I made a deal with you (my students) about 3 weeks ago... I told you if I got an augmentative letter from 1/3 of the class (we have 20 students) I would consider getting a class pet.
I have received one hand written letter, and one via email (above). I decided to write you a letter explaining why I do not want a classroom pet. If you do want one, I would be sure to address some of my concerns in your argumentative letter.
Tip: If you use the Big Mac format it will be VERY hard for me to say no.
9/25/12
Dear Students,
I know many of you want a classroom pet, but there are 3 main reasons I do not think we should get one. First, classroom pets can be a huge distraction. A classroom pet would spend his/ her day crawling or swimming around the cage doing interesting animal things I know the you would want to watch. I can already picture some of us paying more attention to what's happening in the cage than what's happening in our classroom! In addition, sometimes classroom pets can do things that are out of character (for instance, trying to get out of the cage). I believe those uncharacteristic actions would cause students to shout out in excitement! This would be an incredible disruption to our class, and one I can simply not tolerate.
Classroom pets are also a huge responsibility. They need to be fed, cleaned, cared for over the weekend/ breaks, and loved. How would we figure out who does what, and when would we find the time to do it?!? The last time I had a classroom pet, all but one or two students forgot about him. Jake, our fish, would go days without being fed (by a student). He became very sad and lonely, and eventually I had to take him home to live with me where he would be properly cared for. It just seemed to be too much responsibility for the students to manage, and I can't bear to watch something like that happen again.
Finally, we do not have space in our classroom for a cage/tank. A cage/ tank is approximately 1.5 ft by 1 ft., plus we would need room for the pet supplies. That is a lot of space! We already have lots of books, computers, materials, and manipulatives... Every corner in our classroom is full. I don't know where we would put a classroom pet, therefor do not think we should get one.
Because classroom pets can be very distracting, they are a huge responsibility, and take up a lot of space that we just don't have, I have come to the conclusion we should not have a classroom pet. Don't you agree? :)
Love,
Mrs. DeThomas
P.S. Good luck!