Today playing becomes a cultural manifesto. what do i mean by that? Well the things we play with define what is important to us as a society.We make our world what it is, and we become the people who live in it. You as parents are role models for your kids so you have the responsibility to display a behavior that respects and enables gender quality. You also have responsability to listen to them and give them the choice of playing together and not alone.
And I tried to remember what I used to play with when I was young. This is me when I was 5 years old..
and back in this period my first toy was a Barbie, it was brought to me by our relatives that moved to Canada during the Communist Regime and it was the most exotic toy in our neighborhood at the time. I remember how fascinated I was initially by this beautiful barbie and all the glamour of her clothes and accessories but after a while I got bored with that and I decided to give my Barbie a personal touch. My grand-mother was a taylor and I start using all the rests of her fabrics to make my doll look more like the younger girls around me.
Our father used to play also and his lego toys looked somehow like this. Both my brother and I were fascinated by his tools shop and were spending a lot time there. All my girl friends were playing only with dolls and at the time I was wondering if it’s normal for me to be so interested in all these other “toys” ?
Although the Transformers might be very appealing for little boys they are not very inviting for little girls
More and more initiatives like the Goldie box try to create a bridge between girls and boys toys and allow children to get more interested in science and programming in an interactive way
Sweedish toys manufacturers launched a whole line of gender neutral toys
We know toys and games are extremely important for the way children perceive themselves and the others and we want to give them the choice. A choice of being exposed to diversity, of having fun together, of learning together with their peers and parents, of creating their own toys and express their personality.