Diversity - Post 3

Growing up, I did not have exposure to much diversity in my school. Everyone in my town is basically the same: white, middle-class families. When I went off to MSU, it was a bit of a culture shock. There was more diversity on the floor of my dorm then my entire town back home. Although it took some getting used to, I have been so greatful to be exposed to so many different cultures.

I have worked a lot at Red Cedar Elementary and the diversity within the school is nothing short of amazing. The fact that here are students from over 25 different countries in one elementary school completely blows my mind. The flags of these countries are displayed around the school and there is a great sense of pride for backgrounds. This school has made me realize how important it is for children to learn about diversity and accept it at an early age.

Since I do not know they type of school I will be in, it is difficult to say how I will incorporate the students' diversity in the classroom. If I am placed in a school similar to the one I grew up in, displaying the flags of their native countries would not really be effective. Every student has a family history so having the students tell their family history and being in a food dish or traditional piece of clothing from a country that their ancestors came from could show the students how diverse they actually are. This would show that there is diversity among all students. In class, Debbie told us how she felt excluded from the class because she did not speak English and could not communicate with her classmates. If this situation arose in my classroom, I would have made a point to tell my students about Brazil and give the students a change to ask questions.

GLBT Literature Overview

I have taken a particular interest in this subject because the issue hits very close to home for me. I have a family member that is lesbian and recently adopted a child. Due to my father’s attitude toward the gay community, we no longer have much connection with that side of the family. I think about the little girl quite often and can’t help but wonder what will happen once she starts school. As everyone knows, children are often relentless when it comes to bullying in school and anything that set’s someone apart in any way will be a target for ridicule. After reading the article, I feel that students would think twice about taunting a student with GLBT parents if they were told the truth about GLBT culture and realize that it is just another way of life. Growing up, I had never been told about the GLBT culture and did not really know what “being gay” meant and I feel children should be exposed to diverse literature at an early age.

Hero and Daddy’s Roommate are both Lambda Award Winners for Children/Youth Literature. The Duke Who Outlawed Jelly Beans is not an award winner but unique in its own way. It incorporated gay and lesbian parents into a variety of fairytales that children are sure to enjoy. I feel that books such as The Duke Who Outlawed Jelly Beans and Daddy’s Roommate are a great way to introduce the topic to younger students to this difficult topic. Unfortunately, the GLBT culture makes many people uncomfortable and as a result, the topic gets avoided all together. These two children’s book will expose children to the topic and help them to understand that “being gay” is just a way of life for some people.

Hero is an excellent book for older students to read and a great way to jumpstart a conversation about homosexuality. Although the main character in the book is gay, his emotions and experiences are something that almost everyone can relate to: finding oneself and being comfortable with who you are, desire for acceptance, and the constant chore of trying to live up to your parents standards. Moore does not seem to sugar coat anything in the novel and I was turned off to the book at first. However, I came to appreciate his bluntness and respected him for incorporating different aspects of the gay culture.

I was pleased at the amount of books that I was able to find relating to the GLBT topic and had a hard time choosing what books to include. Although there are numerous books written about this topic, locating the books was slightly harder. I had to order most of the books off the internet and was saddened at the fact that local book stores did not even carry the books. I look forward to reading more books by these authors and seeing what other authors have to offer.

Daddy’s Roommate – Michael Willhoite

This picture book is about a young boy whose parents get divorced and his father moves in with another man. The child does not really understand and his mother tells him that his father is gay. The author of this book, Michael Willhoite, a prolific author of children’s books dealing with the topic of GLBT, also wrote “Daddy’s Wedding”, and “Belinda’s Bouquet”. This is one of the first picture books to feature a gay dad and even after nearly two decades in publication, it is still among one of the most challenged books in the United States according to American Library Association. Personally, I found it to be an excellent piece of children’s diverse literature because it approaches the topic in a positive manner and the simplistic language and illustrations will engage younger children. Many of our course readings have argued that children need to have characters in literature that they can relate to and this book has that. This book presents the idea of gay parenting in a positive and accepting manner. The mother even explains that “being gay is just one more kind of love”. She does not try to him his sexuality and it upfront and honest with her son. “Books with gay and lesbian characters represent an aspect of the real world” (Schnall) and Daddy’s Roommate portrays being gay just another way of life. Gay parenting is a reality in this country and books such as this make it easier for parents to introduce GLBT issues.

The Duke Who Outlawed Jellybeans – Johnny Valentine

Johnny Valentine is another important author of books dealing with GLBT issues. In addition to this book, he has also written “The Day They Put a Tax on Rainbows”, “One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads”, and “The Daddy Machine”. This book is a collection of fairytales that not only address gay parenting, but also race and gender issues. For example, one character is not allowed to become an Eaglerider because she is a girl, and the illustrations show characters of different races. While the gay or lesbian parents do not play a huge part of the story lines in each tale, I see this as a positive aspect in regards to books for children. The readers should not be overwhelmed with the topic and subtlety is necessary when dealing with such a sensitive issue. Gay and lesbian parents are just a part of the story, not the story itself. A quote that I once read stated that being gay “… is a fact, and it must be defended and represented as a fact” (Levithan). The gay and lesbian characters in this book are presented in a positive manner and seem to be proud of who they are. They state their homosexuality as a fact of their identity and do not try to conceal it. The characters openness would help readers to understand that being gay is nothing to be ashamed of and is simply part of who they are. The idea that this book is a collection of fairytales will also help encourage students to read them.

