities:

http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/hww/results/external_link_maincontentframe.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.42

The article stated that the three most common pets were cats, dogs, and aquarium fish...I really wish I could have found more on therapy involving fish :( Anyway, there was a cute story about three rats visiting a special education classroom and the positive interactions that the children with autism had with the animals. They were very engaged and gentle when working with the rats and anticipated the weekly visits. The article also discussed some of the concerns that parents may have when it comes to animal-assisted therapy (asthma, allergies, or other potential diseases). However, if precautions are taken-these things can be avoided :) Anyway, I am glad I am finding some stories and information about the use of animals within a classroom setting-that just proves to me that it isn't such a far fetched idea...Leaving you with an adorable picture:

http://www.kushtush.com/pets.jpg