Uncle What-Is-It Is Coming to Visit by Michael Whilloite
This book is very interesting and I'm not sure I would be totally comfortable bringing this topic up in my classroom. Just like the book about how babies are born I believe this topic is for outside of school. I know now there are more types of families and some children will not be exposed to families with gay parents. I'm not sure this should be talked about it in school. Maybe that's not what I mean...I don't think I should talk about it in school. It depends on how comfortable the teacher is with the children and how comfortable the teacher is with talking about this subject. The problem I have is that I don't want to feel like I am singling out certain students or putting them down by any means. I don't want them to feel uncomfortable, that would be the biggest part of my concern.
I enjoy how the book uses stereotypes of gay people when learning about their uncle. I know this seems weird but I think it is a good idea to talk about stereotypes because students might have their own personal opinions but should not judge a person by what the culture perceives them as. At the end of the book I like how once they meet their uncle they realize he is exactly like everyone else.
I don't find there to be any problem with talking about different types of families and maritial status in the classroom. I think it should be brought up even at young ages so that if and when you do have a student in your class that has a family that maybe a little more unique, they can feel accepted. I agree though about not wanting to single a student out or making them feel uncomfortable so that would be something to think about before diving into this topic.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that this could be uncomfortable as the teacher to bring this topic up in class. But the reality is, you will have many kids throughout your teaching that will grow up with gay or lesbian parents. These kids are usually teased and verbally abused because their parents are homosexual. Bringing these kind of books into the classroom is so important because it helps to show that these stereotypes are not always true (drag queens, and leather queers) And in fact, most homosexuals live very similar lives to heterosexuals. The hardest part about reading a book like this to your class is having parents that disagree with it....personally I would read this book in my classroom, and if parents had a problem with it I would try my best to explain the reasoning behind my choice.
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