A hedgehog is not for all classrooms, though. If it is simply put in a cage and left in the corner, it won't be happy and the kids won't get involved with it. If they see that the teacher is enthusiastic about the hedgie, the kids will catch the enthusiasm. If they see the teacher doesn't appear to care, well, at least one hedgehog has been rescued from a group of kids who decided to use it as a croquet ball during a teacher's brief absence from the room. This is NOT what we want to see happen! Personally, I would recommend that the teacher personally accept responsibility for the hedgehog as the teacher's own pet, at least taking it home on weekends and holidays, if not at the end of the day. If students are allowed to take the hedgehog home, make sure that the parents are willing and cooperative, and that they fully understand the care requirements. The last thing you want is to lose your hedgehog because the parents made the child keep it in the unheated garage over winter vacation. And, of course, the teacher should make sure to research care requirements (a care sheet listing what I consider the bare basics of hedgehog care can be found here).

As a final consideration, teach the children to wash their hands or use antibacterial gel before and after handling the hedgehog. Chances are the hedgehog isn't harboring any dread disease, and neither are the children, but it never hurts to exercise caution, and to establish what will hopefully be a lifelong good habit.