Anonymous wrote:Our children’s school is engraving the terms transgender and cisgender into the student’s vocabularies and encouraging the kids to consider these terms when thinking about their identity. I’m not sure I understand why this is necessary. Whatever you were assigned at birth, if you identify as male or female why can’t those terms be used? If there is some medical reason that on a medical form you need to specify what you were assigned at birth that makes sense, but why the need to say “transgender female” or “cisgender male?” I’m really trying to understand.

Anonymous wrote:Children tend to begin exploring gender identity as young as 3, 4, and 5, so starting this conversation early makes a lot of sense.

Note that this is completely separate from sex/sex identity, as kids don't have the capacity to yet understand those feelings (so gay/straight/bi...this has nothing to do with that).

Cis is a way to identify someone who has a gender identity that is consistent with their genitals, and trans is a way to identify someone who has a gender identity that is inconsistent with their genitals.

Schools and people are using these terms to not single out kids, or create an "other," and you will likely find that kids are super comfortable with this as long as the adults in their life are as well.

At our school, there are 2 children that already identify as trans and one that is certainly heading that way. The way my kids understand it is that "X was born with boy parts but feels inside that they are a girl." And they are cool with that.

This is not something that parents are forcing either. Gender identity is a pretty early step is sorting yourself out and your place in the world as a kid.

Is that helpful?

Anonymous wrote:I’m trying to understand why is there a need to use words like “transgender female” or “cisgender male” as opposed to simply female or male? Why does what you were assigned at birth matter? Are those adjectives wanted? Why are they needed?