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Alexandra Richards
Aug 12, 2020
Lynne Polvino / Facebook
All of us will admit that we got our parents to help us out with our homework when we were young. Usually they tweaked the bit we messed up and that was that. However, one mum in New York decided to rewrite her child’s entire worksheet when she didn’t like what she read.
Lynne Polvino, from New York, noticed that the homework her daughter was working on spread a sexist tone about working mums, and she wasn’t about to let that happen.
Polvino decided to write her own version and post it on Facebook alongside her daughter’s original piece.
The work sheet was a ‘fill in the blanks’ story about a girl feeling sad that her mum was returning to work.
Polvino posted the photos alongside this comment
Here’s the homework assignment my daughter brought home yesterday, side-by-side with my rewrite.
The original read:
Lisa was not happy her mother was back at work. Before Lisa was born, her mother worked in a big office. Yesterday, she told Lisa that she was going back to work.
The morning was terrible. Lisa had to get to school on time. Her father had to get to work on time. And now, her mother was in a rush, too.
“Lisa’s father made breakfast, it was not too good.
Note, in this story the man can’t cook because he is a man obviously.
The story ends with Lisa’s mum coming home early from work and relieving Lisa’s anxieties.
Polvino was not impressed, so she rewrote the story to tell a happier tale about a mother returning to work while the dad stayed home to look after Lisa.
Lisa was happy, her mother was back at work. Before Lisa was born, her mother worked in a big office.
Because it valued her important contributions to the workplace, her employer offered nearly a year of paid maternity leave and flex time upon her return.
Her father was home on his paid paternity leave, caring for Lisa’s younger brother and contributing equally to the running of the household,” it continued.
Lisa’s father made breakfast. It was very good and he had Lisa wash the dishes because all functional humans should learn to clean up after themselves.
One of the best lines in the re-worked work sheet was:
Lisa was glad she was growing up in a society free of gender bias and misogyny.
Clearly we can all learn something from Lynne Polvino’s homework.
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