Everything Rainbows - LGBTIQA+ - Pride Month

Sexuality…

Well, it is a topic that I usually avoid in my classes for young people because I’m not a sexed teacher and it can get me in trouble if I talk about it.

But talking about LGBTQA+ is not talking about sexuality (maybe a bit of it is), but really it is more about the topic of equality.

So we all know by now that women and men deserve equal rights, and that all people regardless of their race, skin colour, culture, or religion should be equally respected and enjoy rights such as freedom, self-expression etc.

But your sexual orientation is harder to see with our eyes and is still a cause for degradation and bullying in our society. There is more awareness needed.

It is also about knowing our options… We don’t have to be one way or another. And we don’t even have to (or should have to) be one way or another to fit in.

In fact, the younger culture is about not needing to be one way or another. It is called Sexual Fluidity. Sexual fluidity, like the term, might refer to a person’s sexual preferences being flexible. 

Many people tend to identify with one particular type of sexual orientation. For instance, someone might identify as heterosexual, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, gay, etc. However, people who identify as sexually fluid don’t commit to a particular sexual orientation or identity. They don’t ascribe to any of these labels.

Sexual fluidity means you have no particular sexual orientation, and it can change over time. 

That really makes sense because love is love and everyone is a person, so when love (or even just attraction happens) what does it really matter what sex they were born into or what they identify as? Love is love and can be love in all shapes and forms and colours.

In a 2015 study in the USA, 64% of women and 52% of men reported that their sexual orientation was fluid.

Here is a short explanation of what LGBTIQA+ stand for, real quick: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Gender diverse, Intersex, Queer, Asexual and questioning and allies. 

There is no such thing as an “LGBTQ” person. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer are all different labels, representing different identities. Importantly, they are words that relate to folks’ experiences of gender and sexual identities - Two things we often confuse for being one and the same.

There is a difference between gender and sexuality. There is a difference between biological sex (the physical package you were born with), gender identity (how you see yourself), gender expression (how you enjoy expressing yourself as more feminine or masculine, both or none), and attraction (who you are attracted to).

With all of this complexity, who are we?

Anyway, we are much more than our sexuality. Each and every one of us is first of all a person and a GREAT one at that!

So of course this class is for older kids. But you know, here in Australia students have Sex Ed from class 4. Those are 9-10-year-olds. Knowledge is power. Education (in an age-appropriate way) can give you this power.

A somewhat sensitive topic so you may want to seek approval from the school or parents to share this so that you stay in the clear.

But why rainbows, of all symbols? 

Why not other colour combinations? 

Why a colour combination at all, and not some kind of shape as a logo instead?

The LGBT pride flag was invented in 1978 and the symbol took hold immediately.

The flag has changed over the years. The contemporary version has six colours, but the original had eight. Each colour had its own symbolic meaning.

• Pink — Sex
• Red — Life
• Orange — Healing
• Yellow — Sunlight
• Green — Nature
• Turquoise — Magic
• Blue — Peace
• Violet — Spirit

The rainbow is so perfect because it really fits the diversity that it tries to express in terms of race, gender, age, and more!

Let's celebrate diversity, acceptance, love and life together!

To Bring: Paper and colours, scarves, whiteboard or easel/paper and markers

Introduction

I think that most of you, if not all are very aware of the LGBT movement.

This is what we are going to celebrate together today in our yoga class!

I want you to know that you can be whatever you wish to be; any colour of the rainbow, none of them or all of them together.

And more than this, you should feel safe and accepted for being who you want to be.

This is important because history was not always kind to minorities or people that were different from most. But with more knowledge and awareness this has changed dramatically.

But more change and love and care are still needed and hopefully, by the end of today, your hearts will expand to respect everyone with their feelings and identities and choices. If we let each other shine we will all be leaving in a brighter world!

3 Minutes

“I Am Me” Poem

Writing an “I Am Me” poem is a great activity for celebrating who we are! 

The activity provides opportunities for students to make connections. Students may find unexpected similarities and/or differences between themselves and others in the class. 

This can open discussion and help create more awareness of our sexual differences as well.

