Resum
From 2006 to 2008 UK-based primary school teachers in the No
Outsiders project explored possibilities for addressing sexualities
equality in their classrooms. What all teachers had in common was a
resource pack that included 27 children’s books exploring themes of
gender and sexuality diversity either directly or indirectly (i.e. by the
presence of same-sex parents or gender non-normative characters).
While such books have the potential to productively trouble
the heteronormative spaces of schools by the mere presence of
characters who do not conform to sex/gender/sexuality expectations,
some of them have also been criticized for reproducing
heteronormative family structures and implicit values and failing to
go beyond ‘vanilla strategies’ that feel safe in primary school settings.
The experiences and reflections of the No Outsiders project members
can help educators plan not only which kinds of literature to use but
also how to incorporate such texts into the curriculum.