Our house is incredibly popular for play dates.
I think geckos make awesome classroom pets. Dash sleeps a lot during the day, but if there's something going on in the livingroom, he comes out of his hide to see what's going on. He also comes out of his hide when the kids are practicing reading - he'll come right up to the glass and look like he's listening to the story, lol. We've been really lucky (with a lot of research) to have animals that have been handled and are calm around kids so we can really enjoy having them as pets. And I've also worked a lot with my kids so that they are comfortable and can safely handle the animals while respecting the animals limits. My kids know that when Dash starts getting a bit jumpy or tries to burrow in the couch cushions, he's had enough of playtime and wants to go back to his warm hide. And I have it set up that the reptiles can only come out with adult supervision (for their safety). That way I can keep my eye on things.
Even with chaos all around. lol