Are illinois schools going to teach gay classes to kids
Illinois School District to Teach Preschoolers About ‘Sexual Orientation’ and ‘Gender Identity’
An Illinois school district will require schools to teach preschoolers about “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.”
The Evanston/Skokie School District 65 (D65) is providing specific curriculum to help indoctrinators (er … teachers) instruct the equity lessons as a part of its Gay Equity Month during the month of April.
The district also has a “Latinx Heritage Month” from September 15 to October 15 as well as “Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action” during the month of February.
For preschoolers, D65’s curriculum states that they must learn about “the purpose of the flags and will learn about the Pride Flag.” Students are encouraged to participate in “Rainbow day” and wear the “color of the day.”
The lesson plan for preschoolers states that they must be able to “recognize the Rainbow flag and know who it represents” and understand the accompanying vocabulary: “Flag, queer, lesbian, non-binary, gender non-conforming, community.”
Teachers were provided a link to an online study aloud of the book, Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag.
Milk was the first openly gay-identified
Rural student “didn’t see any changes” after Illinois Queer history law passed
CUBA — Amber Cannon came out as nonbinary in fifth grade in rural, western Illinois.
Around that time, in 2019, a new Illinois law also came out requiring public schools to teach LGBTQ+ history every year.
Cannon followed the news of the law and saw little change in Cuba’s public school curriculum.
“When our laws were enforced; I didn’t see any changes,” Cannon said. “We never talked about any gay people in history unless I brought them up first, or any LGBTQ writers in English.”
Cannon said they did not learn about LGBTQ+ topics in class until steep school.
In a two-part series, Illinois Public Media is diving into rural teaching on race and sexuality. You can find part one of the series here.
Teacher sees lack of LGBTQ+ history in textbooks
Lewistown High School civics and U.S. history teacher Matthew Peirce incorporates most of the state’s inclusive history mandates. He says textbooks have nothing on Gay history, though.
One issue is an absence of Queer history in textbooks.
Since 2019, Illinois lawmakers have added the history of Shadowy people before slavery, A
Rural Student 'Didn’t View Any Changes' After Illinois LGBTQ+ History Law Passed
Amber Cannon (front), 15, listens to instructions during Joe Brewer's Contemporary World Issues class at Cuba Upper School last spring. Photo by Emily Hays/Illinois Public Media.
In this report, assistant professor of Curriculum & Instruction Asif Wilson discusses some of the challenges Illinois teachers and students face with inquiry-based learning as the new approach has been implemented.
Amber Cannon came out as nonbinary in fifth grade in rural, western Illinois.
Around that time, in 2019, a new Illinois law also came out requiring public schools to teach Homosexual history every year. Cannon followed the news of the statute and saw petty change in Cuba’s public school curriculum.
“When our laws were enforced; I didn’t see any changes,” Cannon said. “We never talked about any gay people in history unless I brought them up first, or any LGBTQ writers in English.”
Cannon said they did not learn about Homosexual topics in class until high school.
Teacher Sees Lack of LGBTQ+ History in Textbooks
One issue is an absence of LGBTQ+ history in textbooks.
Since 20
ABOUT THIS MAP
Under affirming statewide curricular standards, K-12 local education agencies grow curriculum that includes positive representations of people who are LGBTQI+; Black, Indigenous, or people of color; people with disabilities, and all those who encounter marginalization or erasure.
- Seven states passed LGBTQI+ inclusive curricular standards laws that place a standard for locally created academic curriculum to include affirming representation of LGBTQI+ people in K-12 schools: California, Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, and Washington.
- Three state learning agencies (SEAs) adopted LGBTQI+ inclusive curricular standards.
- The District of Columbia adopted LGBTQI+ inclusive Social Studies standards. Previously, the SEA issued a resolution in support of an LGBTQI+ inclusive curricular standard.
- Massachusetts adopted an LGBTQI+ inclusive History and Social Science standard.
- Vermont adopted an LGBTQI+ inclusive Ethnic and Social Equity Studies standard (effective July 1, 2025). Previously, Vermont passed a law establishing a working group to review and recommend updates and additional standards to recognize fully the history, contributions, and pe
Four States Now Require Schools to Teach LGBT History
Starting next school year, female homosexual, gay, bisexual, and gender diverse history will be part of the curriculum in Illinois public schools.
Democratic Governor J. B. Pritzker signed House Bill 246 into law Aug. 9, making Illinois the fourth articulate to mandate teaching LGBT history, after California, Novel Jersey, and Colorado. The Illinois legislation takes impact in July 2020.
The commandment mandates that history classes in public schools “include a study of the roles and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the history of this state and this State.” Any textbooks bought with articulate funding must cover “the roles and contributions” of LGBT people, and can’t include content that is discriminatory to any particular gender or sexual orientation.
Nationwide, LGBT history often doesn’t make it into the curriculum. Just under a quarter of students express that they have learned about LGBT-related topics in their classes, according to 2016 research from GLSEN, a national advocacy team for LGBTQ students.
In some states, teachers deal with restrictions on how they can discuss issues of gender and sexuality in the class