By Corinne Murdock |

Gilbert Public Schools (GPS) students are coming home with more than what they learned at school today – some are coming home with exposure to gender theory.

GPS students are reporting that teachers are surveying students about their “preferred pronouns.” If a female student doesn’t want to go by feminine pronouns, or a male student doesn’t want to go by male pronouns, then they may choose to identify themselves by “nonbinary pronouns” or “neopronouns.”

One GPS parent reported that her student witnessed a fight between certain students and “furries” – people with an interest in anthropomorphic animals, sometimes dressing like them – over a handout asking about preferred pronouns. The furries were concerned that their preferred pronouns weren’t options on the handout.

Preferred pronouns may disregard proper grammar entirely – such as the nonbinary pronouns “they/them.” Neopronouns can be anything, even “animal-themed” like “coyoteself.” It’s up to an individual to determine their pronouns. According to those who subscribe to or support alternative pronouns, their preferred pronouns can change by the day – even by the minute.

Beyond the traditional pronouns for males and females, popularized preferred pronouns include ze (or, zie, sie, xie, and xe, pronounced “zee”) and hir (pronounced “heer”).

Below is an example of one of the handouts from a GPS teacher:

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinnejournalist@gmail.com.