Here’s the thing: queer people are not optional. We don’t appear at a certain time or place in life. We’re always here. If you mean to teach kids about the world, you have to teach them about queer people in the same way that you have to teach kids that people have different religions than you, or different hobbies, or different diets. Otherwise, you’re not protecting kids. You’re giving them false information, which is confusing at best, and damaging at worse.