Consider sharing an “I Am Me” poem that you have written before asking students to write their own pieces. If you share about yourself, students will be more comfortable doing the same.

Depending on your group, you may want to walk your students through the template allowing students time to think and write as you go along or you could allow time for students to fill it out on their own. YOu can give the template as a handout or write it on a whiteboard or a big piece of paper that everyone can easily read.

Have students write at the top of a piece of paper, “I Am Me” with the name they want to be called written just below. And then proceed to fill in the template

Sharing the poems with other students in the class will help build community in your classroom. Students could read aloud to the whole class if you have time or you can post the poems around the walls of your classroom after the class. 

Template for Your “I Am Me” Poem

I am _____________________________________________________________________

Full name that you want to be called

I am a ____________________________________________________________________

Ways that people might see you

I am from _________________________________________________________________

What do you like doing? What are you good at?

I am a ____________________________________________________________________

Name relationships to people important to you

I am from _________________________________________________________________

People who are important to you, family, people who take care of you, close friends

I am from ________________________________________________________________

Family traditions or customs

I am from _________________________________________________________________

Favourite foods or special foods you like from home

I am from _________________________________________________________________

Important things that have happened in your life

I am from _________________________________________________________________

Names of books or types of books you like

I am from _________________________________________________________________

Names of movies, TV shows or video games you like

I am from _________________________________________________________________

Name of the place you live

I am _____________________________________________________________________

Full name that you want to be called

My “I am” Poem

I am Gopala Amir Yaffa.

I am a yogi, a student, a father, and a change-maker.

I am from eating good Italian food with friends to baking cookies with my kids.

I am a son, a father, a husband, and a teacher.

I am from my grandmother, and from my Mum.

I am from matzoh ball soup at Passover and biting the cake on birthdays.

I am from humus and vegamite.

I am from going on big adventures and playing lots of music.

I am from the Harry Potter Series.

I am from The Lord Of The Rings and The Matrix.

I am from wherever I am at the moment.

I am Gopala Amir Yaffa.

10 Minutes

Red Scarf Leader

Let’s celebrate life with dance and colour while warming up our bodies!

With some fun music playing, stand in a circle holding scarves. If you can, have one scarf be a different colour (red in our example), or make a knot on one of the scarves to distinguish it from the rest. Whoever holds the different scarf is the leader and everyone else in the circle has to follow their movements (no words).  

The last movement of the dance should be passing the scarf in some way or another to the next person in the group. Everyone imitates and passes their scarf to the next person in the circle and now it’s the next person’s turn to lead. You can also indicate the passing of the scarves by counting all together “one, two, three” and passing the scarves on the “three”.

Fun in this game:

• Use dance and drama
• Use the scarf in your dance
• Combine yoga poses or movements
• Combine sounds (but no instructions or words)

Express yourself, let loose and go wild if you feel like it!

10 Minutes

Cheerleading Yoga

Still using the rainbow-coloured scarves… We are going to learn what the LGBTQIA letters mean and create a Yoga Cheerleading routine for them

What do the acronyms LGBTQ and LGBTQIA+ stand for?

The "standard" acronym, LGBTQ, stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning or queer.

The slightly elongated version, LGBTQIA+, stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning or queer, intersex, asexual, and anything else.

You might also see LGBTIAAQQPP+ and think, "OMG, why can't we just say 'LGBT' and leave it at that?" (That particularly long sip of alphabet soup stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, asexual, androgynous, queer, questioning, pansexual and polyamorous, by the way.)

L = Lesbian

The oversimplified definition would be to say a lesbian is a woman who is romantically and sexually attracted to other women.

The more technically correct version of that definition would be to say a lesbian is a woman whose gender identity is female, and whose romantic orientation and sexual attraction are to other women who identify as female.

G = Gay

Gay refers to a man whose gender identity is male, and who is romantically and sexually attracted to other men who identify as male. However, it's also used as a catch-all term for anyone who is homosexual.

B = Bisexual

Bisexuality refers to people of any gender who are romantically and sexually attracted to people of both binary genders — male and female.

