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School under fire for transgender kindergarten lesson
EAGNews ^ | April 20, 2015 | Victor Skinner

Posted on 04/21/2015 5:16:10 AM PDT by NewHampshireDuo

KITTERY, Maine – Officials at Mitchell Primary School are apologizing after a book about a transgender child was read to most of the school’s K-3 students.

“We have a practice of if a topic is considered sensitive, parents should be informed,” superintendent Allyn Hutton told SeaCoastOnline.com.

“In this situation, that didn’t happen. The whole culture at Mitchell School is about teaching tolerance and respect. The people presenting the lesson thought (the book) was one more piece of teaching that lesson.

“In retrospect, we understand that toleration is tolerating people of all opinions,” Hutton said.

Criticism flooded the district after Fox News host Sean Hannity posted about the lesson on his website, prompted by a Mitchell school mother who was angry she wasn’t given advanced warning that teachers were reading students the book “I am Jazz” by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings, the news site reports.

The book details the struggles of a child “with a boy’s body and a girl’s brain,” who eventually finds a doctor that tells the family the boy is a transgender.

From the book’s description on Amazon.com:

“From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl’s brain in a boy’s body. She loved pink and dressing up as a mermaid and didn’t feel like herself in boys’ clothing. This confused her family, until they took her to a doctor who said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that way. Jazz’s story is based on her real-life experience and she tells it in a simple, clear way that will be appreciated by picture book readers, their parents, and teachers.”

The mother wrote in to Hannity.com to express her frustration that she wasn’t given a heads up about the lesson, which was read out loud to students in 20 of Mitchell’s 22 classes.

“I feel like my thoughts, feelings and beliefs were completely ignored….My right as a parent to allow or not allow this discussion with my child was taken from me,” the mother wrote. “It is very upsetting to me that I didn’t have an option at all.”

The mother said she tried to approach school officials about her concerns but was given the cold shoulder.

“When I spoke with the principal he was very cold about it,” she said. “It’s amazing how thoughtless the school has been with this whole thing.”

Hannity contacted Hutton with specific questions about the lesson and received “an anemic response.”

“I have spoken with the principal at Mitchell School who has been working with their guidance counselor to appropriately manage this situation and provide the appropriate information for the children at this age level,” Hutton said.

“All information has been posted on the school’s guidance blog for parent review.”

That blog, written by guidance counselor Dana Richerich, contends “some people may think primary school students are too young to worry about addressing issues surrounding gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) students. Not so, experts say. It’s never too early to begin teaching children about respecting differences.”

“When our students and their parents have questions related to LGBTQ issues, our goal is to foster healthy dialog (sic), critical thinking and inclusiveness. With that in mind, our conversations include all students and perspectives to create a safe and supportive school climate,” the blog reads.

The critical LGBTQ thinking, however, seems to have confused at least one student. The mother who wrote in to Hannity said her son’s now confused about whether he’s transgender.

The boy asked his mother if he’s transgender, or if he could be “a girl in love with a girl.”

“The mother says that up until time the topic was brought up in school, her son had never said anything like that before,” according to Hannity.com.

“I was taken aback by it,” the mother said. “Being seven, once you put something in their mind they don’t forget so easily.”


TOPICS: Education; Local News
KEYWORDS: kittery; lgbtq; school; transgender
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To: NewHampshireDuo

It is almost as if they don’t need to pretend any more. Who do they think they are kidding? No one other than pedophiles sit around making up stories sexualizing little children.

They are a bunch of sick predators.


21 posted on 04/21/2015 5:53:24 AM PDT by sipow
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To: camle

And anyone who doesn’t realize that this is their goal is an idiot.

No one other than pedophiles sit around making up stories sexualizing little children.


22 posted on 04/21/2015 5:55:16 AM PDT by sipow
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To: FreedomStar3028

You haven’t heard of the Franklin Coverup?


23 posted on 04/21/2015 5:57:16 AM PDT by Ray76 (Obama says, "Unlike my mum, Ruth has all the documents needed to prove who Mark's father was.")
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To: Mouton

Yet the homostapo and the lunatic fringe left said parents cannot help their children going through sexual dysfunction.


24 posted on 04/21/2015 6:37:56 AM PDT by manc (Marriage =1 man + 1 woman,when they say marriage equality then they should support polygamy)
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To: NewHampshireDuo

Parents must start charging...CHILD ABUSE


25 posted on 04/21/2015 6:37:58 AM PDT by goodnesswins (I think we've reached PEAK TYRANNY now.....)
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To: bryan999

Trust me on this if nothing else please.

Most parents have no idea about their kids at a school or have no idea what the teacher is really like.

Most teachers will tell the parents your child is so good your child work so well, your child does great work.
Of course parents want to hear this and that is what teachers say.
The parents hear this and then tell other parents that Mrs Smith is a great teacher.
Why is she?

Well Mrs Smith gets compliments that her child is great.

Of course ask the parents what their child does for class today, ask them did the teacher leave the class for some times a few times a day.

Most parents have no idea what the teacher is like and don’t want to so long as they hear a bunch of crap about their child being great.


26 posted on 04/21/2015 6:41:40 AM PDT by manc (Marriage =1 man + 1 woman,when they say marriage equality then they should support polygamy)
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To: NewHampshireDuo

Definitely noticing a trend here. Do the damage and, then when you’re caught, say ‘oh, I didn’t think it was a problem’. This is not a subject for our schools to be teaching anyway! WAKE UP, AMERICA!


27 posted on 04/21/2015 7:24:13 AM PDT by originalbuckeye (Not my circus, not my monkeys.......)
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To: bryan999

Just be friendly and approach some of the teachers at the school, and just talk. It will come out. Liberals always have to brag about their “progressive” ideas.


28 posted on 04/21/2015 11:26:23 PM PDT by FreedomStar3028 (Somebody has to step forward and do what is right because it is right, otherwise no one will follow.)
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To: bryan999

My kids are all grown now and out of school, but it was difficult enough to parent in the 90’s and 2000’s. I sent mine to parochial school for the most part. I did home school one for a year (6th grade) when he was extremely ill. I was appalled at the public schools back then, and while parochial schools have their problems, too, they have a different values code than the public schools did.

However, if I were raising my kids these days, I am quite sure I would be home-schooling them all the way through. If and when I have grandchildren, I will be urging my children to do that, and I will offer up my service to them. I wouldn’t in a million years let a child go to a public school these days. Public schools now are nothing more than government subsidized indoctrination camps, the same as back then, only it has gotten worse.


29 posted on 04/22/2015 6:29:14 AM PDT by FamiliarFace
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To: Travis McGee

Funny how fast these so-called educators can apologize . . . AFTER THEY ARE CAUGHT! Our education system is certainly as bad or worse then our government.


30 posted on 04/22/2015 6:32:48 AM PDT by JayAr36 (Reagan said, "Government is the problem." And it certainly is!)
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To: sipow

Planned Parenthood (War on Women) sexually “liberate” your children has been part of the Democrat Party coalition for many decades now. SEICUS is also a radical sexual deviant group as well. When I hear stories of these inappropriate subjects being taught at school especially for small school children, I wonder if the teachers or school administration involved are part of Planned Parenthood or SEICUS.


31 posted on 05/21/2015 3:37:54 PM PDT by cradle of freedom
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