What's Life Like For Gay Kids In Public Schools? : NPR

MANY PARENTS STGGLE TO ADJT AFTER LEARNG CHILD IS GAY, STUDY FDS

* kids being gay *

A new study nducted by rearchers at Gee Washgton Universy found that most parents of lbian, gay, and bisexual youth have difficulty adjtg after their kids e study says is one of the first to systematilly exame the experience of parents raisg lbian, gay and bisexual children.

EXPLAG IT TO YOUR KIDS: WHAT DO 'BEG GAY' MEAN?

Gay kids are g out earlier — sometim middle school — and many are fdg acceptance. But some parents and teachers wonr if the kids are too young to really know their sexual orientatn. * kids being gay *

”The study found that Ain Amerin and Lato parents have a harr time acceptg their lbian, gay and bisexual children, as do the parents of children who e out at a later study, which surveyed a much larger sample size than prev studi, nfirmed smaller studi that showed parents’ negative reactns tend to ease over time; the first two years are the harst for were no signifint differenc reactns between mother and father, the age of the parent, or the genr of the child. The study did not exame the reactns for the parents of transgenr general, acceptance seems to be growg rapidly for lbian, gay and bisexual youth.

People who are homosexual are romantilly and physilly attracted to people of the same sex: femal are attracted to other femal; mal are attracted to other mal. Gay people are reprented all walks of life, across all natnali, ethnic backgrounds, and all social and enomic groups. Dpe myths and misnceptns, there is no evince that beg gay is ed by early childhood experienc, parentg styl, or the way someone is raised.

Efforts to change gay people to straight (sometim lled "nversn therapy") have been proven to be effective and n be harmful. Knowg one's sexual orientatn — whether straight or gay — is often somethg that kids or teens regnize wh ltle doubt om a very young age.

GAY KIDS COMG OUT YOUNGER, BUT PARENTS ASK "HOW DO YOU KNOW?"

Some gay teens say they had same-sex csh childhood, jt as their heterosexual peers had oppose-sex csh. By middle school, as they enter adolcence, many gay teens already regnize their sexual orientatn, whether or not they have revealed to anyone else. Those who didn't realize they were gay at first often say that they always felt different om their peers, but didn't exactly know why.

10 TIPS FOR PARENTS OF GAY KIDS

And spe genr stereotyp, mascule and feme tras do not necsarily predict whether someone is straight or gay. Once aware, some gay teens may be que fortable and accept their sexualy, while others might fd nfg or difficult to accept. Like their straight peers, gay teens may strs about school, gras, llege, sports, activi, iends, and ftg .

But addn, gay and lbian teens often al wh an extra layer of strs — like whether they have to hi who they are, whether they will be harassed about beg gay, or whether they will face stereotyp or judgments if they are hont about who they are. Many gay teens worry about whether they will be accepted or rejected by their loved on, or whether people will feel upset, angry, or disappoted them. It n take time for gay teens to procs how they feel and to accept this aspect of their own inty before they reveal their sexual orientatn to others.

In some suatns, teens who are openly gay may risk facg more harassment than those who haven't revealed their sexual orientatn.