Early grades lesson to confront gender stereotypes.
This is a part of Gender Doesn't Limit You! [1], also available as a PDF [2].
Note: Substitute your school's name for "St. Francis." You can replace the provided student names with names of your students, too.
Problem: Sometimes a group of children won't let other kids do something because of their gender. Remember that gender is whether you are a boy or a girl. Sometimes a kid might say that if everyone is playing a pretend game, that a girl has to cook the dinner, or a boy has to be the doctor.
Rationale: Saying something like this isn't a nice thing to do. Boys and girls can have any job they want to, or do any activities that they want. It does not matter what their gender is. Girls were not allowed to do a lot of things in the past, but it is now illegal to stop girls from doing things that boys do. This is a type of bullying, and bullying is not allowed at St. Francis.
Questions: What should you do if someone says you can't do something just because you are a boy or a girl?
You should answer: "Not true! Gender doesn't limit you!"
Case Practice
I. Okay, so let's practice what we should say if someone says we can't do something just because we are a boy or a girl! Chrissy and Mike are playing at Mike's house. They decide to pretend like they work in a hospital. Chrissy says that she wants to be a doctor, but Mike tells her, "You can't be the doctor. You have to be the nurse." So, what do we say if we are a girl and a boy says that we can't be the doctor, we have to be the nurse? One, two, three GO!
Answer: "Not true! Gender doesn't limit you!"
II. Good job! Let's try another one. Emily is playing outerspace with her friend Sammy, and she wants to be an astronaut too. Sammy says, "You can't be the astronaut. You have to be the alien." What do we say to Sammy? One, two, three GO!
Answer: "Not true! Gender doesn't limit you!"
III. Good job! Let's try another one. Jessica and Yvette are pretending that they are dancers. Mario wants to be a dancer too, but they say, "You can't be a dancer. You have to be in the audience." What do we say to Jessica and Yvette? One, two, three GO!
Answer: "Not true! Gender doesn't limit you!"
IV. Good job! Let's try another one. Serena and Monica are play baking, and Joshua wants to be the baker. Serena and Monica tell Joshua, "You can't be the baker. You have to be the delivery man." What do we tell Serena and Monica? One, two, three GO!
Answer: "Not true! Gender doesn't limit you!"
Links:
[1] http://www.tolerance.org/gender
[2] http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/tt_gender_doesnt_limit-2.pdf