Beardies in the Classroom

Worf, the bearded dragon

I have been very fortunate to work at schools with supportive teachers and administrators who have allowed me to bring a class pet into the classroom every day. Although his "day job" is to be an emotional support animal for students in my own classroom, my bearded dragon has also been a great source of comfort and community to all staff members. 

I bought Worf from a Petsmart in Monterey, CA in September 2016 for $40. For the first three months, he lived at my home until he was big enough to be brought into the high school I taught at. Since then, he has thrived and been an integral part of my classroom and learning environment. Most importantly, he has been a great recipient of love for teenagers to focus on, which continues to this day. 

In the 2018-2019 school year, I wanted to quantify my bearded dragon's impact on my students, so I wrote my final study of inquiry for the California Induction program on this topic. You can view the paper by clicking here, and you can view the results of the student data I collected below.