The level of preschool activities has increased dramatically as time advances. With the intention to start educating children as early as possible, to get a head start, there are benefits to focusing on less intensive preschool activities such as looking after a class pet. Throughout early childhood development, children are the most impressionable and we should be mindful as to what we are teaching them both at home and (especially) at school.
Classroom pets stimulate learning and provide teachers with a great resource for new ways to learn. Introducing pets to children at a young age has multiple benefits. It helps them learn about animals as well as encourages personal growth through teaching compassion, responsibility, and consideration for other living beings. Giving preschoolers the opportunity to spend time with animals can open up a world they might otherwise never have experienced.
Benefits of Having a School Animal
Not all households have pets. This can sometimes leave a child with no exposure to the wide world of animals that are out there. Even if you do have a pet at home, having a pet in a classroom setting brings about totally different lessons and skills. This creates an environment of constant learning where children can touch animals in real world. By handling animals, children are taught to practice sensitivity to those that are not always able to help themselves. It also teaches them that in order to gain the trust of their pet, they need to handle them carefully and kindly. Allowing children, the opportunity to observe and care for animals encourages a sense of responsibility and respect for lives that are smaller than them. Throughout these interactions, children will begin to grasp that living creatures, both big and small, require more than just food and water to survive. They will learn that their behavior and actions will affect more than just themselves. Where girls are often taught to be nurturing and gentle, boys don’t always get this opportunity. This is an important training benefit for small boys that can sometimes be overlooked.
Taking care of animals at a young age gives a child a sense of pride and accomplishment, especially when the animal returns the affection or shows signs of appreciation. Emotional bonds created early on with animals fosters confidence and builds self-esteem, knowing that their pet is relying on them to provide. Pets become family and can be a child’s best friend. These kinds of relationships help to strengthen a child’s social skills by developing self-awareness, awareness for others and the sincerity of a unique bond that humans and animals share. After being exposed to pets and animals, children are able to recount their experiences long after they have said goodbye to these animals.
Having a school or class pet will entail a lot of sharing. They will be required to share between classmates and share with other classes when it comes to holding the animal, playing with the animal, or taking care of the animal. This ensures that children practice patience, cooperation and respect for one another. Through this practice, children are taught important skills for life, in a relaxed environment.
Animals within the classroom setting can be used as a vehicle to teach children about many subjects such as Mathematics, Life Science and Life Skills. When it comes to mathematics, teachers can focus on learning to count and the principle of weight measurements. When it comes to Life Science, teachers can focus on the life cycle of animals, the origin of certain animals, and the behavior of animals. These lessons are then seen as fun and exciting because animals are involved, while the teacher is still able to instill knowledge in her students. If we had a pet hamster in class, who is going to feed him every day? How much food does he need? Is his cage clean? Does his behavior show that of a happy pet? Is he walking funny? How will we clean his cage? This provides an opportunity to teach consideration, awareness and reasoning. Of course, the pet will need to eat, so who will do that, how will they get their food and how much food should we give him? If the hamsters cage smells funny, we need to clean it. How will we do that and why are we doing that? Your children get to ask questions they otherwise would have never thought about and a sense of responsibility is nurtured.
Sanitation in animals is important and our pets rely on us to take care of them. Students are exposed to the needs of animals and thus begin to understand that humans play an important role in keeping the pet at their best. In this way, your children learn that in order to keep their pet healthy and alive, it requires regular attendance and maintenance. This teaches discipline. Cleaning is not always fun, however, having a pet in the classroom is! If we’re going to keep our pet, then we need to make sure he does not cause a mess. What is our role to play in this? Well, we need to make sure that his cage is clean and smelling fresh. This will require regular upkeep and effort, but because we love to play with our pet hamster, we’ll have fun cleaning his home too. Keeping their class pet clean, as well as their habitat, can teach a child a lot about their own personal hygiene both directly and indirectly.
At Parkland Children’s Academy, we believe in making education fun. We aim to lay solid foundations through education in a friendly, calm environment inclusive of sensory stimulants for development. Having a class pet does just that. Whether your children are used to having animals at home or have never experienced the unique bond with a pet, we want to make learning relatable and exciting. Animals are a beautiful part of our world and we want to share that with your children.