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"Only through continuous education can the attitudes of reverence for all life be developed." ~ Gordon E. Van Hooft, Director of Curriculum Development New York State Education Department, 1976


 

 
The Humane Treatment of Animals: A Guide for Elementary Teachers. NY State Education Dept. Level 2 Grades 1, 2 & 3:

Please note: all text in italics was taken directly from the out of print 1976 NY humane education curriculum guide

Topic/House Pets - Companion Animals

Begin this unit with In Defense of Animals Guardian Campaign's Respecting our Animal Friends.

Understanding - Companion animals require responsible guardians. Activities - Encourage the children to discuss their pets. Develop a list of the physical and emotional needs of pets. Have each pet owner make a duty chart for his pet incorporating needs listed. Have them keep track of their fulfillment of responsibility to their pet. Discuss results.

Understanding - Being an animal guardian is a moral responsibility. Activities - Have the class discuss the need for an active commitment of pet ownership. Elicit responsibilities such as: daily care, long-term ownership, possible health bills, cost of set up and supplies, emotional stress and expense at illness or death, recognizing the rights of your neighbors. Supplemental Information - Acquiring a pet on impulse often leads to poor care and eventual abandonment. Pet shop purchases are very often impulse purchases.

Understanding - Different breeds of dogs and cats need different care. Activities - Have the children collect pictures of as many different kinds of dogs and cats as possible. Then, have them make posters for each illustrating proper diet, facilities, and care. Supplemental Information - The larger the animal the more room and food s/he needs. Certain breeds also require more grooming for their personal comfort and to ease care of them. Some pets seem to require more attention from people; others react best when infrequently handled. Consult the library for books about specific breeds of dogs and cats as well as Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy magazines.

  • Background information from the Humane Society of the US: dog care and cat care
  • Read-aloud: At the Dog Park: with Sam and Lucy. Written by Daisy Bix and illustrated by Amelia Hansen. Gryphon Press, 2006. 24 pages. Sam and Lucy go to the park and play with their dog friends, in this book told from the dogs' point of view. Twenty nine different breeds are featured in the text. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. PreS-3.
  • Background: Dogs. By Seymour Simon. HarperCollinsPublishers, 2004. Provides a basic introduction to the physical characteristics and behavior of dogs as well as excellent advice about selecting a dog and the care that puppies require. Nonfiction photo essay. Interest level: Gr. 1-4.
  • Background: Cats. By Seymour Simon. HarperCollinsPublishers, 2004. Discusses the history, physical characteristics, behavior, and various breeds of cats, and provides basic information on caring for one as a pet. Nonfiction photo essay. Interest level: Gr. 1-4.

Understanding- Animals require kind, gentle treatment . Activities - Explain the basics of kindness and safety around animals. Animals communicate and it is important to pay attention to these cues to prevent bites and other injuries. Supplemental Information - Each year approximately 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs, ranging from minor nips to major attacks. Children are three times more likely to sustain a serious injury resulting in 800,000 children being hospitalized each year. Half of all children will be bitten before their eighteenth birthday. Most bites can be prevented! Bite prevention should be taught to keep children safe.

Understanding - Animals need consistent, firm, kind training.

Understanding - Animals need inoculations and yearly check-ups. Activities: Invite a veterinarian to discuss with the children various aspects of pet ownership including preventative medicine, and the need for proper exercise, nutrition, and shelter. Animals who are sick or injured need immediate veterinary care! Failure to do so constitutes animal cruelty (neglect) under NY Agriculture and Markets law Article 26.

  • Read-aloud for grades one, two and three: Love Is a Happy Cat. By Michael W. Fox. See pages 17, 22, 26, 27, 30, 49, 56, 74, 79 and especially page 87. Activity - have students create pet health care posters.
  • Reference titles for all grades: Aspca Pet Care Guides for Kids. (kitten and puppy titles available)

Understanding - Not all animals make good house pets. Activities - Review with the children pet ownership responsibilities. Elicit reasons why dogs, cats, and domesticated fish and birds make the best house pets. Supplemental information - "Novelty" animals such as monkeys and alligators are often a great burden because of the special care required. Dogs and cats have been bred over the centuries to serve as house pets. Domesticated fish and birds are suitable for apartments and have needs easier to meet.

  • Lesson: Dumb Friends League's Pets are Purr fect friends - grades one and two
  • Lesson: Dumb Friends League's When dogs were wolves - grades two and three
  • Read-aloud: The First Dog. Written and illustrated by Jan Brett. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. As a reward for saving him from being eaten by the Cave Bears, the Mighty Mammoth, and the Saber-Toothed Cat, Kip the Cave Boy shares his roasted Woolly Rhino ribs with Paleowolf, christens him "Dog," and adopts him as a pet. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. 1-4.
  • Read-aloud: Monkey for Sale. By Sanna Stanley. Frances Foster Books, 2002. The story about two friends who embark on an elaborate chain of barter and bargaining to rescue a monkey. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. 1-4.

