Building Community With LGBTQ+ Affirming Picture Books
Slides: tinyurl.com/PictureBooksPD
For Counselors, Reading Specialists & Teacher Librarians/Media Specialists
Who’s your queer icon?
How can we use picture books to normalize LGBTQ+ representation and spark conversations about identity and diversity?
How will we respond to issues that might arise?
click HERE for reflection questions
Inclusive Books Are Good For Everyone
When children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society of which they are a part…
Children from dominant social groups have always found their mirrors in books, but they, too, have suffered from the lack of availability of books about others. They need the books as windows onto reality, not just on imaginary worlds. They need books that will help them understand the multicultural nature of the world they live in, and their place as a member of just one group, as well as their connections to all other humans…If they see only reflections of themselves, they will grow up with an exaggerated sense of their own importance and value in the world--a dangerous ethnocentrism.
Connections? Wonderings? Realizations?
Children deserve to be seen and recognized for their full humanity, and they deserve to have their lived experiences affirmed on the pages of the books that we purchase, promote, highlight, recommend, read aloud, put into curriculum and share with them. This is the beauty and honor, and obligation, of the work that we do with young people. Using books to build community also strengthens our relationships with one another, enables students to empathize and provides them with the tools they will need to thrive in a rapidly changing and expanding world.
PRIORITIZE JOY
AND STORIES THAT
DON’T CENTER BULLYING
AS THE PROBLEM.
QUEER KIDS FACE BULLYING,
BUT WE RISK
A DEFICIT NARRATIVE
AROUND LGBTQ+ PEOPLE WHEN
WE SOLELY CENTER STORIES
ABOUT BULLYING.
@not_joshing_with_you
The Guides (click on image)
Exploring the Guides &
Thinking Through Implementation
click here for expanding ideas
Break
Preparing for Kids’ Comments
…it’s my belief that toxic environments are created when adults witness biased actions and words from children and fail to address them. Sweeping comments under the rug or harshly reprimanding students who don’t understand the gravity of their words contribute to an environment of mistrust. Kids can tell when the adults in their lives center their own comfort over the protection of children.
…One effective response is to “call someone in,” meaning we invite someone into a conversation in order to both educate and hold the person accountable for their words or actions…Calling someone in shows the other person that what they said was unacceptable.
…The goal is not to shame anyone, but to create a learning opportunity for the student in question as well as for your class community. (pgs 40-43)
click HERE for sample call-ins
Transparency with Our Community
Places I Pulled Language From:
click HERE for a sample newsletter
We urge readers to first and foremost consider the families who “push for “ anti-oppressive education, those who have long been demanding something better for their children and who will go to bat for you…
…regularly communicate with colleagues, families, and administrators about what you and your students are up to and why. This means consistent and accessible email updates or newsletters, inviting people into the classroom and providing an open door to discuss families concerns or questions…Having a crystal clear well-sourced philosophy of teaching for those conversations is critical. Knowing the school’s mission and state standards backward and forward helps you connect them to anti-oppressive education… (pgs 160-161)
Supporting our Responses to Caregivers
click HERE for sample responses
Deepening the Learning
Some Research (click HERE)
Supports & Asks
Q & A
How can we use picture books to normalize LGBTQ+ representation and spark conversations about identity and diversity?
How will we respond to issues that might arise?