Recently in these pages we have been developing a Guide to School Assemblies.  Today we will look at shows featuring live animals.

Now we have at arrived at a category that is popular with just about everyone – Animal programs!

From time immemorial, performers have utilized live animals in entertainment acts. In ancient times bears and lions were displayed. Snakes were conjured out of baskets. Monkeys worked with organ grinders. Elephants amazed in circus acts. And dogs jumped through hoops and danced their way into our hearts throughout Vaudeville days.

In the past, many animal acts actually featured extreme cruelty toward animals, such as bear bating and animal fights. Though such activities sadly do still exist in many places, these are wretched and vile practice and one we hope to see ended everywhere. We love our animal friends. We wish to see them treated with love.

You see, most people, and especially kids, just love animals.

And, today, performers with live animals continue to appear in theatres, clubs, on television and in school assemblies and shows for kids.

However, here we must proscribe a line between entertainment oriented animal programs and educationally oriented live animal programs. It is sometimes a blurry line in the middle, but at the extremes it is most distinct.

Entertainment acts, at the extreme, involve animals that do tricks or in some other way have been trained or compelled to do things outside of their natural inclination. Dogs jump through hoops or roll over or dance. Apes appear as silent sidemen in comedy acts. And so on.

At the opposite extreme are the animals school shows that are purely educational. These involve a master educator essentially teaching a natural science class about mammals or reptiles or some related field with the aid of various animals to demonstrate points and increase the involvement of kids.

In between are all manner of variations.

Some will feature only reptiles which are relatively easy to keep and care for.

Some, on the other hand will feature all manner of exotic creatures, such as lions, tigers or even kangaroos.

All are suitable for entertainment purposes, as everyone loves animals.

However, some are more politically correct than others.

While you, as the coordinator of your schools enrichment programs, must decide which direction to go. Do you want a wildly entertaining program that has kids on the edge of their seats? You can certainly obtain this result from some animal acts. I have witnessed school shows that featured lion cubs running around the audience like pet dogs. I have seen animals doing tricks. I have seen school shows with endangered species.

But there is the rub.

Are you only trying to entertain kids? Or are you attempting to bolster their education and set good examples for responsible conduct?

If the latter is your aim then consider these few thoughts. Is is responsible to showcase endangered animals just for entertainment value? Especially given that the life of an animal involved in school shows often includes long stretches of confinement during travel. Is this the right example? And is a wild show more important than an in depth period of learning, made just as fascinating by the inclusion of a variety of smaller animals and reptiles, not endangered but nonetheless not familiar to most kids, and which are perfectly suited by size and temperament to the rigors of life on the road?

You must decide these questions for yourself.

Here at Mobile Ed, we long ago made the decision that we would exclude usage of large mammals, due to the hardship of confinement and travel on larger animals. We also made a moral decision to exclude usage of endangered or threatened species, as an irresponsible choice in terms of the example it sets. After all, one of our programs, Animals and the Environment, specifically deals with the issue of keeping exotic animals as pets and whether or not, from the animals perspective, this is a good thing (hint – it isn't!).

Our programs use highly knowledgeable and experienced presenters to teach valuable lessons about nature and our co-inhabitants on this planet, while also providing a high level of entertainment. We think this is the best and most responsible way to go. Your choice may be different.

However you decide, rest assured you will have a good time, and that you should be able to find some kind of program with relative ease.

Across the country there are many presenters offering various kinds of animal programs. Many are regionally based and so able to return again and again with different animals at each visit. Some will feature large birds of prey. Others will focus strictly on snakes, frogs, turtles and crocodiles. Some will do tricks. They are all out there. They are all fun. They are all available.

So choose your goal, entertainment or responsible educational value, and pick up the phone. An animal program should be a regular piece of your annual schedule of school assembly programs, shows and enrichment.

Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN. He also spent ten years coordinating assembly programs for the elementary school where his own children went to school.