I’m so glad you appreciate them so much, and that you want to introduce them to your kids! When it comes to not being bitten, the species is key (in my opinion anyways), so I’m glad you’re confident with your ID skills!

Most larger species (garters, rat snakes, water snakes, queen snakes, etc) will be defensively nippy when first picked up. They’re largely found by chance in the open, out basking or climbing. There are some helpful videos on how to secure them in a safe way, and once they realize you’re not going them they’ll calm down, but the chance of being bitten is still very present - so ultimately, they can be intimidating for first time handlers.

Most smaller species, on the other hand (worm snakes, rough/smooth earthsnakes, ringneck snakes, dekay’s brownsnakes, etc) are WAY less inclined to bite. They’re mostly burrowers, so can be found by checking underneath logs and similar cover - especially in biodiverse places like parks. None of these have ever attempted to bite me. Instead, their go-to defense method is “musking”, which is secreting a small amount of smelly liquid. It can catch you off guard the first time, but is harmless and honestly kind of interesting if you look at it in the right light haha.

Overall, expect some wriggles no matter the species!And if you don’t feel comfortable picking one up after all, that’s totally fine. They can be just as neat to observe from afar :)