T = Transgender

This is an umbrella term that can be loosely defined as someone whose gender identity does not match the biological sex they were assigned at birth according to the appearance of their sexual organs.

Q = Queer and/or Questioning

​Queer means everything on the spectrum of human sexuality that is non-straight. Some people use the word to describe themselves if two or more letters in the LQBTQIA+ acronym apply to them, or if their identity is more in a grey area than it is black and white.

U = Unsure

What does the U stand for in LGBTQU? The U in LGBTQU is much like the plus sign or the Q sign in terms of questioning. The U simply means unsure, as some young people or even young adults might be unsure of their gender or sexual identity.

I = Intersex

When a baby is born, the doctor looks between its legs and assigns biological sex. Up to 1.7% of the population is born intersex, which the Intersex Society of North America loosely defines as "a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit the typical definitions of female or male.”

P = Pansexual

In the elongated LGBTQ+ acronym, LGBTQQIP2SAA, P stands for pansexual. Someone who is pansexual is attracted to people of every and any gender identity. They don't really care or have much preference when it comes to gender identity as they are attracted to whoever they deem attractive.

2 = Two Spirits

In the elongated LGBTQ+ acronym LGBTQQIP2SAA, the 2 stands for Two-Spirits. The Two-Spirits represent queer indigenous peoples' identity who might differ in their gender identity, sexual orientation, or spiritual identity from the societal norm. The term Two-Spirits comes from the belief that a person has both male and female spirits within them.

A = Asexual and/or Androgynous

Asexual literally means “non-sexual.” Asexuality falls under its own spectrum, known as the asexual spectrum, or a-spec.

+ = Everything Else

Our understanding of sexuality and gender is constantly evolving. The plus sign symbolizes a holding place, waiting for the next letter to arrive.

NOW… Using the scarves, the teacher leads the players in a cheer to that word asking them to mimic you as you jump and cheer through many yoga poses - Remember our Rainbow Yoga ABC poses?

For Example:

• Give me an “L”! – “L”! (And players all do “L” with their bodies)
• Give me a “G”! – “G”! 
• Give me a “B”! – “B”! 
• Give me a “T”! – “T”!
• Give me a “Q”! – “Q”!
• What did we spell? – “LGBTQ” (participants line up to spell it with their bodies)
• I can’t hear you.  What did we get? – “LGBTQ”

By all means, add more letters and spell LGBTQQIP2SAA and add some acrobatics and whatever else your imagination can create.

Whatever you do, do it with EXCITEMENT and passion!

5-10 Minutes

Genderbread Person

Draw the Genderbread Person on the whiteboard or flipchart paper and have the continuums with the blanks drawn as well. Or you can print and give handouts to everyone.

This activity will help us understand that there is a difference between gender and sexuality. Participants will be able to describe the difference between biological sex, gender identity, gender expression, and attraction.

When we talk about ‘LGBTQ’ we’re talking about a lot of sexualities and genders. For the next few minutes, we’re going to focus on gender itself. This graphic is called the Genderbread Person, and will help us better understand what we mean when we say ‘gender,’ and all the different ways it shows up in our lives.

Maybe it will even help us understand ourselves better.

Work through the genderbread person, first filling in the blanks and defining terms, then making the different components of gender salient either by having participants reflect for themselves or by working through hypothetical examples.

We’re going to start with the top half of the sheet, so you can even fold or hide the lower parts.

To begin, let’s fill in the blanks and name the different parts of the genderbread person.

Gender identity - On the first line, pointing to the brain, we can write “Identity.” Gender identity is who we, in our heads, know ourselves to be, based on what we understand to be the options for gender, and how much we align (or don’t align) with one of those options. Gender identity is our psychological sense of gender.

With gender identity, people often think of social roles, gender norms, and personality traits, and the expectations baked into these things. In the top blank, we can write “Woman” and in the bottom blank we can write “Man”, and we’re going to add a “-ness” to both of these because these lines indicate all the varying degrees of potential “Woman-ness” and/or “Man-ness” with which someone might identify.

