The difference between girls and boys
Ever noticed how the topic on the difference between girls and boys can quickly be agreed upon the idea that they are in fact different? But have you ever realized the biggest difference between boys and girls is in the way we raise them, even from the earliest stages?
Think with me for a second:
A fire engine rushes past your house.
Whom do you call to the window to see it? Your daughter, or your son?
You drive past a wedding party.
Whose attention do you call to it? Your daughter’s, or your son’s?
Out walking with your children, you pass a woman with a baby.
With whom do you share you “Aww’s” with? Your daughter, or your son?
You drive past a building under construction.
To whom do you point out the cranes, trucks and workers to? Your son, or your daughter?
We are all to blame for creating the stereotypes for our daughters. It’s the world we live in. We expect boys and girls to behave differently; therefore, we treat them differently.
I have met some very strong-willed women in my life who agree up and down that Barbie is a bimbo and we should be raising our daughters to be independent and strong yet even they’ve practiced “oooing” and “awwing” over babies with their daughters. Even I found myself in a bitter argument with my daughter about choosing a dress for her 5th grade graduation recently. “But you must wear a dress, it’s an important occasion” I told her. And while I was against anything strapless or sleazy for a ten year old (yes, it’s out there), we ended up buying a dress she hated, I loved it and reminded me of the cute little dresses I would buy her from Gymboree when she was three. Hello, even I was victimizing my own daughter to be society’s nice (someone slap me!) and wear the right thing. Needless to say I’ve retracted my demand to wear the dress and will be offering my daughter her own choice of what to wear to the event.
By consciously not over influencing our daughters to be different than boys from an early age will help in the long term. I encourage you the next time you find yourself offering words of difference between girls and boys to stop and rethink. The simplest change could prove positive in the future.
Think with me for a second:
A fire engine rushes past your house.
Whom do you call to the window to see it? Your daughter, or your son?
You drive past a wedding party.
Whose attention do you call to it? Your daughter’s, or your son’s?
Out walking with your children, you pass a woman with a baby.
With whom do you share you “Aww’s” with? Your daughter, or your son?
You drive past a building under construction.
To whom do you point out the cranes, trucks and workers to? Your son, or your daughter?
We are all to blame for creating the stereotypes for our daughters. It’s the world we live in. We expect boys and girls to behave differently; therefore, we treat them differently.
I have met some very strong-willed women in my life who agree up and down that Barbie is a bimbo and we should be raising our daughters to be independent and strong yet even they’ve practiced “oooing” and “awwing” over babies with their daughters. Even I found myself in a bitter argument with my daughter about choosing a dress for her 5th grade graduation recently. “But you must wear a dress, it’s an important occasion” I told her. And while I was against anything strapless or sleazy for a ten year old (yes, it’s out there), we ended up buying a dress she hated, I loved it and reminded me of the cute little dresses I would buy her from Gymboree when she was three. Hello, even I was victimizing my own daughter to be society’s nice (someone slap me!) and wear the right thing. Needless to say I’ve retracted my demand to wear the dress and will be offering my daughter her own choice of what to wear to the event.
By consciously not over influencing our daughters to be different than boys from an early age will help in the long term. I encourage you the next time you find yourself offering words of difference between girls and boys to stop and rethink. The simplest change could prove positive in the future.
posted by Head Redhead at 2:00 PM
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