The incident took place at Ballantine Elementary School in Fuqua-Varina.
According to House Speaker Tim Moore’s OfficeRepresentative Erin Pare, R-Wake, said she received an email from a relevant constituent alerting her about allegations of cards being shown in class.
Pare said the flashcards included a card with a depiction of a “pregnant” person.
The cards were reportedly used to teach colors to children in a pre-school class.
“The district is concerned to learn of an inappropriate instructional resource found in the preschool classroom,” the Wake County School District said in a statement.
The cards were not tied to the district’s curriculum and the material was removed, the statement said.
The name of the teacher who resigned is not known but the class is one for children with special needs.
According to Pare, the principal said flashcards were not part of the approved curriculum, and the principal said he didn’t know they were even being used.
“I am grateful that a concerned constituent has contacted and the issue is being addressed in a swift and professional manner by Ballantine Elementary School,” Pare said in a release. “Schools should only use age-appropriate material, and these flashcards clearly do not meet that standard for the pre-school classroom. I hope that Wake County and North Carolina state schools follow Ballantine’s example And when any parent expresses concern and ensure that such material is not used to teach young students.”
Pare told ABC11 that a constituent said she had seen flashcards being used to instruct kindergarteners and found it piled up in a drawer in a preschool classroom.
“I knew it probably wouldn’t be acceptable to the public and the school principal,” Pare told ABC11, adding, “Parents should have the ability to connect and collaborate with teachers, I’m not just a legislator.” I am the parent of two Wake County students in a public school.”
Parents waiting to pick up their children at Ballantyne on Tuesday declined to talk about the issue.
A parent who spoke with ABC11 said she was disappointed to have lost the teacher.
“It’s so important for all of our kids, but it’s especially okay for these kids to know that they look different, act different, and for these students, whatever their family dynamic, whatever they look like. is represented in the classroom,” said Jackie Milazzo.
Milazzo has a 3-year-old son in the class and said he received a message from the school principal that there was inappropriate teaching material.
She said she didn’t think about it much and spoke to the teacher, who said the images were used on a bulletin board with various portraits of families at the Student Arts Center
“Our kids are being used as a publicity stunt. We’re not bothered by what’s in the class,” Milazzo said. “I know a lot of communities at Ballantine Elementary don’t bother being in the classroom.”
She said the real issue is safety in the classroom.
“A picture of a same-sex couple doesn’t make my child insecure,” Milazzo said. “I am getting messages that our teachers are grooms, my child is being brainwashed… like how do I feel safe sending my child to school like this?
“These actions are not supporting our schools, they are not supporting our teachers, they are not supporting our children, my child has now lost his teacher,” she said,
Pare said the incident was not representative of most teachers.
“The vast majority of teachers I know will never bring a piece of curriculum, bring something that is not approved by the principal or the district,” she said.
She also said that she believes it’s great to have so many different loving families and this happens in so many different forms.
“We have loving families and kids in all shapes and sizes — whatever you want to call it and I think that’s a great thing,” Pare said. “We have to think about the age-appropriateness of some education devices and that’s what we have to talk about here.” They can see a picture of a mother hugging a man – who appears to be a male – with a baby in their stomach. Appears and I think a 4-year-old would interpret that picture like this.
“It’s just not going over their heads. I think they think about it and look at that picture and it’s confusing for them,” Pare said. “It’s a sentiment shared not only by people in southern Wake County, but by parents across the state. This educational tool was age-inappropriate for these pre-schoolers, and it’s not just me telling you, this school The district is telling you, this principal is telling you and it has a common conclusion among all reasonable people.”
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