New Standards - 2nd Grade

New NJ state standards that are questionable

If you didn’t hear, there was a complete overhaul of the NJ heath education standards in 2020. There was controversy and COVID so the NJDOE delayed the roll out until 2022/2023 school year.

Sneaky Sneaky.

Chaos and Control will go through the questionable changes to the curriculum by each section, by the end of grade 2, grade 5, grade 8 and grade 12. Not all standards are bad, for example:

2.2.2.MSC.8: Explain the difference between offense and defense.

Is not a problem.

Below are the list of standards that would cause concerns for parents on how this would be implemented in the classroom for their 7/8 year old child:

• 2.1.2.PGD.5: List medically accurate names for body parts, including the genitals.

• 2.1.2.PP.1: Define reproduction.

• 2.1.2.SSH.2: Discuss the range of ways people express their gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior.

• 2.3.2PS.7: Identify behaviors that would be considered child abuse (e.g., emotional, physical, [and] sexual.)

• 2.3.2PS.8: Identify trusted adults, including family members, caregivers, and school staff, that you can talk to about situations which may be uncomfortable or dangerous (e.g., bullying, teasing, child sexual abuse.)

  

I’m going to start with the one I find most egregious and that is explaining “gender and how gender-role stereotypes may limit behavior.” Why are you trying to tell my kids how their behavior is limited because they are a boy or a girl when I’ve spent their entire life telling them that there is no limits for them? This entire conversation between teacher and child is inappropriate and not necessary. You don’t get to put ideas into my child’s head that there are gender stereotypes. This is a throwback to a time that I no longer live in. I’ve breaking the female stereotypes for years so that my daughter didn’t have to deal with that. We shouldn’t be giving these antiquated concepts air in a 2nd grade classroom.

Accurately “describing genitals” hits my radar right away because it is extremely vague. What is the definition of ‘genitals’ that will be used in second grade classrooms?

Yes, Boys have a penis… however, when describing the part you see when looking at a naked female, you will see the Labia Majora (outer lips). No girl is looking at her vagina unless she has a mirror. So, are they going to explain where the vagina is on the female body with visual aids to 7 and 8 year olds? That’s a hard pass for me.

FYI my children knew the medically correct names for body parts long before 2nd grade so so my kids would have started a spirited classroom discussion over how the teacher was wrong.

Schools want to teach our 2nd grade kids about emotional and physical abuse; maybe they can recognize the abuse they imposed on the kids and apologize forcing them to use an unnecessary medical device with dire side effects so that the Teachers Union can be happy. Additionally, how are they going to explain, “Sexual abuse” to these little kids? Why are you burdening my healthy, happy child who has no signs of abuse with these dark concepts? My child doesn’t know about sex, how are you going to introduce ‘sexual abuse’ to the classroom?

I have imbedded 3 questions that you need to ask your principal or curriculum director about the upcoming lessons for the 22/23 year.

What will you tell my kid how their behavior is limited because they are a boy or a girl ?

What is the definition of ‘genitals’ that will be used in second grade classrooms? Will there be visual aids?

How are you going to introduce the concept of ‘physical and sexual abuse’ to the classroom?

Ask for all the materials and books that will be used to cover these standards. Next week I will be going over the new 5th grade standards. Get ready to brace yourself.