Understanding - There are laws governing animal guardianship . Activities - Have a town clerk or warden explain to the children local ordinances governing pet ownership. As follow-up, have the children act out or write essays showing how certain laws protect animals and people. Supplemental information: Copies of local ordinances can probably be obtained from the town clerk. See also NY Agriculture and Markets law.

  • Lesson: Dumb Friends League's The difference between wild animals and pets
  • Read-aloud: Adopted by an owl : the true story of Jackson the owl. Written by Robbyn Smith van Frankenhuyzen and illustrated by Gijsbert Van Frankenhuyzen. Sleeping Bear Press, 2001. Chronicles the rehabilitation of a great horned owl who was stolen from his nest by a boy when he was an owlet. Although Jackson the owl has learned how to survive on his own, he chooses to remain with the family who rehabilitated him. Teacher's Guide available on publisher's web site. KIND Children's Honor Book. A Michigan Notable Book. Nonfiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. 1-6.

Understanding - Companion animal overpopulation is a problem. Activities - Encourage the children to relate personal experiences with pet litters and stray animals. Discuss particularly the problems encountered in finding homes for puppies or kittens and other animals such as rabbits that are allowed to breed. Supplemental information - Spaying and neutering are easy methods to control pet population and do not harm the animal. Rabbits should also be spayed or neutered. (www.rabbit.org)

  • Background information and lessons: ASPCA's "Pet Population: Behind the Numbers"
  • Read-aloud: Millions of Cats. Written and illustrated by Wanda Gag. Puffin Books, 1928, 1956. The memorable refrain of America's first picture book, "Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats," should help children commit to memory the importance of sterilizing companion animals. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. K-3.
  • Read-aloud: Hey Bossie, You're a Spokescow! written by Mickey de Rham and illustrated by Leigh Gusterson. Plaidswede Publishing, 2005. The story of a real cow who helps the White Mountain Animal League educate people about the need to sterilize companion animals to reduce pet overpopulation. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. PreS-3.
  • Read aloud: Angelica's Wish. By Annette Menniti Campbell and illustrated by Olga M. Burger. Xlibris Corporation, 2004. A modern day fairy tale about the hardships experienced by stray cats. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. 2-5.
  • Lesson grade one: MSPCA-Angells Pet Overpopulation
  • Lesson grade two: MSPCA-Angell's Pet Overpopulation
  • Lesson grade three: Dumb Friends League's Adding up pet populations

Understanding - Proper giving up of unwanted animals is humane and helps control companion animal overpopulation. Activities - Elicit from the children instances when a pet may need to be given up, such as: the family moves, someone in the family is allergic to the pet, there has been a litter and there is no room for all the pets. Invite a local animal shelter to explain the work or his/her agency. Responsible pet guardians do not contribute to the overpopulation problem by allowing their animals to breed. Supplemental information - To turn a pet over to an animal shelter, even if a home can't be found and the animal is destroyed, is the most humane way to handle unwanted pets. Abandonment causes hardship, pain, and danger to the pet and a possible menace to people. Abandonment is illegal and is a felony in the state of New York.

  • Lesson grades one: MSPCA-Angell's Rusty and Raymond
  • Lesson grades two and three: MSPCA-Angell's Rusty and Raymond
  • Read-aloud: Curious George and the Puppies. Based on the original character by Margret & H.A. Rey. Curious George and the man with the yellow hat find a tiny kitten in the park and take her to the animal shelter where she will be taken care of. While there, George falls in love with one of the many puppies for adoption. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. pre S-1.
  • Read-aloud: A Home for Nathan. Written by Claudio M. Roll and illustrated by Finn Rizer. The William Snyder Foundation for Animals, 1999. The true story of a young unwanted cat’s journey as he’s cared for at an animal shelter and finally adopted into a loving home. The book provides a positive introduction to animal shelters. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Grades 1-4.
  • Read aloud: A home for Spooky. By Gloria Rand. H. Holt & Co., 1998. Based on a true story, a girl finds a homeless dog in a dump, visits him every day, and eventually saves his life. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. 3-6.
  • Read aloud: Let's Get A Pup! Said Kate. Written and illustrated by Bob Graham. Candlewick Press 2001. Kate and her parents fall in love with a cute little puppy at the animal rescue center. Once home with their new pup, the family cannot stop thinking about the old gray dog that they did not adopt. Boston Globe Horn Book Award Winner. KIND Children's Book Award. Fiction picture book. Interest level: Gr. K-3.
  • Read aloud: One Day at Wood Green Animal Shelter. Written and illustrated by Patricia Casey. Candlewick Press, 2001. It is a very busy day at Wood Green Animal Shelter and veterinary clinic, where the workers take care of a variety of animals that need their help. Fiction picture book. Interest level: K-3.

Creating Youth Advocacy Groups:

Humane Society Youth Mission Humane and Jane Goodall Institute's Roots and Shoots programs provide the support necessary to help youth take action and make a difference.

Next topic - Animals in Society

Back to NY Curriculum Main Page

The following topics from the guide will be added shortly:

Animals in Their Natural Environment

Animals in School

Animals and People

See also Humane Education Resources page for teaching guides, lessons and additional materials including audio visual materials.

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