Two rabbits have joined the Sea Cliff School family. The two male rabbits, which are brothers, were donated by resident naturalist, Janet Jardine, who acclimated all the children to these furry friends on Nov. 14.
The bunnies were sought after by Mojdeh Hassani, a teacher at Sea Cliff School, who wanted to teach the students about compassion and collaboration. She said, “What better way to accomplish that than using animals? We have had Dr. Zublionis and the PCA support in turning our first grade pond courtyard into a small animal sanctuary.”
“It has been researched and documented that pets provide us not only with companionship but also emotional support,” Hassani said. “They reduce our stress levels, sense of loneliness, and help us to increase our social activities and add to a child’s self-esteem and positive emotional development. For these reasons, I felt that we could better utilize our pond area which was already inhabited by Koi fish, turtles and bull frogs.”
The Sea Cliff PCA recruited the help of two Sea Cliff parents to build an amazing rabbit hutch and paid for the expenses.
Hassani reiterated the importance of compassion towards others as well as taking care of someone other than yourself.
“We have to instill these characteristics in our children now, while they are young,” she said. “Who knows what animal will join the Sea Cliff School family next?”