Attraction - On the line below that, pointing to the heart, we can write “Attraction.” Attraction is the different ways we feel pulled to other people, often categorized based on our gender and the gender of those we feel drawn to. This categorization is referred to as sexual orientation.

We’re going to fill in the blanks in the attraction section. People experience attraction (or don’t) in a lot of different ways. Two common ways people describe the attraction they may or may not be experiencing are as “sexual” and “romantic.” You can think of sexual attraction as the drive to engage in physically intimate behaviours like touching, kissing, or intercourse, and romantic attraction as the drive to engage in socially intimate behaviours like flirting, dating, and marriage.

Some people experience both, some only one, and some neither. And within those experiences of attraction, we often focus on the gender of others that we are attracted to.

Sex - On the bottom line on the right, we’ll write “Sex.” Sex, here referring to anatomical sex, refers to the physical makeup of our bodies, and specifically, all the body parts we’ve named as sex characteristics — both the primary traits we’re born with and the secondary that we might develop later in life.

And with anatomical sex, the first things that people think of are genitals and reproductive organs, but lots of things make up what we call sex, including body hair, hip-to-shoulder ratio, chromosomes, the pitch of voice, and more. On the top line, we’ll write “Female-ness,” and on the bottom line, we’ll write “Male-ness,” because here we are depicting the varying degrees someone might embody these traits, as opposed to the sex a person is assigned at birth (which is generally solely determined by external genitalia at birth).

Expression - On the left, we have a line pointing to the entire diagram. On this line we can write “Expression.” Gender expression is all the different ways we present ourselves through our actions, our clothing, and our demeanour, and the gendered ways those presentations are socially interpreted.

With gender expression, people often think of hairstyles, grooming, make-up, clothing, nonverbal mannerisms, and other things we see on the outside. We’ll write “Femininity” in the top line and “Masculinity” in the bottom line, as these are the two words that people generally use to describe the different ways our expressions show up.

What we’d like to do now is take a moment to consider where we land on these scales. How much woman-ness do you identify with? How much man-ness? Maybe neither? How much femininity and/or masculinity do you express? A lot of both? A lot of one and not a lot of the other? How much female-ness or male-ness do you see yourself embodying? You can draw a dot on each continuum, several dots to indicate a range, or leave it blank — be as creative as you’d like.

We won’t be collecting these or asking you to share your answers. You have a few more minutes to contemplate this.

We are socialized to oversimplify all of this and to think that once we know one thing about someone, we can fill in the rest of their blanks. For example, if we learn someone is a woman, we have a picture in our mind of what that person looks like and who she’s attracted to. We might assume she expresses gender in feminine ways, was assigned female at birth and embodies female-ness, and is exclusively attracted to men. This image is simple, however, is not true or complicated enough for many, if not most, of us. Many of us exist in different degrees on the scales above and may zig-zag through them in ways that break assumptions and norms.

I hope that this understanding might lead to a healthier world, and I hope that this intro was a helpful step for you toward a better understanding of yourself and others.

10 Minutes

Rainbow Walks 

Nature is full of variety… And humans are too (as you now well know)!

The instructions are very simple: Take a walk outside or in the classroom, and look for something red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. Keep going through the colors, in order, until the end of your walk.

After the walk, discuss what different members of the group noticed. Were different people focused on different things? (For example, one person may have noticed mostly flowers, while another person may have noticed mostly cars or clothing).

5 Minutes

Love Breath

Sit or lie down.

Make your body soft and relaxed.

Take a few very deep breaths.

Now, breathe in, then breathe out the word “Love” (about 5 times). 

As you do this, watch a little seed of love gets planted in the earth. Watch as the sun warms it and the rain nourishes it and the little seed buds into a healthy green plant. 

The plant grows and a rainbow flower blooms, shining and shimmering in the sunlight. 

Watch as the flower petals are blown by the wind and are then carried out to spread more and more seeds of love throughout this place, your community, your country and throughout the world. 

Rainbow seeds of love are going everywhere!

Let your hearts expand infinitely…

When you are ready, yawn, stretch, sit up and smile.

You are these seeds! 

Go out and spread love in the world!

5 Minutes