As the new 2019-2020 school year swings into action, many parents are thrilled to have their children back in their seats at government operated schools. This, of course, frees parents up during the day to pursue their own personal interests, or in some cases, economically helps them not to have to pay for summer child care.
However, some parents are experiencing anxiety sending their child back to the government due to legitimate concerns of political agendas and indoctrinating lesson plans being pushed in our public schools.
The apparent early sexualization of children has been a hot topic of discussion on social media, especially in light of the fact there are many progressive legislators across the country who seek to promote LGBTQ and 
inclusivity into Sexual Education Standards in public schools with no option for parents to opt their child out.
According to an article posted recently in Guttmacher Institute, whose web page states their goal is “to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights in the United States and globally through their interrelated program of high-quality research, evidence-based advocacy and strategic communications”, they state,
“Within the first five months of 2019, 32 states and the District of Columbia introduced 79 sex education bills, the vast majority of which—thanks to the work of state advocates and policymakers—support young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights. Three trends rise to the top: sexual consent, healthy and violence-free relationships and LGBTQ-inclusive instruction.”
Guttmacher Institute article may be viewed here:
This should be a red flag to conservative Christian parents that SC legislators as well as the SC Dept of Ed could be thinking of joining the bandwagon to push to expose children in SC to more sexualization than ever before in the name of diversity, toleration and inclusion.
Recently Child Protective League (CPL) posted on Facebook a list of the 32 LGBTQ children’s books that are not only available in public libraries, but many school libraries, and possibly in individual teacher classrooms. Their web page can be viewed here.
Below is the list of books that CPL listed that should be of concern to many parents.
- Worm Loves Worm by J.J. Austrian
- Morris Micklewhite and The Tangerine Dress By Christine Baldachinno
- Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen
- ABC A Family Alphabet Book by Bobbie Combs
- A Peacock Among Pigeons by Tyler Curry
- 10,000 Dresses by Marcus Ewert
- Molly’s Family by Nancy Garden
- George by Alex Gino
- Red: A Crayon’s Story by Micheal Hall
- King and King by Linda de Haan
- I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel
- Jacob’s New Dress by Sarah Hoffman
- My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis
- The Purim Superhero by Elisabeth Kushner
- The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher by Dana Alison Levy
- The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island
- Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers and Marla Frazee
- Donovan’s Big Day by Leslea Newman
- Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
- Mommy, Mama, and Me by Leslea Newman
- A Tale of Two Daddies by Vanita Oelschlager
- A Tale of Two Mommies by Vanita Oelschlager
- The Family Book by Todd Parr
- This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman
- In Our Mothers’ House by Patricia Polacco
- And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson
- Two Dads by Carolyn Robertson
- Stella Brings The Family by Miriam B. Schiffer
- Zak’s Safari by Christy Tyner
- Introducing Teddy by Jessica Walton
- Daddy’s Roommate by Micheal Willhoite
- Home At Last by Vera B. Williams and Chris Raschka**
As a concerned taxpayer and grandparent, I asked my own school district if any of these books were available in my school district libraries or teacher classrooms.
John Eby, the “Public Information Specialist” of the School District of Pickens County stated, “If you are concerned about the availability in our media centers of the titles you listed—or any other titles in our library system—you can search all of the books in our media centers.” He went further and explained that LGBTQ issues are not part of our k-5 curriculum. Furthermore; he stated, “ We don’t make a practice of asking all of our teachers if they are in compliance with book ban lists of any sort submitted by citizens or by political advocacy groups. If you or a parent are aware of an objectionable book being used by a teacher, please see our policy regarding Instructional Resources and Materials and the form for requesting reconsideration of materials.”
Well, I don’t know about most parents, but I do know there is not enough time in my day to do that research, And I am sure, to use FOIA request for that information would cost the average parent quite a bit for someone on the school district staff to investigate and get that information for you because they charge by the hour for that research.
