People often think a teacher’s pet is an overachieving student who revolves around teacher validation. At SCHS however, teacher’s pets are scattered around campus in the form of animal friends, creating positive environments. Whether they visit once a month or stay in class throughout the day, animals can impact the classroom atmosphere in a way that benefits both students and teachers.
Freshman Sophie Guo observed how classroom pets can expand a students’ understanding of their teachers outside of their role as an educator.
“The best thing about teachers bringing their pets is that we get to see more into teachers’ personal lives,” Guo said. “If they bring their pets to school, then we can kind of see how much they care for them.”
Beyond the student-teacher connections, pets can also make classrooms feel more welcoming and enjoyable. Senior Adam Lingscheit added that having a little companion nearby can motivate students to attend their classes.
“(Pets) can help students relax, and they won’t feel all, ‘I’m so not looking forward to school’ versus they can be like, ‘School may suck today, but also I’m going to be able to see this cute dog,’” Lingscheit said.
For students who do not have pets at home, like freshman Omera Tarafdar, having animals at school can give joy and support through human-animal interactions.
“I don’t have any pets, so I love spending time with other people’s pets as much as I can,” Tarafdar said. “For other people who don’t have pets like me, I feel like that could be really good for them and make them feel happy and make them feel like they have a pet.”
Similar to student perspectives on the benefits of classroom pets, some teachers have noticed changes in environment as well. According to Computer Science teacher Christina Mehl, students are often excited to interact with her dog, Reggie, when they have the chance.
“They (students) love it. Sometimes they’ll come over here and lay down and pet him. Sometimes Reggie will walk over to them and get petted. Sometimes kids come and get a treat and have him do tricks,” Mehl said. “They love him. I have kids coming in at lunchtime just to see Reggie.”
Mehl further explained that Reggie often helps students open up to how they are feeling, especially when they are unsettled or overwhelmed.
“When kids are upset or sad or whatever, I’d say, ‘Come and pet Reggie,’ and they start to get happy, and then they start to talk to me,” Mehl said. “You don’t expect kids to talk to you or open up, but Reggie seems to do that for kids, you know?”
While Reggie is often playing with students, his main job is to support Mehl when she is feeling anxious or overwhelmed.
“I don’t have a 504 plan, but it’s like a 504 plan where he is my support animal,” Mehl said. “He’s trained for PTSD, and so when he sees that I am getting anxious or upset or overwhelmed or angry, he just brings his nose and he puts his nose between my knees and he knows that I’m upset, and then I pet him.”
Overall, teachers’ pets can have a positive impact on school communities. From helping students relax to encouraging interactions and creating fun memories, animals like Reggie can make the classroom a lot more enjoyable.
“They (teachers) definitely should (bring their pets more often) if that would make the kids enjoy the class more and feel more encouraged to do better in that class and participate in the class if there were to be a pet,” Tarafdar said.