Teaching Children About CRT and Gender Identity

There has been a lot discussion about whether or not children should be taught CRT and about gender identity.  

I think both are important topics that children should learn about, but they to be done when it is age appropriate.

Recently, I learned about a five-year-old being taught that being white is a bad thing. A school taught white children, that they are guilty of things that have happened in the past because of their skin color. This type of teaching is irresponsible. 

A school in Ralston NE, choose to add the book, "Something Happened in Our Town", to their  curriculum without letting parents know. 

Below is an overview of the book: (The overview came from Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice (apa.org)

Emma and Josh heard that something happened in their town. A Black man was shot by the police.

"Why did the police shoot that man?"

"Can police go to jail?"

Something Happened in Our Town follows two families — one White, one Black — as they discuss a police shooting of a Black man in their community. The story aims to answer children's questions about such traumatic events, and to help children identify and counter racial injustice in their own lives.

Includes an extensive Note to Parents and Caregivers with guidelines for discussing race and racism with children, child-friendly definitions, and sample dialogues.

Another book of contention is "I am Jazz."  

This is a book about young boy who transitions in a female.

Click here to learn more... I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel, Jazz Jennings, Shelagh McNicholas, Hardcover | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

I have no problem teaching children about these issues, but teaching this five-year-old's is not appropriate.