It’s pretty disturbing grown adults feel a need for 11 year olds to be educated on their sexuality. Leave the kids alone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the LGBTQ poster. I don’t care about your sexuality but my kid doesn’t need to explore their sexuality in public school through assigned reading and adult intervention. The fact you jump to a nasty term like “bigotry” makes me think you’re the one who needs to learn about the rights of others and respecting others. My kids can respect others but at the end of the day it is not the role of public schools to teach that, that is my role as a parent.

Newsflash: your kids already know. Wake up.

+1. You want other people to hide or be quiet about their sexuality or gender identity. You do not want to allow schools to recognize their lives in the same
way that the lives of straight people are represented - through stories. That is bigotry. You have a right to believe what you want but you don’t have a right to insist that other people’s voices, identities and presentation be silenced. It is the role of public schools to teach about the world we live in and LGBTQIA people are a full and equal part of that world.

Anonymous wrote:To the LGBTQ poster. I don’t care about your sexuality but my kid doesn’t need to explore their sexuality in public school through assigned reading and adult intervention. The fact you jump to a nasty term like “bigotry” makes me think you’re the one who needs to learn about the rights of others and respecting others. My kids can respect others but at the end of the day it is not the role of public schools to teach that, that is my role as a parent.

Newsflash: your kids already know. Wake up.

To the LGBTQ poster. I don’t care about your sexuality but my kid doesn’t need to explore their sexuality in public school through assigned reading and adult intervention. The fact you jump to a nasty term like “bigotry” makes me think you’re the one who needs to learn about the rights of others and respecting others. My kids can respect others but at the end of the day it is not the role of public schools to teach that, that is my role as a parent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much time for them to grow up, why are SO many people rushing it?

Because they are growing up right now, even if you wish they weren’t. Many kids going into sixth grade are going to have crushes, even if they don’t act on them. When you have a crush that doesn’t align with your parents’ very clear expectations for you, that can be very stressful, anxiety provoking and upsetting. The kids whose parents have a very narrow view of the “right” way to be need this book the most, to know there is nothing wrong with them if they don’t fit a certain mold.

Not all 10yo kids have crushes. It’s fine if the books are available in the library, but forcing kids to read them is another story.

What are you so afraid will happen if your 10 yo reads this book?

The issue is not fear and bigotry to me. Those terms are too often used as a cudgel to kill any debate on this topic. It is what parents feel is appropriate concerning a sensitive subject. Public schools seem to have a one size fits all strategy for how to handle the topic of gender/sex. Not everyone subscribes to the same belief system which is fine so long as everyone is respectful of other people.

Let’s face it, we’ve come a very long way in a very short time on these issues - most people I know could care less anymore about a person’s orientation and judging by the ubiquity of Pride flags in the area I don’t think being gay has the stigma it once carried which is great but I ultimately believe parents, not the government or public schools, should handle these issues with their kids.

Okay, I will rephrase. What are you concerned will happen if your child reads this book? There’s no reason to oppose it so vehemently if you think it will have no impact on kids, so clearly there is something that troubles you about it.

How about: I want to discuss issues of gender and sex with my child within the confines of my family? I don’t see it as the place for the government and it’s employees to educate my child on these issues. I prefer public schools focus more on traditional core subjects like math, english/literature/grammar, science etc. Personally speaking, i would not “fear” my child reading this nor do I think they’d be adversely affected by it, rather i just don’t see it as the state’s place to infringe in how I educate my kids on such subjects. I believe in teaching tolerance and respect for everyone but that does not mean I go along with every with every position on sex/gender/trans issues as espoused by some public schools.

BCC alum and parent here. Public school is open to everyone. Gay, lesbian, bi, trans, queer, etc. kids have a right to attend public school and be open about their identities. They do not have to hide who they are to please your narrow idea of what is and isn’t OK to go along with. There are books about heterosexual relationships, so there are books about other kinds of relationships. There are books assigned about Hetero families, so there should be books about other kinds of families. Please educate yourself and your kids so you don’t behave in a bigoted exclusionary manner by the time you get to BCC.

Frankly, you say you should “guide” your children on these issues, but you abdicate your responsibility to do so and instead demand that everyone else stay silent. That is not guiding. If you don’t like what this book says, you are perfectly able to read it with your kids and discuss your viewpoint in your family at home. No one is stopping you. No one is “infringing how you educated your kids”. But LGBTQIA families and allies are refusing to allow your views to be the sole views on sexuality any more. Love is love.🏳️‍🌈

Entirely too well reasoned for DCUM.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much time for them to grow up, why are SO many people rushing it?

Because they are growing up right now, even if you wish they weren’t. Many kids going into sixth grade are going to have crushes, even if they don’t act on them. When you have a crush that doesn’t align with your parents’ very clear expectations for you, that can be very stressful, anxiety provoking and upsetting. The kids whose parents have a very narrow view of the “right” way to be need this book the most, to know there is nothing wrong with them if they don’t fit a certain mold.

