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Big dog helps Brookwood’s students make good choices

Brock, a 120-plus pound Newfoundland, rests as first-graders at Brookwood Elementary School in Hamilton listen to Cincinnati author Robin Atyeo on Wednesday talk about Brock’s adventures in Butler County.

Contributed photo by E.L. Hubbard Brock, a 120-plus pound Newfoundland, rests as first-graders at Brookwood Elementary School in Hamilton listen to Cincinnati author Robin Atyeo on Wednesday talk about Brock’s adventures in Butler County.

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By Richard O Jones, Staff Writer 12:28 AM Thursday, April 7, 2011

HAMILTON — They say experience is the best teacher, but a big dog is sometimes just as educational.

With his gentle disposition and congenial air, Brock, a 120-plus pound Newfoundland, enters Brookwood Elementary School with the demeanor of a best friend, not a teacher.

“It’s amazing how much attention he gets,” said his handler, Robin Atyeo, as every passer-by stops to pat Brock on the head as they make their way to the first- and second-grade wing. “They wouldn’t be so excited if an old lady like me just came to read the books.”

The books are a series of nine “Brock’s Adventures” in which the hero helps young students learn about making good choices.

Atyeo began writing the books five years ago, highlighting places familiar to area students. “Brock’s Adventures in Courage,” for instance, takes place at Kings Island.

“Brock’s Adventures in Cooperation” takes place in various Butler County locations, and as Atyeo reads the books, the students make a silent gesture with their thumb and pinkie fingers when they recognize the landmarks. The books are illustrated with figures drawn by Atyeo’s son Scott, who was 13 at the time, superimposed over photographs.

“I worked at Butler County Juvenile Court and I wanted to help the kids learn how to make good choices,” Atyeo said.

Once a month, Brock and Atyeo make a personal appearance at each of their client schools, primarily elementaries in the Fairfield and Edgewood districts, where Atyeo reads the story and gives the students a new calendar for the month that outlines special tasks associated with each theme.

Cooperation, for instance, instructs them to “Work together with a friend or sibling to make a card for a parent or friend,” and “Cooperate at home: Help with dinner.”

Students who complete the calendar are rewarded with a rubber Brock Bracelet in a color coded to the theme. The book on cooperation has a pink cover, so the Brock Bracelet for the month is pink.

After the reading and discussion, students line up to give Brock more pats on the head, which he graciously accepts.

Brookwood first-grade teacher Karen Smith heard about Brock last year when her daughter, who was a first-grader at Seven Mile Elementary, came home talking about Brock and telling her “Kids have choices.”

Smith thought the program would be a good fit for the Hamilton district’s Character Education Initiative, and sought grants from the Harry T. Wilks Foundation and a Learning Links grant from the Greater Cincinnati Foundation to finance Brock’s visits to Brookwood.

For the students, it was love at first sight.

“Every few days, someone will ask me when Brock is coming back,” Smith said.

Smith said she is seeking the funding to bring Brock back next year.

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