The Best Class Pet Ever!

My girls begged for years to get a pet. With one allergic to cats that was out. With no fenced back yard a dog was out. After lots of research it was decided we could handle a guinea pig. The weekend of the new exciting event we piled into the van and headed to the pet store. Sarah immediately fell in love with an orange and brown guinea pig and into the cardboard box she went for the ride home. Sarah is my reader, and she had adequately researched the best size house, complete with second story her new pet would need. She knew which bedding was best (turns out I needed to make and  fleece bedding for the newest member of the family, and then launder it weekly) We had everything planned out, except for the part where the girls could not decide on a name for their pet. Of course the only reasonable solution was to go back to the pet store and buy another one. They would be lonely without us at home after all.

                                           

I loved those little fur balls, but they did not love me. Turns out three of the people in our family were allergic to those cuddly little guys. My allergies got so bad I would break out in hives when I had to brush them or hold them to cut their nails. Undeterred, we kept those little darlings for nearly two years. Two years!

After that I vowed to never have pets again. Except of course for our funny little class pets.


One of our class jobs is the Veterinarian. Originally the students took care of Lucifer (named for the cat in Cinderella) our class bunny. Lucy is the perfect pet. She goes wherever we go, is so quiet, never makes a mess, and can be tossed in the washing machine when needed. She is a white bunny so she needs it a lot :)

                                                     

For the month of December we have added a new pet Gingy. We began the month reading a variety of gingerbread man books to mark the adoption of our new class pet. The class was thrilled with our new pet, so we decided to make Gingy a house. The day the gingerbread house was unanimously decided upon I went to the cardboard recycle bin to gather supplies. Unfortunately our maintenance team had just taken the loot to the bin outside. Disappointed  I shared with the class that we would have to wait until I picked up our next snack order for boxes.

Never doubt the resourcefulness of children. When an activity is truly child directed they find a way to make it happen. The next morning Jemal came to class with his sister hidden behind a very large stack of boxes. Jemal had taken it upon himself to find a home for Gingy. I LOVE that he took this so seriously. We had only had a rather short conversation about Gingy and his house and the very next day everything we needed to get started was in our room. These children are our future leaders... and I could not be more impressed!

So we got to work cutting, taping, and stapling a house together. We painted and painted and painted.

   


                           
                           

Then we glittered gum drops, colored lollipops, and drew swirls on peppermints. Our 7th grade buddies came down to play one afternoon and helped us decorate Gingy's house. And what a house it is. Gingy loves it, but I have been told he sometimes locks the door to keep us out.

                            



While we never set out to create such an elaborate home for our temporary class pet, the children have really brought him to life. It is a joy to watch them create.

                                          

Gingy watching us from the window when we went outside to play...

And listening so nicely to stories...