Don’t be gender specific when it comes to toys

When it comes to buying your children, or other people’s children toys, don’t be gender specific. There is no reason in this day and age that people should feel obliged to buy boys toys and girls toys. When it comes down to it a child should be able to play with whatever takes their fancy and it’s not our job to decide that for them if they can clearly show us or articulate the type of things they want to play with.

Boys toys have always been cars and action figures and things like that, whereas girls toys have always been dolls and dresses and everything pink etc. This needn’t be the case at all. Even from an early age children can have problems with their gender and they can also feel obliged to play with certain toys because their parents feel they need to encourage them, or they see that their friends are playing with them; it’s important to note that it might not be what they want at all.

It’s not easy to choose of course, especially if you’ve only got one child or more than one of the same sex. When you have a girl and a boy it’s much easier to buy what are considered to be boys toys and those that are associated with girls and allow your children to mix it up a bit and play how they like. Perhaps one alternative would be to allow your children to choose toys of their own at play groups and preschools, and you can pay attention to what they like the most.

There is nothing wrong

There is nothing wrong with your daughter if she prefers to pay with boys toys and there is nothing wrong with your son if he prefers girls’. What is important is that they are happy with what they’re playing with and they are not discouraged from any gender specific toy they choose to play with. Discouraging your child from playing with a particular toy because it makes you uncomfortable is a mistake and one that you should quickly try to overcome.

Many toys are widely considered to be unisex, but as a nation we still need to work on our attitudes to boys toys and girls toys and stop gendering them. The way we play as a child is important, and children learn more about life and the world through play; we need to make this play as fulfilling and as happy as we can.