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Washington Post Showcases Black Lesbian Families
Black LGBT families are an unfortunate rarity in the media, but the Washington Post this week showcased not one, but two, black lesbian couples with kids. Taken together, the stories show that just maybe, we are moving towards several different types of acceptance in this country. The first couple, Julie Garnier and Charlene Evans, are in an article [...]
Happy Gay-Straight Alliance Day!
Today marks the first-ever National Gay-Straight Alliance Day, a project of the Iowa Pride Network in partnership with the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). In honor of the occasion, I’ll point out my coverage a few years ago of the 20th anniversary celebration of the GSA at Phillips Academy, which has the second-oldest GSA in [...]
This Week Only: Free Streaming of Anti-Bullying Film
In honor of No Name-Calling Week, educational film company Groundspark is offering free streaming of its anti-bullying and anti-name-calling film Let’s Get Real. Aimed at students in grades five through nine, it is notable for not preaching at kids, but rather letting them speak in their own voices about race, sexual orientation (real and perceived), learning [...]
LGBT Parenting Roundup
Schools The Sydney Morning Herald looks at what parents and teachers are doing in Australia to address hetero-centrism in elementary schools. The Buffalo News reports on gay and lesbian teachers—why it can be hard to be out, and why many nevertheless feel it is important. Family Portraits Mark Daniel Snyder at HuffPo talks about the true diversity [...]
New Resource for Teaching LGBT History in Schools
There’s a great new resource for teaching LGBT history in middle and high schools—and it might even teach us parents something. The Anti-Defamation League, Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), and StoryCorps have just released Unheard Voices, “an oral history and curriculum project that will help educators to integrate LGBT history, people and issues into their instructional programs.” [...]
Back-to-School Preparations for LGBT Families
(Originally published as my Mombian newspaper column the first week of September.)
Hurricane Irene raged up the East Coast this past weekend, sending people scrambling to the stores for bottled water and canned tuna. Of course, hurricanes weren’t the only thing I prepared for this week. Back-to-school time is here, so I’ve been buying pencils and erasers alongside the flashlight batteries. And because I am an LGBT parent, I’ve also been thinking about the “emergency supplies” we should have as we navigate the sometimes-stormy weather of our educational system, in case our children encounter anti-LGBT prejudice, bullying, or simply exclusion.
What Are Your Back-to-School Concerns?
It’s back-to-school time, so let’s do a fun little poll for all of us who have children braving the wilds of education:
The Magic Schoolbus’ New Route
Those of you who have had kids in elementary school will likely know the Magic Schoolbus series. XKCD uses it to make a point about the state of science education: If you’re looking for real science resources for your children, check out Science News for Kids, an online science site for older elementary and middle [...]
New York Times’ “Coming Out” Youth Project
If you have not yet seen the New York Times’ excellent Coming Out project, which showcases the voices, words, and pictures of a diverse group of LGBTQ youth, get thee to their site and browse through it. There’s also a good introductory article here. Their stories are touching, sometimes heart-wrenching, but always inspiring. (Stories can [...]
Presented without comment to all the girls who like science. Thanks, XKCD!
Should Preschools Direct Children’s Learning?
I’m hard pressed to find a preschool these days that doesn’t call itself a “childhood learning center” or the like. But in a recent article in Slate, “Why Preschool Shouldn’t Be Like School,” Alison Gopnik discusses two studies that have found “While learning from a teacher may help children get to a specific answer more [...]
LGBT Parenting Roundup
School Issues The New York Times reports on parents who are objecting to inclusion of same-sex families, gay people in history, and other LGBT content in school curricula. If you read the above, you should also read the great piece in the Advocate by Stuart Biegel, a member of the education and law faculty at [...]
New and Improved Resources for Creating Welcoming Schools
The Human Rights Campaign has launched a revamped version of its Welcoming Schools site, and it’s packed with information for parents/caregivers and educators about how to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all students, including LGBT ones and those with LGBT parents. The new site breaks down much of the information in HRC’s Welcoming Schools [...]
Modern Family’s Gay Dad Explains His Role’s Impact on Children, Bullying
After winning an Emmy Sunday night for playing a gay dad on ABC’s Modern Family, Eric Stonestreet talked at a press conference about the impact of the show: “We get amazing compliments from kids of same-sex marriage families. For example, the most recent one just was the other day. A gentleman approached me and said [...]
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