"You get to tell people who you are": Second Grade's Gender Study
Advent Second Graders study identity throughout the entire school year. Social Justice education, part of Advent's mission, is rooted in positive identity development and respect for oneself and others. Students explore social justice topics, beginning with an exploration of identity and uniqueness. Students also learn about changemakers who challenged gender expectations and helped fight for LGBTQ+ rights.
Second Graders played “Playing with Pronouns” in small groups to start their gender discussions
Second Grade teachers began the conversation by discussing stereotypes with their students.
What is a stereotype?
Why is it essential to address stereotypes?
How can stereotypes negatively impact someone?
When gender stereotypes are identified, teachers discuss that it's important to avoid making assumptions about people's identities and rather let them tell you who they are. A Second Grade teacher explains, "You get to tell people who you are. And when children tell us, we believe them and honor them." During this lesson, students recognize that certain colors and hairstyles are often associated with specific genders, and making these assumptions can make people feel sad, excluded, or misunderstood.
Visibility is a huge part of the Second Grade curriculum. By making different gender identities and other social identities visible, students develop a deeper understanding of their community. Inclusive language is a great place to start and in all Advent classrooms. Teachers intentionally invite “friends" to line up at the door rather than "boys and girls." These small, meaningful choices help ensure that everyone feels like they belong.
“l learned that even if someone has a different identity than you are used to you should respect what how they feel and their identity”
Students think about what makes each of them unique
Advent follows these Inclusive Classroom Practices (Rosetta Eun Ryong Lee, 2019) as part of daily to yearly practice to create, support, and uphold classroom environments in which all students can learn and thrive to their full potential.
Beyond stereotypes, students are introduced to the gender spectrum and the gender identifiers cis, trans, and non-binary as well as various pronouns. It’s important to understand that some people feel comfortable with more than one set of pronouns, for example she series and they series, while others prefer only one, and that some folks preferred to be called by their name.
Advent faculty work to make sure students have the opportunity to understand the feelings they may be having about their gender. “All we want is for them to feel accepted and safe at school.”
Books serve as wonderful resources for starting these conversations in your family. Two suggestions are It feels Good to be Yourself* by Theresa Thorn and Who Are You?* by Brook Pessin-Whedbee. These books introduce concepts of gender identity in developmentally-appropriate ways. You can find a list of books with gender-diverse characters on Advent's Bookshop.org store*.
*Disclosure: The School participates in Bookshop's affiliate program and earns a commission if you click through and make a purchase.