My concern is that parents usually don’t find out about these objectionable books being read aloud to their child or made available to their child till AFTER the fact… and by then it’s too late… once a child has been exposed to this information they cannot unsee or unhear it. I suppose you could go ahead and fill a form on all those books listed above and give them to your child’s teacher. But I would think it would be more efficient to just hand that list along with a note to your child’s teacher that you specifically do not want your young child exposed to any book or lesson plans that speak to the LGBTQ sexual subject matters.
PARENTS, you really need to spearhead this issue of being pro-active in contacting your child’s teacher and making it clear to your child’s teacher that you do not want your child being exposed to this type of indoctrination if your religion and values and beliefs are in conflict. Otherwise, it may happen unbeknownst to you and you will have to deal with the after effects of your child being exposed to issues they are not socially, emotionally ready for.
I researched the SC Laws concerning Sex Education and found that Within the SC Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 32 Comprehensive Health Education Programs it clearly states:
SECTION 59-32-50.Notice to parents; right to have child exempted from comprehensive health education program classes.
Pursuant to policies and guidelines adopted by the local school board, public school principals shall develop a method of notifying parents of students in the relevant grades of the content of the instructional materials concerning reproductive health, family life, pregnancy prevention, and of their option to exempt their child from this instruction, and sexually transmitted diseases if instruction in the diseases is presented as a separate component. Notice must be provided sufficiently in advance of a student’s enrollment in courses using these instructional materials to allow parents and legal guardians the opportunity to preview the materials and exempt their children.
A public school principal, upon receipt of a statement signed by a student’s parent or legal guardian stating that participation by the student in the health education program conflicts with the family’s beliefs, shall exempt that student from any portion or all of the units on reproductive health, family life, and pregnancy prevention where any conflicts occur. No student must be penalized as a result of an exemption. School districts shall use procedures to ensure that students exempted from the program by their parents or guardians are not embarrassed by the exemption.
SECTION 59-32-80.Penalty for teacher’s violation of or refusal to comply with chapter.
Any teacher violating the provisions of this chapter or who refuses to comply with the curriculum prescribed by the school board as provided by this chapter is subject to dismissal.
Also during my research, I found the following to be information parents need to take note of especially:
SECTION 59-32-30.Local school boards to implement comprehensive health education program; guidelines and restrictions.
(A) Pursuant to guidelines developed by the board, each local school board shall implement the following program of instruction:
(1) Beginning with the 1988-89 school year, for grades kindergarten through five, instruction in comprehensive health education must include the following subjects: community health, consumer health, environmental health, growth and development, nutritional health, personal health, prevention and control of diseases and disorders, safety and accident prevention, substance use and abuse, dental health, and mental and emotional health. Sexually transmitted diseases as defined in the annual Department of Health and Environmental Control List of Reportable Diseases are to be excluded from instruction on the prevention and control of diseases and disorders. At the discretion of the local board, age-appropriate instruction in reproductive health may be included.
(4) The South Carolina Educational Television Commission shall work with the department in developing instructional programs and materials that may be available to the school districts. Films and other materials may be designed for the purpose of explaining bodily functions or the human reproductive process. These materials may not contain actual or simulated portrayals of sexual activities or sexual intercourse.
(5) The program of instruction provided for in this section may not include a discussion of alternate sexual lifestyles from heterosexual relationships including, but not limited to, homosexual relationships except in the context of instruction concerning sexually transmitted diseases.
(B) Local school boards may use the instructional unit made available by the board pursuant to Section 59-32-20, or local boards may develop or select their own instructional materials addressing the subjects of reproductive health education, family life education, and pregnancy prevention education. To assist in the selection of components and curriculum materials, each local school board shall appoint a thirteen-member local advisory committee consisting of two parents, three clergy, two health professionals, two teachers, two students, one being the president of the student body of a high school, and two other persons not employed by the local school district.
(C) The time required for health instruction for students in kindergarten through eighth grade must not be reduced below the level required during the 1986-87 school year. Health instruction for students in grades nine through twelve may be given either as part of an existing course or as a special course.
