Education programs available
The Dumb Friends League offers classes to students, teachers and community groups, ages 5 and older. Our programs are available throughout the Denver metro area and beyond, year-round! We have both on-site classes, which include a shelter tour, and outreach programs. All of our classes are now offered in English and Spanish. Customized programs are available too. Please contact us to discuss your ideas.
How much do these humane education programs cost?
All of the Humane Education programs are FREE, except for our Teacher Recertification class; however, any donation is gladly accepted. Here is a list of items that make a difference for the homeless pets in our care:
Can we take both a program and a shelter tour during the same visit?
Yes, all shelter tours include classroom time. For an in-depth class, plan on visiting for about an hour-and-a-half.
How to choose a program
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Compare your goals with our program list to choose the best topic.
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Check your calendar to see what time of year is appropriate.
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Decide if you want to visit us or have us come visit you.
How to register for a program
Please try to make your reservation at least four weeks in advance of your program date. To register for a program, call us at (303) 751-5772, Ext.7232 to schedule. Please leave a detailed message, including the information listed below. Be sure to include a phone number and the best time to reach you.
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Your name
- Organization or school name
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Program topic
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Contact phone number
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Best time to reach you
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Age or grade of participants
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Date/time of program
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Location of class—our shelter or your site?
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Any special requests
Youth programs
Kindness, compassion, respect and responsibility — are these qualities that you’d like to teach your students? Join us for interactive and informative programs that teach these qualities while relating them to the companion animals in our lives. Through stories, games, role-playing and discussion, students consider what these qualities mean and how they can incorporate them into their lives. Choose from a variety of topics that easily fit into your current curriculum and also match Colorado Model Content Standards for math, science, reading, civics and more! Included with our programs are complimentary curriculum booklets for teachers and coloring/activity books for students. We prefer to work with groups of 35 participants or less. Please contact us if you need to schedule a presentation for a larger group. Click here to read a short description of each program.
Adult programs
Most of our Humane Education youth programs are also appropriate for adult groups. We can also customize a program to fit your needs. Please contact us with your ideas.
Programs for teachers
Staff Development
We are happy to provide your school or district with staff development classes tailored to fit your needs. Some previous classes we have taught include strategies to prevent violence; teaching compassion and respect; and integrating humane lessons into your curriculum.
Teacher Recertification Program
Teaching Compassion and Respect: Humane Education in the Classroom (K-12)
How can we help prevent bullying and violence in our schools? By teaching kids to care! Learn about pets and the creative ways you can add “fur and feathers” to any curriculum. Take a behind-the-scenes tour of our animal shelter and learn about our services for the pets and people of Colorado.
Click your Class: Positive Reinforcement in the Classroom (K-12)
Can kids be trained? Absolutely! Clicker train a mascot dog and learn how to apply similar techniques in your own classroom. Tour behind-the-scenes of our animal shelter and learn about the training we do with shelter animals.
Classroom Pets: Small Mammals in the Classroom (K-12)
Kids love animals. Does having a pet in your classroom foster learning? Does having a Classroom pet teach responsibility? Explore these questions and more. Learn about different species of small mammals including rabbits, ferrets, mice and more. Meet with some of these small mammals. Decide if a classroom pet is the best choice for you and if so what type of pet works best.
Pet packs
Teachers, you can borrow a backpack filled with
lessons and hands-on activities to help your students achieve benchmarks
in a variety of content areas. Backpacks can be checked out for
two weeks and are free to use, but a $10 donation is appreciated
(a $50 deposit is required and will be fully refunded when the backpack
is returned with no damage or loss). Call us
at (303) 751-5772, Ext. 7232 to check out a Pet Pack.
Lesson plans
We are pleased to offer specially written curriculum guides for K-12 classes. Lessons are based on kindness, compassion, respect, and responsibility. They are designed to meet Colorado Model Content Standards in math, science, reading, civics and more! We also provide printed booklets to teachers that participate in our programs.
Recommended reading list
These books were chosen for their compassionate and responsible themes, which promote humane treatment of animals. Books are listed according to grade appropriateness.For guidelines on how to choose books for your classroom that promote compassionate attitudes, click here.
Classroom pets
Are you considering adopting a pet for your classroom? Get information about the care and needs of animals, as well as how they can contribute to the education of your students. Our “Teacher’s Pet” information will help you make the best choice possible for your classroom. Click here to understand the many responsibilities of adopting a classroom pet.
Make a donation for the animals in our care
We are a private nonprofit organization, relying on donations to help us save as many as 19,000 pets a year. If you would like to help us, you can click here to make a secure online donation or print out a donation form and mail or fax it to us.
The Dumb Friends League respects the privacy of its donors. We do not sell or exchange any individual donor information. For details on our privacy policy, click here.
Elementary Age Students