Worrying content - Good night stories for rebel girls

[WeMeetInFairIthilien]

Under a different username, I have had a long running battle with my DC's school, over their promotion of GI, using No Outsiders for resources, and "She's my Dad" for reading comprehension lessons.

Juat seen the content of the book from the year 5+6 reading list, which DD has picked. Meant to be non-fiction, about women and girls.

Pg 46, elementary school child - a boy who likes pink and shiny shoes. Affirmed immediately. Taken to the doctor, who affirms the boy feels like a girl inside. Toilet question comes up 'I can't use the disabled, I'm a girl'. A judge rules that the boy can use the girls toilets. They have a party to celebrate with pink cake.

My eyes have rolled back so far in my head that I can see my own brain.

Have sent the following message to the school.

*Good morning,
I would just like to draw your attention to some concerning content in one of your recommended reading books for year 5 and 6.
In "Goodnight stories for Rebel Girls", the entry is on page 46, describing a young, gender questioning boy.

The entry is concerning due to;

1. Promoting harmful stereotypes - that being a girl is about liking pink, dresses and sparkly shoes. This is contrary to the school's statutory duty to prevent the promotion of harmful stereotypes.

1. It is out of date - it states that a judge has decided that the gender questioning child can use the toilet of the opposite sex, if they want to. Almost a year ago (April 2025), the Supreme Court ruled that, in British law, it is not gender identity, but biological sex that determines entry to single sex spaces, such as toilets.

My DC immediately identified the harmful stereotypes presented in this entry, however given that it is stating out-of-date ideas that are contrary to the law, I would request that you review the appropriateness of having this book on the recommended reading list.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this,

Many thanks*

I'd really hoped that this shit was over.

Sadly, as we can see from the Brighton school thread, many schools are happy to ignore the guidance, so it's not really surprising. I won't be surprised to read updates from you, telling us how you were fobbed off and belittled.

I don't envy you at all.

Well done. I’d have done exactly the same.

“She’s my dad” for children learning to read - FGS. The writer doesn’t care one jot for developing children’s reading comprehension skills.

Thank you for raising it with them. Good luck.

There ended up being a group of 10 of us, who challenged all of this. She's my Dad is no longer used, only Jigsaw PHSE resources are now used - they are not fab, but theu are better than many other providers.
It has massively toned down there. This book was one of 100 recommended - I suspect that they school haven't actually read all of them/all of the actual book.

I've sent the info to the group as well, if we are fobbed off then there will likely be another letter writing #deathbypaperwork

That's appalling. I considered buying that book for my children at one point. Glad I didn't now. How can they not see that these types of stereotypes (girls like pink) are so regressive?

Fucks sake. this is on my daughter's bookshelf right now. Fairly sure she has never read it....

🤦🏼‍♀️

Bless my DD, as soon as she read the page, she came and showed me.

She's 9, and knew that it wasn't telling the truth.

How glad I am we're done with school

All power to you OP
Isn't 'Coy' an American child? The name is familiar
(Sorry if I'm stating the obvious)

Yes, the story is from America - still doesn't make it right, in a book meant to be about female roles models who were inventors, engineers and girls who had had a positive impact on the world by standing up for what they believed, to have a boy who wanted to be a girl!

I got given that book and immediately spotted the story you mentioned.

Most of the other stories have a tone of statutory celebration that turned what are probably fascinating biographies into something conventional, repetitive and dull. It was trying so so hard to be cool. IME kids spot that a mile off, nobody likes to be textured when reading no matter your age.

It went straight to the charity shop.

Lectured not textured FFS

Good on you for speaking up. The false impression of consensus on this issue needs to be shattered.

It's a misogynistic, homophobic ideology that preys on the vulnerable and rides roughshod over the boundaries of everyone else. It's the exact opposite of the "love and accept yourself" message children should be taught, and has no place in schools.

https://www.broadview.news/p/before-rafferty?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

You may be interested in this. Not about the book but how stories about this child and others sparked changes to the affirmation model of treatment.

Mine too. We've read a few of the stories from it but not that one! 🤨

Thanks for the heads-up OP. That one's going in the bin.

Well done OP. This gaslighting, inappropriate rubbish will only be out of schools when parents complain. This will also help - it's the guidelines for schools (from Sept 2026) for Relationships, Health & Sex Ed. The sections on teaching of gender identity are very clear. Cut & paste below:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6970e7e67e827090d02d42e0/Relationships_education_relationships_and_sex_education__RSE__and_health_education__for_intro_1_September_2026_.pdf

Interesting extracts re gender identity which will go some way to stopping transactivists exploiting children:

"69. Pupils should also be taught the facts and the law about biological sex and gender reassignment. This should recognise that people have legal rights by virtue of their biological sex which are different from the rights of those of the opposite sex with the protected characteristic of gender reassignment. Pupils should also be taught to recognise that people with the protected characteristic of gender reassignment, as with the other protected characteristics, have protection from discrimination and should be treated with respect and dignity.
70. In teaching this, schools should be mindful that beyond the facts and the law about biological sex and gender reassignment there is significant debate, and they should be careful not to endorse any particular view or teach it as fact. For example, they should not teach as fact that all people have a gender identity. Schools should avoid language and activities which repeat or enforce gender stereotypes. Schools should be mindful to avoid any suggestion that social transition is a simple solution to feelings of distress or discomfort.
...
72. Where schools decide to use external resources, they should avoid materials that use cartoons or diagrams that oversimplify this topic, that could be interpreted as being aimed at younger children, or that perpetuate stereotypes or encourage pupils to question their gender. Schools should consult parents on the content of external resources on this topic in advance and make all material available to them on request...."

Thanks @MrsOvertonsWindow I have that already- however I could see the school arguing that it isn't statutory until September!

I have also tried to keep my message to them clear on the two things I can, without being called bigoted - it's stereotyping, and not the law.

If you're interested in what started all of this, look up the DepHead and No Outsiders, which should bring up my old username. I was found in real life, so moved over.

When buying children’s books I always have a good look through beforehand for any whiff of rainbow claptrap including an over-use of words such as kindness, acceptance, being yourself which are part of the GI lexicon. Children don’t know how NOT to be “themselves”, and usually accept each other very readily.

@MrsOvertonsWindow i was just checking to see if you had posted 👍

I think we had a discussion about this book when it came out. It's so enraging to see this crap because presumably the rest of the book is all about girls who defied convention and stereotypes about femininity to follow their own path. And then you have this one regressive story which tells us that being a girl is all about liking pink.

They no doubt will point out it's not statutory until September. But there's nothing wrong with a school getting ahead of the game in terms of safeguarding children is there (as I recall transactivists lecturing us all when they were trying to gaslight society into accepting their fake Stonewall law) 🙄

Hope that you get a sensible child centred response from the school.

MrsOvertonsWindow · Today 14:53

They no doubt will point out it's not statutory until September. But there's nothing wrong with a school getting ahead of the game in terms of safeguarding children is there (as I recall transactivists lecturing us all when they were trying to gaslight society into accepting their fake Stonewall law)

Well quite, they were all for getting ahead of the game (and the law) when they thought it was going to be tiddlywinks. They've known it's Snap for 9 months, but they are still trying to plink the cards across the table.

Yes OP- I know that it doesn't make it right; I just knew it rang a bell.
Absolutely shouldn't be in a book about girls and shouldn't be presented as fact

I really want that book for all the other stories. I’m considering gluing that page together so it can’t be read!

Should have been the bin.

I took Rebel Girls out of the 100 books list. Poison in the sugar plums.