Posts Tagged ‘gender’

Dancing Is For Boys

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011

My oldest son is turning into quite the hoofer.  He’s no Gene Kelly, yet, but at only nine years old, I wouldn’t expect him to be.  If he keeps at it, however — and he certainly seems to have the motivation to do so — by the time he graduates from high school he very well could be up there with the likes of Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, The Nicholas Brothers, Sandman Sims, and so on.  He’s always tapping his toes and practicing his dances.

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Fishes and Lizards and Snakes, Oh My!

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

Kids like critters.  Even the ones that say they don’t like them or who are scared of them are generally fascinated by them, if they can view them from an appropriate distance.  So, of course, they make for great lessons — lessons the students won’t soon forget.  After a day with non-human guests in the classroom, kids will rush home to breathlessly tell their parents that a lizard’s tail can grow back or that snakes lay eggs like a chicken.  So why would anyone get upset about a lesson featuring geckos and clownfish?

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Teaching Gender Stereotypes

Saturday, November 20th, 2010

I try hard to avoid gender stereotypes with my kids.  I know full well that my career over the last 30 years as a computer programmer was made possible by a woman.  I also know that one the most hardcore overland adventurers I know is a woman.  There seem to be a lot more male chefs on TV than women.  And my daughter continually amazes me with her Herculean strength, even as my son impresses me with his empathy.  And yet, it seems, children pick up on stereotypes as early as preschool even from the most innocent comments.  Yes, it turns out that even “Good morning, boys and girls” is enough to induce gender awareness in preschoolers.

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Moms and the Gay Kid

Friday, November 5th, 2010

There aren’t too many Halloween costumes I would forbid my kids from choosing.  The more horrific costumes and characters are out, as are overtly sexual ones.  Other than that, however, pretty much anything goes.  I also have no problem with the kids crossing gender lines, if they so desire.  My youngest loves putting on his older sister’s outgrown princess costumes and ballet skirts.  I don’t have any problem with that, nor do a lot of other parents — including one who went so far as to write a book on the subject.

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The Changing Face of Childhood Riddles

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010

Let’s face it — children love riddles.  No matter how corny or silly — in fact, perhaps, the sillier, the better — they can’t seem to get enough.  And they don’t have to be new, either.  Consider these classics:

A plane crashes exactly on the border of the United States and Canada.  In which country would the survivors be buried?

A man sees an acquaintance standing on a corner with a dog.  He asks the friend if his dog bites; the friend says no but when the man tries to pet the dog, he gets bitten.  Still, the acquaintance told the truth — how is that possible?

A boy and his father were involved in a terrible automobile accident.  The father was killed instantly and the boy was rushed to the hospital and brought into the operating room where the head surgeon was waiting.  The doctor took one look at the child and declared “I cannot operate on this boy for he is my son!”  How can that be?

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