Students and staff celebrated all things animal-related, with our annual Pet Week Focus Week. Always a highlight on the school calendar, the week saw the usual menagerie of animals gracing the school buildings – much to the chagrin of Sadie, our resident Hub dog, and Jinx, our canine attendance assistant.
During the week, students had regular visitors in their lessons; particular highlights included Mr Cartner’s dog, Elsie, now an expert in Maths, and Mrs Stamenov’s dog, Lola, taking over as IT specialist for the week.
A highly anticipated event of the week was Mrs Jones’ ‘Exotic Zoo’ where over 100 students faced their fears to learn about and handle snakes and cockroaches. Regular snake visitors Albert and Bourbon were huge hits with the students, along with Kam the mantis and Jeff, the giant cockroach.
Year 7 student, Lennie Riley, said, “Holding a snake for the first time was the most AMAZING experience! I’ve never done anything like this before.” Good luck to Lenny’s parents, as he is now desperate for a pet snake of his own!
The week coincided with the Darwin House Week, which raised money for the Max and George Trust. A local charity, they rescue and rehabilitate sick, injured, hurt and homeless dogs from within our county. The charity is desperate for help as they have recently moved to new premises and are trying to raise over £25,000 towards the costs of setting up a new home. The Friary students’ generous contributions will go a long way to helping to meet this target.
The assembly and tutor time activities focused on the responsibilities of pet ownership, tied in to The Friary Ethics. Students learnt about the processes of acquiring a pet, reputable breeders, the financial and time implications, as well as the huge physical and mental health benefits of pet ownership.
Matt Allman, Headteacher, said: “Caring for and respecting animals is a great way of encouraging confidence and compassion in students as they deal with fellow humans. Ideas on responsibility, care, and friendship, have been explored through the week, as well as environmental concerns and the sheer fun of meeting an animal that has previously only been seen on TV or in a book. If we can add fun and laughter to our school day then that is only a good thing.”
To learn more about National Pet Month click here.