Not all 10yo kids have crushes. It’s fine if the books are available in the library, but forcing kids to read them is another story.

What are you so afraid will happen if your 10 yo reads this book?

The issue is not fear and bigotry to me. Those terms are too often used as a cudgel to kill any debate on this topic. It is what parents feel is appropriate concerning a sensitive subject. Public schools seem to have a one size fits all strategy for how to handle the topic of gender/sex. Not everyone subscribes to the same belief system which is fine so long as everyone is respectful of other people.

Let’s face it, we’ve come a very long way in a very short time on these issues - most people I know could care less anymore about a person’s orientation and judging by the ubiquity of Pride flags in the area I don’t think being gay has the stigma it once carried which is great but I ultimately believe parents, not the government or public schools, should handle these issues with their kids.

Okay, I will rephrase. What are you concerned will happen if your child reads this book? There’s no reason to oppose it so vehemently if you think it will have no impact on kids, so clearly there is something that troubles you about it.

How about: I want to discuss issues of gender and sex with my child within the confines of my family? I don’t see it as the place for the government and it’s employees to educate my child on these issues. I prefer public schools focus more on traditional core subjects like math, english/literature/grammar, science etc. Personally speaking, i would not “fear” my child reading this nor do I think they’d be adversely affected by it, rather i just don’t see it as the state’s place to infringe in how I educate my kids on such subjects. I believe in teaching tolerance and respect for everyone but that does not mean I go along with every with every position on sex/gender/trans issues as espoused by some public schools.

BCC alum and parent here. Public school is open to everyone. Gay, lesbian, bi, trans, queer, etc. kids have a right to attend public school and be open about their identities. They do not have to hide who they are to please your narrow idea of what is and isn’t OK to go along with. There are books about heterosexual relationships, so there are books about other kinds of relationships. There are books assigned about Hetero families, so there should be books about other kinds of families. Please educate yourself and your kids so you don’t behave in a bigoted exclusionary manner by the time you get to BCC.

Frankly, you say you should “guide” your children on these issues, but you abdicate your responsibility to do so and instead demand that everyone else stay silent. That is not guiding. If you don’t like what this book says, you are perfectly able to read it with your kids and discuss your viewpoint in your family at home. No one is stopping you. No one is “infringing how you educated your kids”. But LGBTQIA families and allies are refusing to allow your views to be the sole views on sexuality any more. Love is love.🏳️‍🌈

This is total nonsense. Yet another poster who jumped on board without bothering to read the thread.

it's true, Maria.

Anonymous wrote:Left wing trolls on this thread.

Several of my lefty friends have gone to un-schooling, home schooling, and private school.

No wonder.

Sure, Jan.

Left wing trolls on this thread.

Several of my lefty friends have gone to un-schooling, home schooling, and private school.

No wonder.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son is 9. He thinks kissing is disgusting. He has no feelings of attraction to girls or boys. He doesn’t even know what that means. Should someone be telling him he might want to identify as asexual? Does it become appropriate to question his identity at age 11 or 13 or 15 or 17? It is perfectly normal to not be interested in either sex at any of these ages. Do you understand why it’s strange to introduce these topics to a middle school kid and then ask them how they identify? I understand why so many kids are truly confused about their identity. Schools keep reinforcing the idea that you should question your identity and have a label.

They don't ask the kids how they identify their gender. No where in the assignment do they ask that question.

They ask the kids "what parts of your identity are important to you". My kid wrote things like "brother" and "point guard". When we talked about what might stay the same and what might change he said things like "well I'll always be his brother, but maybe one day I'll write "Dad".

If a kid wants to talk about their own gender, they can. If they don't, there's nothing in the assignment asking them to, or telling them they should.

+1. Questioning your identity in a wide variety of ways - not just in terms of sexuality or gender - is basically the work of growing up. And readings that discuss people fitting in or not into the larger community are a fixture of middle school and high school every year. Why? Because MS and HS is the age at which kids worry about not fitting in in a million different ways. This book is just one more effort to show that it is normal to be wondering who you are in almost any dimension.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is so much time for them to grow up, why are SO many people rushing it?

Because they are growing up right now, even if you wish they weren’t. Many kids going into sixth grade are going to have crushes, even if they don’t act on them. When you have a crush that doesn’t align with your parents’ very clear expectations for you, that can be very stressful, anxiety provoking and upsetting. The kids whose parents have a very narrow view of the “right” way to be need this book the most, to know there is nothing wrong with them if they don’t fit a certain mold.

Not all 10yo kids have crushes. It’s fine if the books are available in the library, but forcing kids to read them is another story.

What are you so afraid will happen if your 10 yo reads this book?

