On the Day of Pink, I read my students a children’s storybook called The Sissy Duckling by Harvey Fierstein. The tale is about a gender non-conforming duckling named Elmer who gets bullied until his feminine ways allow him to save the day, and he is transformed into a hero. My lesson consisted of brainstorming synonyms for sissy, reading the book, listing the activities Elmer was considered a sissy for participating in, and discussing whether it was okay for boys to participate in such activities. The students then created cut-outs of pink shirts, on which they completed the sentence: It’s okay for boys to… and It’s okay for girls to… The shirts now make a bulletin board display in the foyer of the school.
About three weeks have passed since this lesson. Yesterday, however, a child awkwardly asked me if she could borrow my copy of the story because her mom wanted to see it.
I’ve read many stories to the children, as has my associate teacher, and this request has never come up. Furthermore, this particular parent established herself as a squeaky wheel in the past by complaining to the principal about her daughter’s end of term report card. During that episode, I met the child’s father when I participated in a meeting to discuss the family’s concerns. The next day, the mother came to school and made casual conversation with me in the playground. I thought nothing of it at the time, though now I recognize that I was likely being scoped out (it’s highly unusual for either parent to visit the school).
Back to yesterday. With nothing to hide, I lent the child the book so she could show her mother. When she returned it today, I inquired whether her mom enjoyed it – and she nodded her head but wouldn’t look me in the eye and quickly walked away. Normally she is a very sociable kid. It confirmed my suspicions that something is definitely up.
I gave my associate teacher a heads up and we began making preparations for a possible complaint. We reviewed the components of the provincial curriculum to which my lesson applied, went over the lesson plan I had used, and discussed what I should do if I am approached by an angry parent (I’ll calmly suggest that we schedule a meeting with the parent, my associate teacher, and myself). When my associate teacher left me alone in our portable at 3pm, she locked me in “just in case.” Tomorrow, we are going to meet with the principal, make her aware of the situation, and show her the book.
I hope it’s nothing…
Filed under: Practicum, Queer Activism Tagged: | children's books, The Sissy Duckling
Me too. Sounds like a great lesson you gave there.