Before I had kids, I thought that each
child was an individual, and didn't believe much in gender
stereotypes in children. Little boys ran and jumped a lot because
that's the kind of games they were taught. Little girls played with
dolls because that was the kind of toys they were given. I thought
that if all kids, regardless of gender, were exposed to the same
things, they would have the same tendencies. Then I spent some time in
the real world of kids and figured out that I was wrong. Possibly
there were some differences between boys and girls. From time to time, I'm going to share
some of my experiences that led me to this conclusion. However, so as
to not bias you, I'm going to let you guess, who are the boys in the
stories and who are the girls. Today's Story I was working with a new person at work and he invited us over for dinner. He wanted me to meet his wife and little girl, Lily, who was the same age as Wally at the time. They were both just under two years old. Wally and Lily hit it off, and we parents had a good time watching as they toddled around with each other. Coincidentally, both Wally and Lilly were attached to a stuffed animal at the time that they carried everywhere. However, the way they carried them was quite different. One of them, carried it by the arm, swung it around, and drug it on the ground. The other one cuddled it in their arms and cooed quietly to it. You choose. Which was the boy and which was the girl?Disclaimer: Of course, we all know that
each person is a unique individual with a special set of traits that
makes them who they are. No one is “all boy” just as no one is
“all girl.” Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Boys vs. Girls--The Stuffed Animals
Before I had kids, I thought that each
child was an individual, and didn't believe much in gender
stereotypes in children. Little boys ran and jumped a lot because
that's the kind of games they were taught. Little girls played with
dolls because that was the kind of toys they were given. I thought
that if all kids, regardless of gender, were exposed to the same
things, they would have the same tendencies. Then I spent some time in
the real world of kids and figured out that I was wrong. Possibly
there were some differences between boys and girls. From time to time, I'm going to share
some of my experiences that led me to this conclusion. However, so as
to not bias you, I'm going to let you guess, who are the boys in the
stories and who are the girls. Today's Story I was working with a new person at work and he invited us over for dinner. He wanted me to meet his wife and little girl, Lily, who was the same age as Wally at the time. They were both just under two years old. Wally and Lily hit it off, and we parents had a good time watching as they toddled around with each other. Coincidentally, both Wally and Lilly were attached to a stuffed animal at the time that they carried everywhere. However, the way they carried them was quite different. One of them, carried it by the arm, swung it around, and drug it on the ground. The other one cuddled it in their arms and cooed quietly to it. You choose. Which was the boy and which was the girl?Disclaimer: Of course, we all know that
each person is a unique individual with a special set of traits that
makes them who they are. No one is “all boy” just as no one is
“all girl.” 
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My friend has 18-month old twins, a boy and a girl. She says she used to think much the same as you, but has completely changed after watching them grow up. The boy gets into everything and finds the most dangerous thing in every room to get into, whereas the girl is much quieter and gentler.
ReplyDeleteI grew up with three sisters and no brothers, so I really didn't understand the boy-girl thing until I had my own boys. Then sometimes, Ward would have to explain them to me.
DeleteI too thought that as long as you left the children to play with whatever toy they wanted they wouldn't be different when little. My boys had dolls and trucks but I quickly learned they may play with the same toys the girls did, but in a whole different way.
ReplyDeleteI think that's the interesting part--that they play with the same things, but in a whole different way.
DeleteFunny that you said it! Just today I was watching my toddler playing with a little girl, and they were playing with the little toy Ernie from Sesame Street. They were both putting to bed but you could immediately see the difference and who is who at how they were doing it!
ReplyDeleteI think we're programmed from birth to be a certain way. That doesn't mean that we can't learn other ways, but we definitely have natural tendencies to be a certain way. This applies to us individually and to us as gender groups.
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