{"id":1029794,"date":"2021-11-18T22:58:36","date_gmt":"2021-11-19T03:58:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1029794"},"modified":"2021-11-18T22:58:41","modified_gmt":"2021-11-19T03:58:41","slug":"transgender-connecticut-parents-report-kindergartners-taught-gender-ideology-without-opt-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/transgender-connecticut-parents-report-kindergartners-taught-gender-ideology-without-opt-out\/","title":{"rendered":"Transgender: Connecticut Parents Report Kindergartners Taught Gender Ideology Without Opt-Out"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftransgender-connecticut-parents-report-kindergartners-taught-gender-ideology-without-opt-out%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1029794&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/MyLittlePony1-640x480-640x335-1.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p class=\"subheading\">Young children in kindergarten are being taught about transgender ideology without an opt-out, say concerned parents in West Hartford, Connecticut.<\/p>\n<p>Parents of West Hartford Public Schools (WHPS) <a href=\"https:\/\/defendinged.org\/incidents\/west-hartford-publishes-elementary-social-justice-lessons-standards-and-mentor-texts-transgender-content-introduced-in-kindergarten\/\">informed<\/a> Parents Defending Education (PDE) the kindergarten reading list in the school district includes <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Introducing-Teddy-gentle-gender-friendship\/dp\/1681192101\">Introducing Teddy<\/a><\/em>, a book described at Amazon.com as one that \u201cintroduces the youngest readers to understanding gender identity and transition in an accessible and heart-warming story about being true to yourself and being a good friend.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<p>According to PDE, parents reported West Hartford district officials have said children cannot be opted out of the curriculum.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"9.7020648967552\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">After some bad press about the gender ideology being taught starting in K, West Hartford superintendent blames parents being upset on &#8220;political operatives&#8221; who are &#8220;attempting to use the children of West Hartford as pawns in their games of division.&#8221;<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/b7Ohfm4667\">https:\/\/t.co\/b7Ohfm4667<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Parents Defending Education (@DefendingEd) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DefendingEd\/status\/1460755442276184069?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 16, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI am troubled by&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/When-Aidan-Became-Brother-Lukoff\/dp\/1620148374\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3LR70ZDB88R30&amp;keywords=when+aidan+became+a+brother&amp;qid=1637274323&amp;qsid=136-5883890-1577831&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=WHen+Aiden+%2Cstripbooks%2C188&amp;sr=1-1&amp;sres=1620148374%2C0762462477%2C1250203554%2C147886897X%2C1787751732%2C1368019013%2C0803741073%2C0316542067%2C0973410450%2C0062915622%2C0692512454%2C0884487970%2C0998958085%2C1433830876%2C1649161042%2C1734415800&amp;srpt=ABIS_BOOK\">When Aidan Became a Brother&nbsp;<\/a><\/em>(4th&nbsp;grade) which is full on gender theory, that the sex you\u2019re assigned at birth is \u201cwrong\u201d and you\u2019re actually a boy,\u201d said one parent, PDE reported. \u201cThis is being presented as factual to very young children.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThis sweet and groundbreaking picture book, winner of the 2020 Stonewall Book Award, celebrates the changes in a transgender boy\u2019s life, from his initial coming-out to becoming a big brother,\u201d states an Amazon.com description of the fourth grade selection.<\/p>\n<p>Erika Sanzi of Parents Defending Education <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailysignal.com\/2021\/11\/16\/connecticut-parents-claim-schools-teach-kindergarteners-about-transgenderism\/\">told<\/a> The Daily Caller News Foundation the transgender book is confusing and manipulative:<\/p>\n<blockquote readability=\"9\">\n<p>Teaching elementary students that their parents assigned them their gender at birth but may have gotten it wrong because anatomy is separate from gender is an obscene example of adults using ideology to confuse and manipulate children\u2019s minds. The fact that parents are not permitted to opt their children out of this content based in gender ideology is so sinister, it\u2019s hard to believe it\u2019s even legal.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>PDE shared a memo dated October 14 from Dr. Roszena Haskins, director of equity advancement in West Hartford Public School District (WHPS) that indicated, in addition to instruction in transgender ideology, WHPS \u201chas redoubled district-wide efforts to attend to the social and emotional needs of children and adults.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Social and emotional learning (SEL) \u2013 a program of in-school psychological training \u2013 has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/03\/09\/social-emotional-learning-now-a-vehicle-for-critical-race-theory\/\">become<\/a> the major vehicle for teaching the tenets of Critical Race Theory and LGBTQ activism, Breitbart News reported in March.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll K-12 students are provided assured instructional experiences to develop effective social emotional learning skills in a classroom community setting,\u201d Haskins wrote, highlighting that SEL instruction in WHPS is \u201cgrounded in the framework of the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL).