This week I want to introduce you to Michael and Ernst. In this clip they talk about the conundrum that many LGBTQ families face which is Mother's Day and Father's Day at school.  I find this clip really interesting because it addresses the heteronormative assumptions that are often made about queer and trans families. In this case it is the assumption that the kids don't have mothers because families have two parents and in this case those two parents are Michael and Ernst. I am sharing it today because I want to continue to expand and reimagine the definition of family to include a multitude of relationships and identities. Advice to teachers would be: get to know the students in your class, ask them who they want to celebrate on these hallmark occasions, and try not to make assumptions.

One approach that I think really works is highlighted in a bonus clip of Jess and Evan below. Their school sent out a simple message to parents saying who identifies as a mother in your family? No assumptions made and not one student or family was singled out. Win Win.  :) (Pam Baer)

This clip of Victoria speaks to the importance of including LGBTQ topics in both the school setting and within the curriculum documents. Victoria talks about the consequences of not having holistic, accurate representations of queer and trans identities in the classroom and the damaging effects it has on students. Victoria’s clip shows how the absence of LGBTQ content in schools is a sign that our educational system needs more a rigorous curriculum that looks at LGBTQ issues as more than an add on or an afterthought. She urges educators to recognize that LGBTQ youth need a curriculum with “… a lot of laughter, and a lot of love.” ​ (Yasmin Owis)