It’s no secret that Worcester has been the hub of the sex ed opt out movement in Massachusetts. Over the last few years, thousands of Worcester Public Schools students have opted out of the graphic and inappropriate Rights, Respect, Responsibility (3Rs) curriculum taught in the WPS to kids beginning in kindergarten. MFI, Massachusetts Informed Parents, local parent groups, and even the Worcester Bishop have sounded the alarm about this dangerous curriculum, produced by the progressive activist organization Advocates for Youth. Almost 4,000 parents opted their WPS students out in one year alone! Families who opt out are continuing to send a message to the WPS that this curriculum is not what they want for their kids, and it’s not what’s best for the children of Worcester.
However, there are still many Worcester parents who may not be aware of the issues with this curriculum. They hear the name Rights, Respect, and Responsibility and assume the lessons are beneficial. After all, what parent wouldn’t want their child learning how to respect the rights of others and be a responsible community member? Still, other parents might know that the lessons may contain objectionable material, but they aren’t sure how to find out what’s in the lessons. The WPS website provides the names of the lessons, but not links to the lessons themselves. This offers little assistance to parents seeking to make an informed decision about opting their child out, because just like Rights, Respect, and Responsibility, many of the lesson titles hide objectionable content behind a benign-sounding name. Unless parents are able to see underneath the surface, many of them may not know that the 3Rs is a trojan horse for gender confusion and sexualization until it is too late.
Public school parents have a legal right to review their child’s curriculum, including the program materials for sex ed, and we encourage parents to contact their school directly and exercise that right. But, busy parents may struggle to find the time to do so, or they may contact the school and be delayed by an administrator or teacher who does not respond in a timely manner. To make these lessons more accessible to WPS parents, we have created a new pdf resource containing a list of links to the 3Rs lessons named on the WPS website.
You can view and download our new resource here.
These links, accessed through public sources, will not include any potential adjustments made by WPS staff. However, viewing these lessons in their original format will give parents a good idea of the content that will likely be presented in class, and why they should opt their children out.
One such example is found in the lesson “Gender Roles,” which is taught to first grade students. According to the WPS website, “The overall purpose of this lesson is to show students that they are not limited to what they can and cannot do based on their gender,” a sentiment with which many parents agree when it comes to the types of toys children can play with or what types of careers they may aspire to in the future. However, this lesson goes beyond those areas of common agreement. It introduces the idea that crossdressing is normal and acceptable, and includes a reading of the book My Princess Boy, which features a male main character who wears a dress and crown. The questions posed to the students following the reading refer to the main character as “them,” subtly introducing the concept of nonbinary gender identity.
This is only one example of a lesson that contains ideology that violates the beliefs of many families. WPS parents are strongly encouraged to closely review the information provided, and to opt out of this curriculum. While the WPS does provide an opt out letter on their website, we recommend using our letter, which extends beyond sex ed and protects kids from sexuality-related content in other classes. Learn more and download our opt out letter HERE.
Not in Worcester? This is important information for you, too. The 3Rs is cropping up in many school districts across the Commonwealth, and it is actively being promoted by DESE through grant funding and teacher professional development. It might already be in your town. If you haven’t already submitted our opt out letter this year, it’s not too late to protect your child from any remaining lessons on the calendar for the rest of this school year. Download and submit our opt out form today!
This critical research is only possible with your support. To help advance MFI’s mission to preserve parental rights in the classroom and beyond, consider giving a generous donation today. Your gift of any amount helps us inform parents and protect education in Massachusetts, both for now and for generations to come.