\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B3\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"8.7375\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">A4: Equitable experiences &amp; outcomes depend on the willingness of adults to reflect on &amp; question their practices, mindsets, &amp; perceptions. Use these guiding <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SEL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SEL<\/a> questions to help promote equity  in your school: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/R3YCbGS1ms\">https:\/\/t.co\/R3YCbGS1ms<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ConnectedandEngaged?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#ConnectedandEngaged<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/KCkCWBIS9n\">https:\/\/t.co\/KCkCWBIS9n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 CASEL (@caselorg) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/caselorg\/status\/1460765883236864010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 17, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In February, attorney and education researcher Jane Robbins&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/02\/08\/how-socio-emotional-learning-became-another-vehicle-for-anti-white-racism-in-schools\/\">wrote<\/a>&nbsp;at the Federalist that SEL champions such as CASEL are now \u201cbrazenly trumpeting an even more troubling aspect of SEL: the opportunity to turn impressionable students into leftist activists.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>She observed that CASEL CEO Karen Niemi&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/article\/niemi-casel-is-updating-the-most-widely-recognized-definition-of-social-emotional-learning-heres-why\/\">announced<\/a>&nbsp;last December her company \u201chas revised its definition of and framework for \u2018socio-emotional learning\u2019 to highlight the value of SEL as a weapon for social justice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWoke-speak pervades the new direction,\u201d Robbins asserted. \u201cIn contrast to the previous fairly&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2019\/07\/01\/social-emotional-learning-new-education-fad\/\">anodyne definition<\/a>&nbsp;of SEL, the new one emphasizes student \u2018identities\u2019 and \u2018marginalization,\u2019 \u2018equity,\u2019 &nbsp;\u2018just communities,\u2019 and the \u2018collective\u2019 rather than the individual.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In her memo, West Harford\u2019s Haskins acknowledged a Disclaimer from CASEL:<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B4\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<blockquote readability=\"10\">\n<p>While SEL alone will not solve longstanding and deep-seated inequities in the education system, it can help schools to promote understanding, examine biases, reflect on and address the impact of racism \u2026 close opportunity gaps and create a more inclusive school community.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Haskins explained, however, WHPS also \u201cteaches SEL through an equity lens, adapted from the <em>Learning for Justice<\/em> social justice and anti-bias framework.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"10.333333333333\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\u201cFor inclusive family engagement, schools need to create structures that deliberately leverage and involve all families, not just those with the comfort or ability to take the initiative themselves.\u201d<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/RdQYx0MNCe\">https:\/\/t.co\/RdQYx0MNCe<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Learning for Justice (@learnforjustice) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/learnforjustice\/status\/1461456684795273220?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 18, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>She added&nbsp;<em>Learning for Justice <\/em>insists children must master the \u201cpro-social domains\u201d of \u201cidentity,\u201d \u201cdiversity,\u201d \u201cjustice,\u201d and \u201caction.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As Breitbart News <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/09\/28\/southern-poverty-law-center-releases-learning-for-justice-magazine\/\">reported<\/a> in September, <em>Learning for Justice<\/em> is the latest project from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/tech\/2019\/04\/17\/pro-family-groups-call-on-media-big-tech-to-stop-splc-from-smearing-christians-conservatives\/\">disgraced<\/a>&nbsp;leftist Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a reinvention of its former Teaching for Tolerance education program and one SPLC has touted aims \u201cto dismantle white supremacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLearning for Justice seeks to uphold the mission of the Southern Poverty Law Center: to be a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond,\u201d the website&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.learningforjustice.org\/about\">states<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"9.8983050847458\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">For many schools, state laws make crafting such policies difficult or impossible. But you can create opportunities for trans, intersex and nonbinary students to participate. Consider these imperfect solutions as you advocate against unjust laws. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/TransAwarenessWeek?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#TransAwarenessWeek<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/UlyWsC6D1H\">pic.twitter.com\/UlyWsC6D1H<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Learning for Justice (@learnforjustice) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/learnforjustice\/status\/1461416654051631107?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 18, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>To explain its name change, SPLC\u2019s Learning For Justice says, \u201cThe fact is tolerance is not justice. It isn\u2019t a sufficient description of the work we do or of the world we want.