Queering Nature: Gender, Sexuality, and the Natural World

This lesson encourages students to explore gender and sexuality through a queer ecological lens, challenging binary thinking by examining the diversity of natural expressions in the environment. The session integrates visual arts to create a reflective and expressive response to these themes.

Learning Objectives

• Recognize diverse expressions of gender and sexuality in nature.

• Critically analyze how nature has been used to reinforce or challenge gender binaries.

• Develop a creative response to queering nature, reflecting on inclusion and identity.

• Understand the importance of social justice in representation and education.

Lesson Outline

1. Introduction (15 mins) – Nature Beyond Binaries

• Start with images of gender-diverse organisms (e.g., clownfish changing sex, plants with both male and female reproductive structures, animals displaying same-sex behavior).

• Discussion: How does nature challenge the binary categories of male/female?

• Brief introduction to queer ecology (Mortimer-Sandilands & Erickson, 2010).

2. Critical Discussion (20 mins) – Nature, Culture, and Queer Lenses

• How has nature been used to justify social norms around gender and sexuality?

• How can looking at nature through a queer lens challenge societal expectations?

• Introduce examples from art and literature that challenge gender binaries through nature metaphors (e.g., Claude Cahun, Juliana Huxtable, Alok Vaid-Menon).

3. Creative Response (40 mins) – Art-Based Exploration

• Prompt: “If nature were free from imposed gender and sexuality norms, how would it express itself?”

• Students create an art piece (collage, painting, digital artwork, or poetry-visual hybrid) inspired by their reflections.

• Encourage experimentation with hybrid forms, fluid imagery, and surreal elements.

4. Reflection & Social Justice Link (15 mins)

• Students share their work in a gallery-style walk or small groups.

• Discussion: How does queering nature support inclusion and social justice in schools?

• What can we learn from nature about embracing gender and sexual diversity?

Assessment & Follow-Up

• Formative: Reflection journal entry on how queer ecology can challenge exclusion in schools.

• Extension: A zine or class exhibition showcasing queer nature-inspired artworks

Image of a mycelium network, a different form of kinship

Flowers have been a source of communication and identification throughout history, from Greek myths to the modern-day LGBTQ+ community.