Children - Animal Relationship

"Animals teach us about our own characteristics.  
Ask a child what is the power of an alligator, tortoise, turtle or a wild cat.
They will tell you.
So ask yourself what any animal means.
If children can do it, so can you. It is about learned wisdom.
It’s about dreams. It’s about good energy. It’s about loving all animals.
We provide this experience at CrocTalk in a language we all can understand.”
Animals are awesome. Okay, I am biased – I have had an innate interest and love for animals since I was a kid, and I currently study their behavior and evolution. But still, hopefully you agree with me on some level.
You know who else tends to think that animals are awesome? Kids. Children, generally speaking, love animals. Just look at the things that encompass the lives of children in our society: Cartoons, fables, story books, toys, and of course Disney… All heavily rely on animals as their selling points to our youngsters.
I think we should be buying into our children’s love for animals in a slightly different way: In education. Often, when trying to teach children something, half the battle lies in gaining their interest of the subject. By using animals, you may well find that you have got over that first hurdle already. And there are lots of ways in which we can use animals in education.
The most obvious example is probably the classroom pet. Some of us may fondly remember having a classroom pet. I remember mine was a Bearded Dragon. Holding him and hand feeding him crickets and worms is something I've never forgotten. We all took turns in the cleaning as well. His name was Bert! The use of animals in education in any capacity seems to be widely varied, with little structure and few guidelines. But whether through the use of classroom pets, specially-trained visiting animals, or even just through discussion about wildlife and field trips to zoos, parks, or simply out into the playground, kids can see animals in their natural habitat. I think any and all of these can offer a huge benefit to children’s social and emotional development.
Not a huge amount of research has been done looking at the use of animals in the classroom, or indeed of the human-animal bond in general. However, school children with developmental disabilities seem to have significantly more positive social interactions with each other and their teacher when an animal or a recognizable animated character ( plush stuffy of an animal) is visible in an environment such as CrocTalk Zoo or other animal facilities where an abundance of a variety of animals are visible.
I also believe that preschool children are more likely to share their stickers with other children about favorite animals which may lead us to believe that interactions with live animals could lead to an increase in positive social behaviors in general. I'm developing some stickers of our animals in particular here at CrocTalk for all of our classroom guests.
Animals have also been shown to decrease physiological signs of stress (i.e. lower heart rate and blood pressure) in clinical settings, for instance in senior centers when the y are able to interact with a dog or recognizable "pet" or in our case when we take a small crocodile and some tortoises to their center.  The classroom can also be a stressful place for some children too, and if a child shows less physiological stress, it is reasonable to assume that they will benefit more from the overall school experience if an atmosphere that includes animals is prevalent.
Despite the need for more research into what exactly is going on here between children and animals, it is reasonable to assume that it can potentially have a significantly positive impact on a child’s development. Although there are still many questions to answer regarding the underlying mechanisms, in the meantime, schools should take advantage of this positive effect and try to incorporate animal behavior and welfare into the curriculum as much as possible.

I think by teaching a child about animals, their behavior and their welfare, you are also teaching them some basics of biology, psychology, physiology, evolution, ecology, and important life skills like care and responsibility. I can’t help but feel that incorporating field trips to facilities such as CrocTalk Zoo which exhibits crocodiles, African wild cats, tortoises and turtles and so much more  in a safe clean environment is a win-win situation for everyone.
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www.theedugator.com
Thank you J.G.Goldman in part