Just got disturbing email regarding English class for my rising freshman

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do you. My kid isn’t reading it. Luckily they have alternatives.

As long as you are consistent with pulling them out when it is time to read Shakespeare and tons of other books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do you. My kid isn’t reading it. Luckily they have alternatives.

As long as you are consistent with pulling them out when it is time to read Shakespeare and tons of other books.

Nope. They will still read classics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS is truly going downhill.

Excerpts from The Poet X: the other girls call me conceited. Ho. Thot. Fast.
When your body takes up more room than your voice
you are always the target of well-aimed rumors,
which is why I let my knuckles talk for me.
Which is why I learned to shrug when my name was replaced
by insults.

And I get all this attention from guys 
but it’s like a sancocho of emotions.
This stew of mixed-up ingredients:
partly flattered they think I’m attractive,
partly scared they’re only interested in my ass and boobs,
and a good measure of Mami-will-kill-me fear sprinkled on top.

Good girls don’t wear tampones.
Are you still a virgin? Are you having relations?”
I didn’t know how to answer her, I could only cry.
She shook her head and told me to skip church that day.
Threw away the box of tampons, saying they were for cueros.
That she would buy me pads. Said eleven was too young.
That she would pray on my behalf.
I didn’t understand what she was saying.
But I stopped crying. I licked at my split lip.
I prayed for the bleeding to stop.

Yeah, no, my kid isn’t going to be reading this crap. This is so ridiculous.

This is what you find offensive? You've got to be kidding me 🤦. Let me guess, you threw a fit about Turning Red as well? What do you think is appropriate reading for a 14 year old? Nancy Drew?

I don’t see any boys being able to relate to this crap. I don’t think they need to be exposed to vocabulary such as “thot” or “ho” and I don’t think they need to be discussing tampon use and virginity.

Boys relate to every other text ever taught in school, almost all of which have a male protagonist and narrator.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do you. My kid isn’t reading it. Luckily they have alternatives.

My 17 year old students love it when they have to go read another book in the library while the class reads a completely normal book their mommy said they couldn’t handle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS is truly going downhill.

Excerpts from The Poet X: the other girls call me conceited. Ho. Thot. Fast.
When your body takes up more room than your voice
you are always the target of well-aimed rumors,
which is why I let my knuckles talk for me.
Which is why I learned to shrug when my name was replaced
by insults.

And I get all this attention from guys 
but it’s like a sancocho of emotions.
This stew of mixed-up ingredients:
partly flattered they think I’m attractive,
partly scared they’re only interested in my ass and boobs,
and a good measure of Mami-will-kill-me fear sprinkled on top.

Good girls don’t wear tampones.
Are you still a virgin? Are you having relations?”
I didn’t know how to answer her, I could only cry.
She shook her head and told me to skip church that day.
Threw away the box of tampons, saying they were for cueros.
That she would buy me pads. Said eleven was too young.
That she would pray on my behalf.
I didn’t understand what she was saying.
But I stopped crying. I licked at my split lip.
I prayed for the bleeding to stop.

Yeah, no, my kid isn’t going to be reading this crap. This is so ridiculous.

This is what you find offensive? You've got to be kidding me 🤦. Let me guess, you threw a fit about Turning Red as well? What do you think is appropriate reading for a 14 year old? Nancy Drew?

I don’t see any boys being able to relate to this crap. I don’t think they need to be exposed to vocabulary such as “thot” or “ho” and I don’t think they need to be discussing tampon use and virginity.

Are you kidding? Let's take apart your idiotic statement:

I don't see any boys being able to relate to this crap. -- Part of the point of literature is to help students understand different view points. Seems like it would be beneficial for boys to understand a girl's perspective on puberty.

Exposed to vocabulary... -- Your boys have already heard and said far worse. Welcome to the real world.

Tampon use. -- What the f is wrong with you if you think boys need to be protected from learning about menstruation. I guess you better pull them out of biology to.

Virginity. -- Do you also forbid them from reading about Mary?

Like I said, FCPS is going downhill. Meanwhile private schools are reading classics such as “Lord of the Flies”, “A Tale of Two Cities”…I wonder who will be better prepared for college.