(D) No contraceptive device or contraceptive medication may be distributed in or on the school grounds of any public elementary or secondary school. No school district may contract with any contraceptive provider for their distribution in or on the school grounds. Except as to that instruction provided by this chapter relating to complications which may develop from all types of abortions, school districts may not offer programs, instruction, or activities including abortion counseling, information about abortion services, or assist in obtaining abortion, and materials containing this information must not be distributed in schools. Nothing in this section prevents school authorities from referring students to a physician for medical reasons after making reasonable efforts to notify the student’s parents or legal guardians or the appropriate court, if applicable.
(E) Any course or instruction in sexually transmitted diseases must be taught within the reproductive health, family life, or pregnancy prevention education components, or it must be presented as a separate component.
(F) Instruction in pregnancy prevention education must be presented separately to male and female students.
(G) Beginning with the 2015-2016 school year, districts annually shall provide age-appropriate instruction in sexual abuse and assault awareness and prevention to all students in four-year-old kindergarten, where offered, through twelfth grade. This instruction must be based on the units developed by the board, through the department, pursuant to Section 59-32-20(B).
♦ Reproductive health instruction is permitted before grade six at the option of local school boards (§59-32-30(A)(1)).
“Students in grades kindergarten through six should receive 75 minutes per week of health instruction for 36 weeks or the equivalent, which must equal 45 hours per year.”
When I went to the SC Dept of Ed ‘s web site and typed in “sex education” in the search bar…nothing came 
up. This puzzled me. Most parents who wish to know what is going on in sex education in SC would most likely type those two words in the search bar; however, through trial and error I found that if I typed Health Standards and searched through those I found the sex education standards embedded within those.
ALL PARENTS should read the Health/Safety Standards being taught to your child…these standards adopted in 2017 can be found here.
Parents, please pay close attention at the end of those standards to the glossary terms. Here are just a few of the glossary terms at the end of the Health/Safety standards:
Glossary of terms:
consent …Voluntary, positive agreement between the participants to engage in specific sexual activity. Verbal communication prior to engaging in sex helps to clarify consent (Northwestern-Student Affairs, n.d.).
rape… The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI], n.d.).
risk(y) behaviors… Risk(y) behaviors contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV infection; alcohol, tobacco and other drug use; unhealthy dietary behaviors; and inadequate physical activity (CDC, 2016).
sexting… The sending of sexually explicit photos, images, text messages, or e-mails by using a cell phone or other mobile device (Dictionary.com, n.d.c).
Below I have listed some of the Kindergarten standards I found that may leave an opportunity for your child’s kindergarten teacher who may be liberal and progressive to teach something you think would be better left for you to teach at home when you think your child is ready.
Kindergarten Health Standards:
G-K.1.3 Name ways children grow and change, mentally, emotionally, socially, and physically.
( example… what if a child brings up in class that Johnny thinks he’s really a girl…what will your child’s teacher say?)
G-K.1.4 Explain how families are alike and different
(example… what if a child brings up that her friend Susie doesn’t have a daddy, she says she has two mommies…what will your child’s teacher say)
Grade 1 : I-1.1.1 Describe the difference between safe and unsafe contact that may occur between a child and an adult or a peer.
(example… what if a child brings up that her uncle likes to play the tickle game…what will your child’s teacher say?)
As a former first grade teacher, I found it best practices that when any questions came to me from my young 6 and 7 year olds about sex… I always replied, “You will have to talk to your mommy or daddy about that… I’m here to teach you about academic subjects.”
“You will have to talk to your mommy or daddy about that… I’m here to teach you about academic subjects.” — Johnnelle Raines
But here’s the question parents… will today’s liberal progressive teachers take it upon themselves to answer your child with their own personal religious, values and beliefs? Will they say, ‘that’s fine if Johnny thinks he’s a girl, you should be proud of him.’ Or will they say, ‘that’s fine that Susie’s mother is married to another woman, there’s nothing wrong with that.’
Sex education in our tax supported public schools is heading toward a very slippery slope. Parents better be paying attention to what their child’s teacher is planning on teaching their young child during Health instructional time and what books they are choosing to read aloud or have your child read.
Johnnelle Raines is a retired public school teacher of 29 years in the classroom. She is also a Board Member of the United States Parents Involved in Education (USPIE).
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