Hey, Ladies! Monday's lecture on heteronormativity reminded me of a story I wanted to share with you. I also found something just as relevant earlier today. Enjoy!
http://www.myprincessboy.com/index.asp
(Watch the attached stories/interviews with the child and his mother if you have time-- the book came as a result of their experiences.)
Also...
http://jezebel.com/#!5791323/boys-nailpolish-starts-non+debate
-Maddie Byrne
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How wonderful! I've worked with preschoolers for a little over three years now, and I think this is a great book! It's hard for young children to understand complex issues such as gender identity. They see things and put them in boy/girl categories:
ReplyDeleteBoys - Star Wars, trucks, super heroes, blue, etc.
Girls - Princesses, mermaids, dresses, pink, etc.
There is this one boy in particular that I worked with. He was the cutest little boy EVER and he LOVED "girl" things. Every single day he would fight the girls for this pink dress. He'd put on his high heels, grab his purse, and take care of his baby doll...EVERY day! When i asked him what his favorite things were, he'd say things like mermaids, sparkles, ponies, etc.
Now and then a kid would make a comment and say "that's for girls" - but I would always make a point to correct them ("No, it's okay if boys like those things too"). After a while, some of the more "masculine" boys (the ones that usually got in trouble for fighting) would put on a dress and wear high heels with him! Which made me happy =] So really, as long as you make it a point to say, no..it's okay..the kids usually go with it.
However, the teachers I worked with...weren't very...educated (it was a day care that predominantly consisted of "at risk" children). They would make remarks sometimes, such as, "I hope he grows out of it soon". He was also a very emotional boy - he cried A LOT. And there was a girl or two that would cry just as much as him. However, they definitely treated the boy different. I've seen teachers get in his face and yell at him for crying, or tell him to go sit in his cubby and ignore him all together. It was so sad. I'd always go over and have a talk with him calmly about whatever the issue was, and then he'd be fine and happy again! But the teachers saw that as "coddling" him, and asked me to stay away from him whenever he cried so he could learn that it's not okay to cry. So usually I'd sneak over and talk to him anyway when they weren't looking, or talk with him after they "dealt" with him. Poor guy... made me so sad! =[
Whenever his mom came in to pick him up, he'd be wearing the princess dress. She never made any negative remarks or anything, but she did mention once that the dad didn't like the "dress thing". But that's all that was ever said.
Anyway, I am TOTALLY for this book! I think instilling acceptance of others at an early age is genius. I want to buy this book for the preschools I work at now. Thanks for sharing!
- clare powell
What a great book! After watching the video of the princess boy I can understand how important acceptance is at a young age. As Clare mentioned, a lot of certain things are associated with girls and boys. When most think of little boys they think of getting dirty, cowboys and indians, trucks, legos, guns etc. For girls, most people associate the color pink, glitter, dresses, princesses, and barbies with them. I think this book is a great way to spread the word of accepting the difference in what boys and girls choose to like and follow. The princess boy is absolutely adorable and I think it's truly amazing how accepting both his mother and father are of his girly likings. I know my dad would NOT accept my little brother choosing to dress like a girl. However, I do think nowadays things are changing and people need to be more accepting of these issues. My Princess Boy is a nonfiction picture book about acceptance. It tells the tale of a 4-year-old boy who happily expresses his authentic self by enjoying "traditional girl" things like jewelry, sparkles or anything pink. It is designed to start and continue a dialogue about unconditional friendship and teaches children -- and adults -- how to accept and support children for who they are and how they wish to look. What a great idea! The videos of the princess boy made me happy and laugh. He had so much energy and was happy to express himself while even wearing pink. How daring! I know a lot of the time little boys grow out of things like that so who knows if he will end up being gay or not. I think it's cute that he's so confident while even being mad fun of at school. His mom mentioned that when her son gets made fun of he responds to the people at school, "You are not my friend." I am proud that his parents have taught him how to react to those certain situations. Like Clare mentioned, I am also totally for this book and think that acceptance of others at an early age is a great idea. TEAM PRINCESS BOY!
ReplyDelete-Olivia Arns <3
http://www.myprincessboy.com/index.asp
This is adorable. I would love to read this book, I have never heard of it before. I completely agree with the whole acceptance idea. People deserve to express their own ideas and to share their creativity with anyone they please. I do understand where the mom was coming from though. I think I would initially be a little uncomfortable with my boy wearing dresses at first, however I know that if he would want to change or follow trends of the other boys his age, he would. I feel like when parents restrict their child from doing certain things, or acting certain ways, the child will grow up to not accept his/herself and be more confused. The ideas behind self perception and societies perception are confused alot amongst children these days.
ReplyDelete-Danielle Brown