LGBTQ+ Content in Kindergarten
Bin of Kindergarten books
There is a reason evolution is not taught in Kindergarten. It is a complicated concept that different people have different opinions about, and one that kindergarteners are not ready to understand. The same is true when it comes to LGBTQ+ content in kindergarten books. Children cannot make valid conclusions about a topic of such magnitude, and therefore it should not be included in their curriculum but rather left for parents to address.
There are a variety of reasons why people disagree over this. Some have argued that children need to see that being LGBTQ+ is okay, that it helps students who are a part of that community to feel accepted, and, that, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, “kids understand themselves better, at a much younger age, than adults assume,” and thus need to be exposed to these topics and given the freedom to make decisions about themselves.
There are multiple faults within these arguments. Firstly, not all parents agree that being LGBTQ+ is okay, and may not want their children to believe so. Emily Staffroni, a kindergarten teacher in the Wissahickon School District said that her main goal is to “make kids feel safe, to make learning fun, and to make them independent” not to expose them to the world’s controversies. “Home is where that should happen,” Staffroni says. Secondly, biology shows that children do not understand themselves enough to make any lifelong decisions, let alone any relating to their sexuality. Psychologist Albert Bandura discovered the concept of observational learning, which is essentially the phrase “monkey see, monkey do.” Kindergarteners learn from and imitate what they see, including the characters they see in stories.
Kindergarten books would be most effective if they focused solely on showing students how to be kind. Danielle Kirk, the mother of a Kindergartener at Pennridge, added that schools “should be reinforcing raising respectful, kind human beings… and that can be done without speaking on sexual preferences.” Kindergarteners don’t need to be shown that it is okay to be LGBTQ+, but instead how to be kind to all people, regardless of their choices.
Sources:
https://pen.org/report/banned-usa-growing-movement-to-censor-books-in-schools/
https://www.verywellmind.com/experience-and-development-2795113
https://nypost.com/2022/06/18/detransitioned-teens-explain-why-they-regret-changing-genders/
Emma Weise, Grade 12. Interests/hobbies include painting, being with friends and family, singing, serving at church, and listening to and playing music....
