Here are some ideas for using the app and building a reading campaign around it. Not every idea will suit you and your pupils, but we hope you find some useful tips or inspiration!
Ideas for using the app with only one or a few devices
- Set up a quiet reading station, for example in a corner of the classroom, in a corridor or in another classroom.
- Agree a rota with the children so that everyone gets a turn to look after the class reading dog and read to it.
- You can also use the app as a reward: ‘You can read to the reading dog if…’
- Use the app to differentiate activities according to pupils’ reading skills:
- In the first year of Finnish primary school, fluent readers can read to the dog while the teacher practises sounds and syllables with the other children.
- In the fourth year of Finnish primary school, children who need extra reading practice can read to the dog while fluent readers do something else.
More ideas when pupils have their own devices
- Arrange a lesson where everyone reads to their own dog at their desk. This also lets you see how well the app recognises a child’s reading when there is background chatter.
- For homework, ask pupils to read to Luppakorva at home for a set number of minutes, paragraphs or pages.
Tips for launching a reading campaign and keeping it visible
- Print the Luppakorva picture supplied in the starter pack and put it on the classroom wall.
- Suggest names for the reading dog and vote for a favourite.
- Make a wall chart to record how much the class has read to the dog during the campaign. You could measure this in minutes or pages and record progress with colouring or stickers. Agree a reading target with the children and offer a reward when they reach it. You could also challenge other groups or classes to see who can read the most to the dog.
- If your library has a real reading dog, visit it or invite it to your school.
Connecting the reading-dog theme with other subjects
Language and literacy
- Borrow dog-themed books from the library and/or display them in the classroom. These could include non-fiction books, Puppe books and Mauri Kunnas’s Koiramäki series for younger children, and the Jesse series and Susikoira Roi for older children.
- Find out about reading dogs and explore news and articles about them, such as Wikipedia entries, online news and library websites.
Art and craft
- Draw a picture of Luppakorva.
- With the children, imagine, draw or make other animals or creatures that could appear in the app instead of the current reading dog. Would they like to read to a tiny chihuahua, a robot dog, a reading cat, a unicorn or an alien? If you send your creations to us or share them on social media, we may include the best ideas in later versions of the app!
- Draw a dream kennel with everything a dog needs.
- Make a small kennel for each child from an empty shoebox. Make, crochet or sew a small soft toy dog to live in it.
- Build a reading den in the classroom, for example from large cardboard boxes, with room for one child at a time to sit on a cushion and read.
Environmental studies and science
- Learn about dogs, how they live and how to look after them. Find information online and in non-fiction books about dogs. Make a poster or presentation.
- Discuss how owning and looking after a virtual pet differs from caring for a real animal, and the responsibilities involved in getting and keeping a pet.
Religious education, ethics and social studies
- Discuss people’s relationships with animals and the place of animals in our culture. Are animals our friends, enemies, companions, helpers or food? Do wild animals, farm animals and pets have different roles? What about in the wild, the countryside and cities?
- Explore and discuss animal rights and welfare. How should animals be treated, and what treatment is unacceptable? Were animals treated differently in the past? Do animals have the same rights in every country as they do in Finland?
- Explore Bible stories involving animals, such as the Creation or Noah’s Ark, in Evangelical Lutheran religious education.
P.S. Please share your own tips with others too! https://www.facebook.com/groups/lueluppakorvalle/