Hero – Perry Moore

Perry Moore is best known for his work as executive producer of The Chronicles of Narnia. Hero is about Thom, a high school basketball star that does not quite fit in: he does not have many friends, his dad is a disgraced superhero, he has his own superpower that he wants to keep secret and, to top it off, he is gay. Since his father does not agree with superpowers or being gay, is forced to lead a double life. He tried to find who he really is, yet had to hide many aspects of himself from his father and peers in order to be accepted. Since Moore is gay himself, many of Thom’s experiences are based in part on things he went through when he was younger and his real life dad was inspiration for the father in the book. Although the plot is mainly fictional and seems to be a teen version of X-men, the struggles that the characters encounter are completely relatable. One article stated that “…gay and lesbian characters are frequently depicted as guilty, ashamed, bitter, desperately unhappy individuals…” (McLean). I agree that gay and lesbian characters need to be portrayed as comfortable with who they are and confident with their sexuality. Unfortunately, being embarrassed and ashamed is a harsh reality for many people today. The novel tells the story of Thom becoming comfortable with who he is and how he overcame his insecurities. All readers, gay or straight, will be able to relate to this book.

While I do find this to be a great piece of diverse literature, there are some things in my research that I do not agree with. This novel is a Lambda Award Winner for Children’s/Young Adult Literature. I feel it is very deserving of the award but age appropriateness is an issue. While the length of the book alone would stop me from placing it on an elementary classroom shelf, some of the content of the book is highly inappropriate for younger children. Students need a higher maturity level to truly appreciate the novel. Some other critiques of the book I also do not completely agree with. One critic stated, “Moore created a world that is painfully homophobic, one that may have been a reality several decades ago, but seems out of place today.” As much as I want this statement to be true, I truly feel that it is not. While I do think that today’s society has become more accepting of the GLBT culture, I strongly feel that we have a long way to go and, unfortunately, much of society is still “homophobic”. Although this is Moore’s first novel, it will not be his last. He is currently working on a sequel to Hero and a big screen version of the book is in the works.

Exploring Literature with Gay and Lesbian Characters in the Elementary School - Scholarly Article

The article describes how two teachers attempted to bring GLBT literature into their elementary classroom. Neither of the teachers are insiders to the issue, but they each seem to have a strong desire to expose children to diverse literature. I found this scholarly article particularly interesting because it described the positive outcomes that can result from presenting elementary students with GLBT literature. Unfortunately, educators rend to downplay, or more often, completely ignore controversial issues as a way of protecting their students. In reality, avoiding these topics, such as GLBT, does more harm than good. The article also emphasized that it is important to learn the perspectives and attitudes children have about these issues and not to guide their thoughts or correct their misconceptions. When the students were allowed to express their ideas about the term “gay”, the teachers realized that students used the term gay as an insult to how they dress or making fun of a person just for being different; the term was never used as a reference to their sexuality.

Introducing these subjects into the classroom can be a tricky task. Simply handing students diverse literature and telling them to read it is not an effective way exposing students to these issues. Educators must integrate the topic within the current curriculum. The teachers in the article brought us GLBT within the family and relationships unit and seemed to give the students something to connect with. After the students read these books, they were surprisingly open about the issue and could even identify with many of the characters because they had friends and relatives who were gay or lesbian. They didn’t see homosexuality as wrong, just different. Students do have knowledge of homosexuality and it is important for them to have accurate information. The longer students do without actually learning about the topic, the longer the students’ think of this literature as inappropriate and their attitudes toward GLBT characters (and even people in real life) remain the same.

Bookstore Experience

As everyone knows, we need to bring in some books dealing with out topic for our final project. Instead of just ordering them on-line, I decided to try some of the bookstores back home and around Lansing. Considering GLBT is a touchy subject, I did not expect to find them in the small bookstores back home but I wanted to give it a shot anyways. I didn't expect to find the books but I also wasn't expecting the reaction I got from the store owners. At the first store, I told the owner I was looking for a book titled, "Daddy's Roommate". She gave me a puzzled look and asked what genre is was and I replied that it was a children's book on the topic of GLBT. She gave a slight roll of the eyes and said "Oh. We don't have anything like that here", then just walked away. I got a similar reaction from the other bookstore I tried back home. He simply said "I don't carry books like that." The owners actually seemed offended that I would ask for such a book and made no attempt to provide me a way to find the books. I understand that it is a small town and I love it dearly, but sometime I feel that they need to join the 21st century.
I had a little more success when I tried some stores in Lansing. Although none of the stores had the books I was looking for, they all seemed willing to help me find them.
I also went to Everybody Reads to look at their selection of books and was so impressed by what I found. There were books for almost every issue and I gain so much respect for the store. If you haven't been there yet, I highly, highly recommend it.