Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/kids-write-letters-for-shelter-dogs/
Sometimes, shelters could use a little help getting the animals adopted. While there are rare moments, like toward the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when shelters run out of animals in need of homes, it’s much more common to hear about shelters overflowing with animals and choosing to euthanize or refuse new pets.
It’s a hard situation for shelters to be in, and it’s equally hard for the pets that reside in them. No dog wants to be locked in a cement kennel all day and the quicker they get adopted, the better.
To help shelter dogs find their forever homes quicker, a class of second-graders at St. Michael’s Episcopal School in Richmond, Virginia decided to set up and help.
In an interview with Fox News, the director of the Richmond Animal Care & Control, Christie Peters, explained that her 2nd-grade son’s teacher, Kensey Jones, came up with the great idea to encourage students to write stories and illustrations about shelter pets to encourage potential adopters to bring them home.
Peters said, “The class was working on persuasive writing, and they wrote pieces as if they were speaking on behalf of the shelter dog trying to get adopted. I said, ‘That’s the coolest idea … let’s do it.’”
The students ended up creating artwork accompanied by letters written to hopeful dog or cat owners, in an attempt to persuade them to adopt the specific animal the story was about.
Posted by Richmond Animal Care and Control on Friday, February 4, 2022
According to Fox News, students were assigned to a specific shelter animal and given some general information about them. The background information allowed the students to create stories that were fitting for the animal they were writing about, while also using their imaginations to be creative and persuasive.
Richmond Animal Care & Control shared on Facebook: “The result?!? INCREDIBLE!!! Heartwarming stories and beautiful illustrations now adorn our dog kennels and the writing is VERY persuasive!” They also shared adorable photos of the notes so you can see them for yourself!
Posted by Richmond Animal Care and Control on Friday, February 4, 2022
In total, the students created about 25 stories for 24 dogs and one cat.
One of the letters read: “Hi I’m Famous Amos. Please, please, please adopt me! I love, love, love belly rubs. I’m a very cute dog. Don’t you love my name?…Do you love me? I hope you do because then you can adopt me! I love you too…”
Second graders at St. Michael’s Episcopal School created persuasive writing and illustrations to help our shelter pets’ find forever homes. Does this make you want to adopt Famous Amos? ❤️
Posted by Richmond Animal Care and Control on Friday, February 4, 2022
According to Fox News, Jones revealed that 8 dogs were “quickly adopted” after the notes were hung and read by potential adopters. It seems they’re working their magic!
The shelter added an update on Facebook, saying: “We hope other schools and animal shelters will be inspired by this story and start similar programs in their own communities. Such a win!”
Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog
