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Activity 2)
Given that my subject area, in general, is the study of history and is, obviously, very broad, I believe that I would have quite a bit of information to present and draw upon.  Focusing explicitly on the ancient world, I would focus on the subjects of sexuality and how, in the ancient world, people tended to be MUCH less "prudeish" in regards to such things. Before the dawn of Christianity, LGBT association had little to do with identity, and existed more in the sense that it was just a small piece of how someone spent their time.
To incorporate this, I would be rather straight-forward, and simply include the material, in appropriation, with its relevant subject area. I'm sure there would be questions about it, and in the off-chance there isn't, then I would directly address the "elephant in the room", and why it shouldn't be as such.

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I think that Bruce Jenner has done more for the LGBT community in the past year or two than most. His popularity in the past and his popularity from being part of a reality show has put him at the forefront of the media. He has been so openly accepted and embraced, he has put a face on the LGBT community.

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First, this is my second attempt after trying to move my entry it disappeared behind another entry.  But, I am choosing a group of people including already mentioned Ellen Page who has been very vocal in her support of the LGBTQ community. Also, Ian Daniel and the creators of the t.v. show "Gaycation". In the show cameras follow Page and Daniel as they traverse the globe and meet with LGBTQ members that hail from different cultures, social groups, and religions. The two discuss the atrocities that members of their community still face today, even in America. Although the show is often dark and can be frustrating for the LGBTQ community it is also positive in that it calls attention to people from the same community from around the world, and how they overcome the challenges of adversity. Also, Page and Daniel are both young people and appear to be respected in the late adolescent age group. Vice channel in general is a youth oriented channel, albeit NC17. Either way I believe their topics on "Gaycation" to be informative for all people whether they are straight or LGBTQ. And, Page says at the end of the clip: "It seems daunting with what we have seen, but I feel like love prevails".

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Ellen and Ian take a road trip from Iowa to NYC. In the battle between religious liberty and the fight for queer rights, they see the highs and lows of the LGBTQ movement.

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I am going to choose a group of people that work on a singular show. One is already mentioned, Ms. Ellen Page who has been very vocal for the LGBTQ community, Ian Daniel, and the creators of the Vice channel t.v show "Gaycation". The show follows Page and Daniel as they traverse the globe speaking with members of the LGBTQ community that hail from different cultures, socioeconomic status. and religions. Often the two highlight the atrocities that LGBTQ still face today, even in America, but I believe it to be a positive

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Ellen Page is an actor who is an ardent supporter of LGBT rights. I have included a video of her accepting the HRC Vanguard Award on behalf of the Human Rights Commission.  She has been an activist for LGBT rights and her position as a celebrity has enabled her to reach a broad audience.

In a social studies classroom it would be easy to include issues about equal rights for LGBT people. One topic of discussion could be the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that stated that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage.

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Ellen Page Receives the HRC Vanguard Award

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"Freeheld" Actor Ellen Page is presented with the Vanguard Award at the 2015 HRC National Dinner. Her commitment to LGBT Equality is an inspiration to millions. #NationalDinner http://www.HRC.org

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I chose to identify Neil Patrick as he has had a very positive impact not he LGBT community throughout his career as an actor, producer, singer, comedian, magician, and television host. He was even named as one of Times Magazines 100 most influential people. Neil Patrick Harris does countless amounts of charity and philanthropy work for many causes but he is a big supporter of the LGBT community and continues to be outspoken for their causes since he came out as a proud gay man in 2006.

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I think that the first step in teaching students about LGBT issues is to start with acceptance. If you are coming from a healthy place of acceptance, understanding, and openness, you are setting the stage for worthwhile discussion, discovery, and questions. If students don't feel that they can have open and honest conversations with you as their teacher, then nothing important will come it.

That being said,  in our literature circles, we chose novels to read in small groups and then discuss in meaningful ways. Whether it be a classic like PIcture of Dorian Grey or a more modern young adult novel like Perks of Being a Wallflower  or Weetzie Bat, there are a lot of opportunities to discuss gender and sexuality in literature. It is always discussed through the ways the students include it and as organic parts of the discussion. My students understand that discussion about whatever they are reading needs to be from kind places of understanding and openness and that while it is okay to question what they're reading (because questioning what you're reading is always important) and that disagreeing is healthy, it should always be done in a respectful way.

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Ellen Page is an actor who has had a positive impact on the LGBT community. I have included a video in which she receives  the Vanguard award at the 2015 HRC National Dinner. Her commitment to LGBT Equality is an inspirations to many people and her position as a popular actor helps her to spread her message.

In a social studies class there would be many opportunities to include discussion of LGBT issues. One good topic would be in an American Government class to discuss the the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that same sex marriage was protected under the constitution.

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Ellen Page Receives the HRC Vanguard Award

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"Freeheld" Actor Ellen Page is presented with the Vanguard Award at the 2015 HRC National Dinner. Her commitment to LGBT Equality is an inspiration to millions. #NationalDinner http://www.HRC.org

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Oscar Wilde was gay and he was a very good author and play write who wrote the importance of being Ernest which satired marriage rituals and the skin deep nature of Victorian culture.

In popular culture today a good person to look for would be Ian Mckellen the actor that played Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The white wizard is also an LGBT activist. Here is an excerpt from the fellowship attached below.

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Is what to do with the time that is given to you. Hello, I am ImmaGandalf, nice to meet you !

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The Alan Turing story is one that has positively affected the LGBT community. With the popularity of the movie, The Imitation Game, (about Alan's involvement in WWII) he has become a popular figure in our culture again. His pardon was one that represented freedom of the LGBT community.