The issue is not fear and bigotry to me. Those terms are too often used as a cudgel to kill any debate on this topic. It is what parents feel is appropriate concerning a sensitive subject. Public schools seem to have a one size fits all strategy for how to handle the topic of gender/sex. Not everyone subscribes to the same belief system which is fine so long as everyone is respectful of other people.

Let’s face it, we’ve come a very long way in a very short time on these issues - most people I know could care less anymore about a person’s orientation and judging by the ubiquity of Pride flags in the area I don’t think being gay has the stigma it once carried which is great but I ultimately believe parents, not the government or public schools, should handle these issues with their kids.

Okay, I will rephrase. What are you concerned will happen if your child reads this book? There’s no reason to oppose it so vehemently if you think it will have no impact on kids, so clearly there is something that troubles you about it.

How about: I want to discuss issues of gender and sex with my child within the confines of my family? I don’t see it as the place for the government and it’s employees to educate my child on these issues. I prefer public schools focus more on traditional core subjects like math, english/literature/grammar, science etc. Personally speaking, i would not “fear” my child reading this nor do I think they’d be adversely affected by it, rather i just don’t see it as the state’s place to infringe in how I educate my kids on such subjects. I believe in teaching tolerance and respect for everyone but that does not mean I go along with every with every position on sex/gender/trans issues as espoused by some public schools.

BCC alum and parent here. Public school is open to everyone. Gay, lesbian, bi, trans, queer, etc. kids have a right to attend public school and be open about their identities. They do not have to hide who they are to please your narrow idea of what is and isn’t OK to go along with. There are books about heterosexual relationships, so there are books about other kinds of relationships. There are books assigned about Hetero families, so there should be books about other kinds of families. Please educate yourself and your kids so you don’t behave in a bigoted exclusionary manner by the time you get to BCC.

Frankly, you say you should “guide” your children on these issues, but you abdicate your responsibility to do so and instead demand that everyone else stay silent. That is not guiding. If you don’t like what this book says, you are perfectly able to read it with your kids and discuss your viewpoint in your family at home. No one is stopping you. No one is “infringing how you educated your kids”. But LGBTQIA families and allies are refusing to allow your views to be the sole views on sexuality any more. Love is love.🏳️‍🌈

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those parents who object -- email the school and ask for an alternative or suggest an alternative. We used to do that, routinely unfortunately -- mostly because the reading selections were so dark, violent and depressing, to a one. That's not what I wanted my children, who are forming their opinions of the world, to be digesting.

Isn't this what some parents on the forum call as indoctrination of students?

What are the benefits of these topics at an early age of 10-12? Are there any disadvantages when the kids learn about these topics when they are 15 and 16?

Those aren't the choices. The choices are that kids learn about these things in a context where they're encouraged to talk to their parents, and there's some control over the information. Or they learn about them from their peers and tik tok.

If you actually click on the links and look at the assignments there are pieces that pretty clearly give the message that it's normal to have confused feelings, to want privacy, for your thoughts and feelings to evolve. That gender is just one piece of your identity. That you should talk to trusted adults in your family.

It seems that the right wing doesn't want kids to get those messages. Instead they want kids to think that once you've made a decision it's permanent, so you might as well modify your body to match. That gender is the most important piece of your identity and that adults can't be trusted. Ironically, those are the same messages that kids are getting from tik tok. So, if you're OK with those messages to your 11 - 13 year old (note there are no 10 year old in middle school in MCPS unless they skipped a grade) then I would object to this assignment. It seems like both the far right and the far left, and the idiots being manipulated by either would want you to do that.

It's middle school, AKA hormone heaven. Kids are quite aware of other kids partnering off whether they are themselves or not.

People freak out over the oddest things.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those parents who object -- email the school and ask for an alternative or suggest an alternative. We used to do that, routinely unfortunately -- mostly because the reading selections were so dark, violent and depressing, to a one. That's not what I wanted my children, who are forming their opinions of the world, to be digesting.

Isn't this what some parents on the forum call as indoctrination of students?

What are the benefits of these topics at an early age of 10-12? Are there any disadvantages when the kids learn about these topics when they are 15 and 16?

Huh?

What exactly don’t you understand? Maybe I can help.

The PP is asking why they need to force 11 year olds to read this book? What is the benefit of forcing 11 year olds to explore this topic versus waiting to discuss these topics later on, maybe in high school?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Book banning,
Book Burning

There is nothing wrong with the kids reading this book.

There is something wrong with you as a parent if you can not discuss this subject matter with your children/

Lazy, christians as usual.

Right wing troll. Don't respond, folks.

You would be wrong to assume it’s a troll. I know plenty of people IRL who feel the way OP does. Some who grew up in strongly Christian households and are very resentful of their upbringing. And some who are just anti-Christian.