Lord of the Flies barely qualifies as a classic since it wasn't written until the 1950s. It's ironic that you cite that as an acceptable book. It's the eighth most banned or challenged book in the US. I'd be surprised if you're OK with it if you've actually read it.

[Anonymous]

The irony that boys can't read a book with a female narrator, and we're suggesting replacing it and having the girls read Lord of the Flies which doesn't even have a female character.

[Anonymous]

Sorry OP, you are not going to get much sympathy here.

This is just another drop in mainstream culture becoming more openly sexual. Generally speaking the only groups of people who tend to oppose this trend are religious groups. Therefore, you will see a lot of pushback like the comments you see here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do you. My kid isn’t reading it. Luckily they have alternatives.

As long as you are consistent with pulling them out when it is time to read Shakespeare and tons of other books.

Nope. They will still read classics.

So your opposition is not to sexual content only new sexual content. Got it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The irony that boys can't read a book with a female narrator, and we're suggesting replacing it and having the girls read Lord of the Flies which doesn't even have a female character.

+1

I guess they will also ban their boy from reading the Scarlet Letter? I mean what teen boy is relating to an adulteress?

Reasoning seems inconsistently applied and hypocritical

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS is truly going downhill.

Excerpts from The Poet X: the other girls call me conceited. Ho. Thot. Fast.
When your body takes up more room than your voice
you are always the target of well-aimed rumors,
which is why I let my knuckles talk for me.
Which is why I learned to shrug when my name was replaced
by insults.

And I get all this attention from guys 
but it’s like a sancocho of emotions.
This stew of mixed-up ingredients:
partly flattered they think I’m attractive,
partly scared they’re only interested in my ass and boobs,
and a good measure of Mami-will-kill-me fear sprinkled on top.

Good girls don’t wear tampones.
Are you still a virgin? Are you having relations?”
I didn’t know how to answer her, I could only cry.
She shook her head and told me to skip church that day.
Threw away the box of tampons, saying they were for cueros.
That she would buy me pads. Said eleven was too young.
That she would pray on my behalf.
I didn’t understand what she was saying.
But I stopped crying. I licked at my split lip.
I prayed for the bleeding to stop.

Yeah, no, my kid isn’t going to be reading this crap. This is so ridiculous.

This is what you find offensive? You've got to be kidding me 🤦. Let me guess, you threw a fit about Turning Red as well? What do you think is appropriate reading for a 14 year old? Nancy Drew?

I don’t see any boys being able to relate to this crap. I don’t think they need to be exposed to vocabulary such as “thot” or “ho” and I don’t think they need to be discussing tampon use and virginity.

Are you kidding? Let's take apart your idiotic statement:

I don't see any boys being able to relate to this crap. -- Part of the point of literature is to help students understand different view points. Seems like it would be beneficial for boys to understand a girl's perspective on puberty.

Exposed to vocabulary... -- Your boys have already heard and said far worse. Welcome to the real world.

Tampon use. -- What the f is wrong with you if you think boys need to be protected from learning about menstruation. I guess you better pull them out of biology to.

Virginity. -- Do you also forbid them from reading about Mary?

Like I said, FCPS is going downhill. Meanwhile private schools are reading classics such as “Lord of the Flies”, “A Tale of Two Cities”…I wonder who will be better prepared for college.

Lord of the Flies barely qualifies as a classic since it wasn't written until the 1950s. It's ironic that you cite that as an acceptable book. It's the eighth most banned or challenged book in the US. I'd be surprised if you're OK with it if you've actually read it.

Lord of the flies is so violent. I think there is more to learn from poet x than from lord of the flies. I think they are both worth reading however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS is truly going downhill.

Excerpts from The Poet X: the other girls call me conceited. Ho. Thot. Fast.
When your body takes up more room than your voice
you are always the target of well-aimed rumors,
which is why I let my knuckles talk for me.
Which is why I learned to shrug when my name was replaced
by insults.

