How to support the community...as a teacher

Here is a simple list of ways you can support the students/staff/parents in circle who are a part of the LGBTQ* community  ↴

1. Join a Gay Straight Alliance..or better yet, become a faculty sponsor!
2. Educate your students!! Examples of this would be eliminating myths and misconceptions, giving truthful answers to students questions, and organizing informal discussions with students.
3. Use class materials, like display posters, that include gay authors and historical figures. This is important!!
4. Provide emotional and verbal support for LGBT youth and families that you come into contact with.
5. Invite LGBT people to conduct classroom discussions about their jobs and family lives to students. This is so vital! Our students need to see this!
6. Add/include books to your classroom library that have same sex families and transgender children, to show that the LGBT community is full of normal people like you and me. It just may look different. But we need to teach that difference is beautiful :)

1. AbOVE ALL ELSE: You need to show and display tolerance, kindness, love, and acceptance to ALL students!

Flores, Gabriel. "Toward a More Inclusive Multicultural Education: Methods for Including LGBT Themes in K-12 Classrooms." American Journal of Sexuality Education 7.3 (2012): 187-97. Web. 12 Oct. 2016.

Preview of post's to come...

We plan to publish a few new posts in the next few weeks! We hope you are as excited as we are to read this new content from some of our contributors. To preview, we will have..

-a post explaining what you can do to support those around you in the LGBTQ* community
-a post about literature that includes LGBTQ* themes
-a post discussing specific literature you NEED to have in your classroom
-a post discussing why people are afraid to include these very important themes and how to respond to them

..keep your eyes peeled for some more awesome material coming your way soon!

BENEFITS of Implementing LGBTQ* themes in the classrom

Implementing LGBTQ+ themes will be extremely beneficial to students.  By implementing these themes into the classroom, students will have a better understanding of the fact that we all come from different backgrounds, have different family traditions, different values, different family dynamics, etc. According to Gabriel Flores, author of Toward a More Inclusive Multicultural Education: Methods for Including LGBTQ+ Themes in the K-12 Classroom, “the education regarding LGBT themes focuses on understanding and appreciating issues of difference, including the difference in sexual orientation, relationship, and the family structures, as well as the concepts of love and respect.  Implementing these themes into the classroom will help eliminate misinformation, prejudice, confusion, and stereotypes.” Including these themes into the classroom will promote healthy discussion and tolerance in and out of the classroom as well as focus on the kind and ethical treatment of all people. 

A common misconception around implementing LGBTQ+ themes into the classroom revolves around an idea that Flores explores in his article by stating that, “many people mistakenly believe that education about homosexuality focuses on the sexual behavior of homosexuals.”  Due to the fact that students’ parents were most likely not educated about this topic, they just assume that this is what is being taught when they hear that LBGTQ+ themes will be included into the classroom.

As stated previously, educating students on this topic will create a more inclusive and accepting classroom.  Flores goes onto state that, “with a more inclusive multicultural education that includes LGBT themes, children may base their knowledge and beliefs on accurate information and, ideally, without fear and bias change negative attitudes.” Without being educated, a more inclusive classroom cannot be achieved and students will base their opinions and theories from others around them (i.e. family, friends, media, etc.)

Flores, G. (2012). Toward a More Inclusive Multicultural Education: Methods for Including LGBT Themes in K-12 Classrooms. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 7(3), 187-197. doi:10.1080/15546128.2012.707072

A brief introduction

           In a world that seems to be full of hatred, malice, and injustice, the time to promote and enforce equality within the four walls of a classroom is long overdue.  As future educators, it is important for us to realize that our job is far more complex than just teaching content, but rather ensuring that our students are accepting of everyone regardless of their sexual orientation, culture, race, gender, etc.  This blog is an informative piece for preservice teachers, current teachers, etc., that value the importance of creating an inclusive and accepting classroom.  Although the main focus of this blog includes ways in which we can include LGBTQ+ themes into the classroom, we will also be discussing why it is not included as well as what we can do in order to make all students feel understood, appreciated, and accepted.