Disruptive Tinkering: Small Shifts That Move Classrooms Toward Inclusivity
Borrowing from Jon Wargo’s (2019) ideas on “tinkering” and Kevin Kumashiro’s (2000) ideas on “disruptive education,” disruptive tinkering is a way to make small but intentional shifts in how we talk to and about students, how we group them and assign seats, and how we implement the curriculum we use. These shifts aim to make classroom practices more inclusive. Disruptive tinkering involves breaking away from traditional, heteronormative narratives embedded in school norms, expectations, and mandated curricula. It means tweaking or adjusting routines to interrupt gender binaries, challenge what is considered “normal,” and disrupt the status quo. This practice is both responsive and dynamic, allowing educators to work within existing systems while creating space to support LGBTQ+ students through subtle but meaningful changes.
Here are some examples of what this might look like in the classroom:
Disruptive Tinkering in Language
Inclusive language is essential for the wellbeing not only of gender-expansive students, but for all students. Using inclusive language cultivates a welcoming environment where students perceive that their different identities, backgrounds, and homelives are respected and valued in the classroom.
When you’re working to make your classroom language more inclusive, it can be helpful to have alternative wording at the ready. To avoid using boys and girls or ladies and gentlemen, you might try . . .
- Kindergarteners (or Second Graders or Fourth Graders)
- Scholars
- Readers
- Mathematicians
- Scientists
- Class
To avoid referring to the adults who are raising your students only as mom and dad, you might try . . .
- Grown-Ups
- Guardian
- Your adult(s)
- Who-takes-care-of-you-at-home
- Raisin’ (the person “raising” a child)
The ways in which we call on students can also perpetuate heteronormativity, whether we call on them individually to answer questions and share their opinions or we call on them collectively to engage in lessons. To be more inclusive when calling on students, try…
- pulling sticks to have students respond but give them the option to “pass” if they do not want to answer.
- having your students turn-and-talk, listening in to what they have to say, and then calling on students to share with the whole group that you know have a strong response to the question.
- giving more wait time to allow all students to process the question. Over time, you'll notice more students feeling comfortable raising their hands to participate.
Disruptive Tinkering When Grouping Students and Assigning Seats
Your decisions regarding where students sit in your classroom directly impact who they work with during both whole-group instruction and independent practice—though they may have more flexibility in choosing partners for independent tasks. Seating arrangements may seem routine, but they can either reinforce or interrupt gender norms and assumptions. When you want to give students spots on the carpet or seats at tables or desks, try considering. . .
- student readiness levels
- student personalities
- student work styles
- student choice
When you need to organize the class into groups, try grouping by . . .
- alphabetical order (dividing into equal groups)
- offering a choice between two favorite things (Admittedly, this takes a little thinking ahead of time: you’ll need to ensure that the favorite things don’t play into binary gender norms and that the class will be more or less equally divided about their favorites.)
- birthday months
- clothing color
- student interests
- student achievement on a particular skill or strategy (heterogeneously grouped)
- student choice
These groupings work for any situation when you need to organize students into groups, large or small—including when it’s time to line up for a whole-class bathroom break. While it may feel more efficient to separate students into ‘boy’ and ‘girl’ lines for bathroom breaks when bathrooms are gendered, doing so reinforces the gender binary and can exclude non-binary and gender-expansive students. By moving away from gendered separations, we foster inclusivity and send the message that all identities—regardless of gender—are safe and valued at school.
Disruptive Tinkering in the Curriculum We Use
If you are required to use only specific, mandated curricular resources, or if there are areas where you are still looking for more inclusive resources, you can make use of disruptive tinkering. For example, presenting gender as a social construct and interrupting gender binaries is one way to employ disruptive tinkering in the elementary classroom. You might . . .
- introduce lessons and conversations about gender and gender norms and expectations even when texts do not include LGBTQ+ characters. By asking critical questions about identity, characteristics, and representation, teachers can help students examine how gender is portrayed and normalized.
- challenge the archetypical family structures often presented in the curriculum as a “standard” by asking critical questions. For example, asking, “Are all families like this one?” or “What are other ways that families could look?”
- reword a math word problem to be more inclusive of all identities. For instance, instead of stating, “David and his mom went to the grocery store and bought 48 popsicles,” you could say, “David and his two moms went to the grocery store…” Or, rather than asking, “How many popsicles did Ally’s brother buy for his birthday party” you might ask, “How many popsicles did Ally’s sibling buy for their birthday party.” Both of these examples demonstrate disruptive tinkering in action and illustrate how small shifts can move classrooms toward greater inclusivity.
Disruptive tinkering reminds us that creating safer and more inclusive classrooms doesn’t always require massive changes—sometimes, it starts with small and intentional shifts. By questioning the norms we’ve inherited and making space for all identities—especially those that have been historically marginalized—we move closer to classrooms where every student feels seen, respected, and affirmed.
Scott Sundstrom (he/him/his) is a school district curriculum specialist and adjunct professor. He has been an elementary classroom teacher, college instructor, university supervisor, and national literacy consultant. He holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Minnesota. His work centers on supporting classroom teachers in creating safer and more inclusive classrooms for all students.
