This semester Kim Brammer’s Challenge Class gifted education students at Covel D Searcy Elementary are learning about animal and human survival. As part of this unit of study, each student has a Madagascar hissing cockroach, also known as a hisser, as a classroom pet.
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Pictured are members of the Challenge Class with their little friends, left to right, front row, Elijah Lawinger, Makenna Bottcher, Betty Rogers, Ashley Feiden, Bryce Brogan, and Pryce Johnson; back row: Taylor Morrison, Cloey Waterbury, Payton Feiden, Hayden Jeffers, and Gabe Hacking. [Submitted Photo]
One project the students did was to make commercials. The students were placed in groups and told to pretend that they were the owners of a company that sold Madagascar hissing cockroaches. Their goal was to produce a commercial, which was videotaped, that would convince people to buy their hissers. The videos were shown to all of the students at CDS Elementary during the week of Feb. 22 for Gifted Education Week.
During Gifted Education week, the Challenge Class students also showed their hissers to the other students and answered their questions about Madagascar hissing cockroaches.
Another project the students enjoyed was creating “Super People.” The students researched animal and insect characteristics and selected the 12 characteristics that they felt would be the most beneficial for a “Super Person”. Next they created their “Super Person” by using their own body outline and incorporating the 12 animal characteristics into their drawing. The students came up with some creative “Super People” such as “Ferret Man,” “Octo-Squirrel,” “Lion Man,” and “Creature Woman.”
Family Night was held on the evening of April 21 at CDS Elementary School and was attended by over 40 family members. The Challenge Class families watched the Madagascar hissing cockroach commercials and “Super People” presentations.
At the end of the evening, the Madagascar hissing cockroaches went home with the students to become family pets.