And I get all this attention from guys 
but it’s like a sancocho of emotions.
This stew of mixed-up ingredients:
partly flattered they think I’m attractive,
partly scared they’re only interested in my ass and boobs,
and a good measure of Mami-will-kill-me fear sprinkled on top.

Good girls don’t wear tampones.
Are you still a virgin? Are you having relations?”
I didn’t know how to answer her, I could only cry.
She shook her head and told me to skip church that day.
Threw away the box of tampons, saying they were for cueros.
That she would buy me pads. Said eleven was too young.
That she would pray on my behalf.
I didn’t understand what she was saying.
But I stopped crying. I licked at my split lip.
I prayed for the bleeding to stop.

Yeah, no, my kid isn’t going to be reading this crap. This is so ridiculous.

This is what you find offensive? You've got to be kidding me 🤦. Let me guess, you threw a fit about Turning Red as well? What do you think is appropriate reading for a 14 year old? Nancy Drew?

I don’t see any boys being able to relate to this crap. I don’t think they need to be exposed to vocabulary such as “thot” or “ho” and I don’t think they need to be discussing tampon use and virginity.

Are you kidding? Let's take apart your idiotic statement:

I don't see any boys being able to relate to this crap. -- Part of the point of literature is to help students understand different view points. Seems like it would be beneficial for boys to understand a girl's perspective on puberty.

Exposed to vocabulary... -- Your boys have already heard and said far worse. Welcome to the real world.

Tampon use. -- What the f is wrong with you if you think boys need to be protected from learning about menstruation. I guess you better pull them out of biology to.

Virginity. -- Do you also forbid them from reading about Mary?

Like I said, FCPS is going downhill. Meanwhile private schools are reading classics such as “Lord of the Flies”, “A Tale of Two Cities”…I wonder who will be better prepared for college.

Lord of the Flies barely qualifies as a classic since it wasn't written until the 1950s. It's ironic that you cite that as an acceptable book. It's the eighth most banned or challenged book in the US. I'd be surprised if you're OK with it if you've actually read it.

Lord of the flies is so violent. I think there is more to learn from poet x than from lord of the flies. I think they are both worth reading however.

+1 and it's interesting that the PP is ok with the violence of Lord of the Flies vs very minor references in Poet X.

[Anonymous]

haha, OP is in for a wild ride for sure.

[Anonymous]

You guys care way too much. lol

[Anonymous]

I just want to be clear, here are things people on this thread are OK with their kids reading about:

Juliet’s nurse sharing that her daughter died so that she could provide breast milk for a rich child.

Teenage boys killing each other.

13 year old girls having sex with boys they met in the last 48 hours

Catholic priests helping impulsive teens commit statutory rape

Suicide

Ostracizing a kid because they wear glasses and are clumsy

Mob violence leading to the death of children

Childhood sex abuse

KKK lynch mobs

Here are things that 14 year olds, particularly boys must be shielded from:

Girls talking about how it feels to be catcalled or groped

Girls fighting back against people who catcall or grope them

Getting a period and using a tampon

A 16 year old girl deciding not to have sex

A 16 year old boy respecting the girl’s boundary and not pushing her to have sex

Masturbation

Catholic priests explaining their faith

Catholic priests helping change abusive family dynamics

Girls reading poetry

One argument is that boys can’t relate to the latter, which makes you wonder, are they able to relate to the former? Are rape, murder, lynch mobs, child sex abuse etc . . . What rhet want their kid relating to?

I should note that I am fine with my kids reading all of these things as long as there is a balance. My sons can read something and understand that it is wrong, or learn to relate to someone different than them through reading.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry OP, you are not going to get much sympathy here.

This is just another drop in mainstream culture becoming more openly sexual. Generally speaking the only groups of people who tend to oppose this trend are religious groups. Therefore, you will see a lot of pushback like the comments you see here.

Right wing religious groups. I don't hear the episcopalians or the methodists complaining. As every one has pointed out, the issue seems to be the newness of the books or the fact there are minorities. None of you express concern with the 'classics', which address similar themes. Of course, I probably give you too much credit. You don't oppose the classics because you never read them or you were too dense to understand what they were actually talking about.