When students walk into biology teacher Deanna Engler’s classroom, the first thing they may notice is the giant snake living in the back of her classroom: a ball python named Medusa, which she adopted in 2022 from the animal shelter where her brother works.

“My brother works in animal rescue, and he’s got an exotic animal permit… ball pythons fall into that category and he knows I like to have snakes in my classroom,” Engler said. “When they had a ball python come in, he gave me a call and asked me if I wanted to adopt it for my classroom. That’s actually where [middle school science teacher Jennifer Atkinson‘s pet python] Chromy came from too.” 

Engler said that the snake is “a great learning tool” for her students, both in biology lessons and about snakes in general.

“The kids tend to like her and think she’s cool, so we can apply a lot of the stuff we’re doing to her, which gives a practical application,” she said. “And proximity, without the threat of danger, allows students very often to get accustomed to it… [snakes are] not slimy and wet, or a lot of other misconceptions that they have about reptiles.”

Engler said that while students’ first reactions to seeing Medusa can vary, they often feel more comfortable with her by the end of the year.

“[The students’] first reactions are ‘Oh cool, can I touch it?’ to ‘Aah!’ and everything in between,” she said. “[But] by the end of being in my room for 10 months? [It’s] often the kids that were terrified of it at the beginning and not wanting to come anywhere near it… asking to hold it.”

Freshman Lily Vu said this method works and “likes having a snake as a class pet.”

“I’m not always the most comfortable with snakes, but she seems like a very sweet snake,” Vu said. “From my experience holding her, she was very gentle… It’s nice to look off to the side during class and see the nice little… terrarium.”

Engler said she hopes students feel more comfortable around snakes and other “scary” animals after taking her class.

“I don’t want the students to be terrified of snakes, and we are taught from the time we’re little, in many instances, to be afraid of them,” she said. “They may never like snakes, and that’s fine, but at least when they see one in their yard, they won’t want to get a shovel and kill it… that’s one of the goals.”

By Sienna Lies