Children participate in a variety of educational experiences and organizations in their communities where they may or may not feel supported. The links below share stories of real children’s experiences. As you read and listen to the families’ stories, think about how the experiences could both negatively and positively affect a child’s development. Write your thoughts in the space below.

• Hauser, C. (2017, February 9). “I felt like I belonged there”: Transgender Cub Scout Breaks Barrier. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://nyti.ms/2kTTkGn
• Padawer, R. (2012, August 8) What’s So Bad About a Boy Who Wants to Wear a Dress? The New York Times. Retrieved from https://nyti.ms/2jCPjoG
• Debi Jackson, mother of AJ (a transgender child) speaks at the Unity Temple Plaza in Kansas City. https://youtu.be/-oIuw3yIyhI
• Raising a Boy in Pink by Sarah Hoffman http://www.themotherco.com/2011/06/raising-a-boy-in-pink/
• I Don’t Identify as a Boy or a Girl: This is my Story by Alok Vaid-Menon http://www.mtv.com/news/1962946/gender-non-conforming-identity-trans/

1. What aspects of these experiences could negatively affect a child’s development?

    
2. What aspects of these experiences could positively affect a child’s development?

    
3. From what you read, what are your initial thoughts on how you could improve the experiences of gender–expansive or LGBTQ children and youth in your program?