Attorney Matthew Nagel Volunteers With The St. Louis Public Library’s PAWS For Reading Campaign.
Attorney Matthew Nagel volunteers with the St. Louis Public Library’s PAWS for Reading Campaign. Working with Support Dogs, Inc., PAWS for Reading is an innovative program that helps children develop confidence and reading skills by reading aloud to specially trained dogs in the library. Support dogs are non-threatening observers that will not criticize or make fun of a child for making mistakes. They promote trust and encourage children to take risks in learning. Studies show that children gain in confidence reading to the dogs and can improve their literacy 1-2 grade levels in 4-5 months.
Matthew Nagel helped kick off the program and volunteers on a weekly basis as part of his involvement with the Young Literati, the young friends of the Library organization. His roles include introducing children to the dogs, helping them select books to read to the dogs, and reading with children while they wait for their time with the dogs. Nagel serves as the Co-Chair of the Executive Committee for the Young Literati.