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The list of kindergarten books at WHPS also includes <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Pink-Boys-Robb-Pearlman\/dp\/0762462477\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=200HJ9GSH70NI&amp;keywords=pink+is+for+boys&amp;qid=1637276995&amp;qsid=136-5883890-1577831&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=Pink+Is+for+%2Cstripbooks%2C178&amp;sr=1-1&amp;sres=0762462477%2C9769659703%2C0648728757%2C0763690457%2C150645450X%2CB08DSTHKQB%2C0525579648%2C1433830876%2C163149256X%2C099895800X%2C0998958085%2C1951056779%2C1554987946%2C0973410450%2C1483308014%2C1626723214&amp;srpt=ABIS_BOOK\">Pink Is for Boys<\/a><\/em> and <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Lets-Talk-About-Julius-Lester\/dp\/0064462269\/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3FUU54NWQUFOH&amp;keywords=let%27s+talk+about+race+by+julius+lester&amp;qid=1637277014&amp;qsid=136-5883890-1577831&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=Let%27s+Talk+about+Race%2Cstripbooks%2C231&amp;sr=1-2&amp;sres=0064462269%2C4265068200%2C1580058825%2CB08ZB91FHZ%2CB08JJT9MF9%2CB08K3X4FDK%2CB08B12JZ7Y%2CB08B39MR6J&amp;srpt=ABIS_BOOK\">Let\u2019s Talk About Race<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The website of WHPS <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whps.org\/offices-and-programs\/promoting-diversity-staff-advisory-committees\/vision-for-equity-and-anti-racism\">states<\/a> its \u201cvision for equity and anti-racism\u201d:<\/p>\n<blockquote readability=\"11\">\n<p>We, the members of West Hartford Public Schools, dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of equity.&nbsp;Equitable schools are those that value and honor ALL in our community as unique individuals capable of maximizing their true potential.&nbsp;We make a solemn promise to identify and dismantle all elements of systemic racism and historical inequities. We vow to clear paths, with a relentless duty to those in traditionally marginalized groups. We pledge to partner with ALL families in the service of the success of each child.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"9.0798816568047\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/TransAwarenessWeek?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#TransAwarenessWeek<\/a> and this year, it\u2018s clear that our trans students need adults willing to not just affirm them but advocate for their rights and well-being. Use these resources to deepen your learning and move toward implementation and action.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/MqMO7uZxYa\">https:\/\/t.co\/MqMO7uZxYa<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Learning for Justice (@learnforjustice) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/learnforjustice\/status\/1461038428288602121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 17, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>WHPS also states its \u201cworking definition of anti-racism in education\u201d is \u201cto actively and mindfully oppose and dismantle cultural messages, institutional policies, practices and all systems of advantage based on race.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In response to national attention to his district\u2019s gender and racial justice indoctrination, WHPS Superintendent&nbsp;Tom Moore <a href=\"https:\/\/we-ha.com\/west-hartford-superintendent-political-operatives-attacking-commitment-to-social-and-emotional-learning\/\">said <\/a>in a statement at WeHa.com \u201cnational forces\u201d are \u201cat play that continue to seek to tear us apart as Americans, and are attempting to use&nbsp;the children of West Hartford as pawns in their games of division.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Moore added:<\/p>\n<blockquote readability=\"16\">\n<p>These are not grass roots parent groups \u2013 they are well funded advocacy political arms. We understand how they use media to generate controversy. First it was the boogeyman of CRT. That clearly did not work in Connecticut school board elections. Now it is \u201cgender equity indoctrination\u201d meant to frighten people about what their children are hearing, even though we rarely see any concrete examples, just books that people want banned. These outsiders even attack our commitment to social emotional learning at a time when children have just lived through a pandemic. To any West Hartford parent concerned with what actually happens in a classroom, by all means speak to your teacher, principal, and those of us in central office. Please remember \u2013 you know us; your teachers, your principals, and me. I have spent more than twenty five years here, and there is no cabal in the curriculum office seeking to overturn the social order.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cTo those who seek to use West Hartford as a battlefield in their culture war, I am so proud to defend what we do, because it is simple,\u201d he said. \u201cWe teach children that the child that they are sitting next to, no matter their color, their religion, or their identity, is a person just like them, and that they are their friend, and we need to be nice to them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>PDE invites parents to \u201csubmit an incident report\u201d via the organization\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/defendinged.org\/incidents\/west-hartford-publishes-elementary-social-justice-lessons-standards-and-mentor-texts-transgender-content-introduced-in-kindergarten\/\">website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Young children in kindergarten are being taught about transgender ideology without an opt-out, say concerned parents in West Hartford, Connecticut. Parents of West Hartford Public Schools (WHPS) informed Parents Defending &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1029794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1029794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1029794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1029794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1029794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1029794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1029794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}