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I teach the Ancient world in my class and quite often both nudity and sexuality come up as a topic of conversation in the Ancient Greek unit because the Olympics were competed in the nude and Alexander the Great (and many other kings throughout history) was bisexual.  When my students ask me about sexuality in the Ancient world I thank God that I took a graduate course on the history of sexuality.  I teach my students about how nudity, sexual preference and even gender identity wasn't as big of a thing in the Ancient world because it was Pre-Christianity.  Nudity wasn't viewed as an issue until the story of Adam and Eve got pushed onto the Roman empire.  Before that, nudity was just seen as something natural and beautiful (see Greco-Roman artwork).  Christianity pushed the idea of nudity being sinful and it wasn't until then that people felt uncomfortable with it.  Sexual preference was very similar in history.  The early Christian church did not say anything about homosexuality.  Many Christians reference a letter from Paul to the Corinthians as being anti-gay but in it's original Greek version, the letter is speaking out against grown men having sex with little boys (typically their students) and not against same-sex relationships among adults.  Sexual preference later in Christian history became a bit of a taboo topic but still, numerous political leaders all the way up through the 1600 and 1700's in Europe were bisexual and while it wasn't pushed as a great public image, it was tolerable.  Homosexuality didn't become a serious sin in Christianity until the fire and brimstone days of early America where the Puritans were against pretty much anything enjoyable and even outlawed pleasurable sex among man and wife.

I obviously don't include all of the details with my 7th graders, but I do teach the concept of how religious history shaped our modern day views and that in most of the early civilizations and even throughout European history sexual preference was not something that was judged or seen as sinful.  This kind of a lesson really helps to make LGBTQ+ students feel very comfortable and accepted.  It's strange but they almost always end up loving my class more than any others because they know that history can't judge them the way the present can.

This kind of a lesson is only possible by setting up my history classroom from day 1 as a classroom of acceptance and of HISTORY.  I tell my students on the first day that while they can be religious, there are a lot of aspects of Christianity that just don't fit into the historical facts that we're going to study, and that's okay because religion is about living your life in a way that makes you feel comfortable and happy, and we can study history in a way that separates you from that feeling for the 45 minutes of my class.

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With her charity, words of kindness and respect for all people, and dancing bravely to be herself I believe Ellen DeGeneres is a popular culture role model with a far reaching positive impact. I did not create this video, but it does demonstrate well why I chose Ellen DeGeneres.

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Calvin Klein Model Matt Terry Strips Down

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Persuasive Video Essay I do not own the rights to any of the pictures and videos used in this video.

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My content area is the general sciences. Out of all the sciences, I believe that discussing LBGT topics would most fit into a health class setting. Within a health class not only can an educator talk about the health/biology but also about the social aspects regarding this community. As our book states there is a strong connection between LGBT students and depression, substance abuse, and suicide. These topics would definitely fit into a health classroom. Ignorance is not always bliss and students need to beware of the struggles that LBGT students may go through. Having classmates that understand and respect each other may lead to disconnecting LGBT students with these struggles.

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One slightly controversial topic that would be interesting in an English/Literature class would be exploring different interpretations of literature regarding sexual orientation.There are countless books that can completely change the context of the story if the sexual identity of the protagonist or other characters is changed from the norm of heterosexuality. From The Picture of Dorian Gray, Passing, Carmilla,  The Color Purple, The Perks of Being a Wallflower,  Fight Club,  and others, there are many novels whose characters' sexuality can be interpreted in a number of ways. This is easily incorporate-able into a literature course, but it must be done in a thoughtful way.  Because of the occasional controversial nature of sexuality and the challenges in discussing it with adolescents, it must handled in a careful manner. However, if  introduced to a class of mature and thoughtful adolescents, such a lesson would be beneficial and enriching to the students learning of the material.

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Citing Erik Erikson, this chapter ascertains that adolescence is the time in life when people tend to struggle the most with identity development.  It is during this period that young people are acutely aware of how others, especially their peers perceive them.  Adolescents often find themselves comparing how their self-perception aligns with how others perceive them.  This time can have an especially large impact on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students.  These students could face a large spectrum of reactions from their peers and others ranging from outright distain to unconditional acceptance.  Even though things have improved over the past handful of years, there is still a strong correlation between LGBT students and depression, substance abuse, and suicide.

Research has shown that school environment is an important factor in this process and while some schools are very accepting, several students report experiencing various degrees of harassment and hostility while in school and the number rises significantly if race is a factor.  Unfortunately, students are not the only people in school who can be a determent to LGBT students.  Several students have reported incidents of discrimination, harassment and inaction from teachers and administrators as well.  Thankfully for every person in these positions contributing to the problem there are several more working towards a solution.  Educators can do any number of things to ensure these students feel safe and welcome in the school community.  It starts with setting an example, simply making your classroom a safe and accepting space and lending an ear to LGBT students in need can go a long way.  Those that are LGBT themselves can be fantastic role models to their students by showing confidence and offering hope as well as providing someone they can identify with.  This effort expands beyond the classroom as well; teachers can start and advise Gay-Straight Alliances or a similar organization within their school and strive to make their positive attitude permeate the entire school.

Activities:

This chapter discusses the presence of LGBT people, characters, and issues both popular culture and curriculum.   In popular culture there has been a large number of people come out as LGBT as well an increasing number of positive portrayals and media attention of LGBT issues and people.  However, many students say that the topic is absent from the curriculum in their school whether it means characters in books in English, historical issues and perspectives in social studies, issues in health or science or anything else.

In response to this please complete one of the following:

1.     Identify someone or something in popular culture that has had a positive impact on the  LGBT community and how they may positively influence adolescents.

2.     Identify an LGBT topic in your subject area and summarize how you would include it in a lesson in your classroom.