A middle school in Lincoln, Nebraska reportedly received 'gender inclusive' guidance that recommended teachers refrain from using everyday phrases like "boys and girls" and "you guys".
The National Review reports the guidelines were drawn up by the organisation, Gender Spectrum.
They say teachers should avoid asking kids to line up as boys or girls or separating them by gender, and instead find other ways of dividing the class that does not make any reference to gender, such as by asking whether they would choose things like milk or juice, or summer or winter.
Instead of using gendered expressions like "boys and girls" and "ladies and gentlemen" to get the attention of kids, teachers should say things like "calling all readers", "hey campers", or "could all of the athletes come here".
"Create classroom names and then ask all of the 'purple penguins' to meet at the rug," the document reads.
Other recommendations include providing an opportunity for every student to identify their preferred name or pronoun. If a teacher finds it necessary to reference gender they should say "Boy, girl, both or neither".
"When asked why, use this as a teachable moment. Emphasise to students that your classroom recognises and celebrates the gender diversity of all students," the guidelines state.
If teachers hear others reference gender in a binary manner, Gender Spectrum says they should provide counter-narratives that challenge students to "think more expansively about their notions of gender".
"Be intolerant of openly hostile attitudes or references towards others EVERY TIME [emphasis in the original] you hear
or observe them, but also use these as teachable moments," the guidance says.
"Take the opportunity to push the individual on their statements about gender. Being punitive may stop the behavior, at least in your presence. Being instructive may stop it entirely."
News that the guidelines had been distributed at Irving Middle School prompted strong opposition from conservatives, forcing Lincoln Public Schools Superintendent Steve Joel to issue a statement confirming that teachers in the district were not being made to replace male and female references with gender-neutral terms.
Russ Uhing, director of student services for the Lincoln district, told World Herald however that the transgender group was one they were "seeing more of" in schools and "our buildings are asking for more guidance, so that's what we wanted to present".
Joel added that teachers were "doing the right thing" in trying to gain a better understanding of students' needs.
