Avoiding gender stereotypes in parenting

How and why we can avoid gender stereotypes in parenting.

A store for children offers a wide range of clothes and toys to play with. The section for girls is filled with pink colorful clothes, kitchen sets, and dolls. The boy’s section is filled with basic color clothes, building blocks, and cars.

Most of us are guilty of buying blue for a boy and pink for a girl. What we don't realize is that we are unconsciously assigning them gender roles since birth.

But what’s the harm in that?

Let’s start by understanding the difference between gender and sex. Sex refers to the biological aspect of a human, while gender is what society assigns to a human being.
The way we bring up a child will affect the mindset of a child throughout their life. If you notice most boy clothes have words like "Strong and bold" written and girls have "Beautiful and calm".

“A child will interpret this as: that because of a certain gender they are supposed to behave in a certain way. Essentially we put them into a box.”

Putting children in boxes since birth sounds bad. How can I avoid this?

1. Start with the basics- The first thing we think of when a child is born is room color and clothes. Start by exploring all colors. Orange, white, green are examples of gender-neutral colors.

2. Toys- Toys play a huge role in shaping a child's personality. The reason why most girls show high emotional quotient is because they grow up playing with dolls. What it does is teach them empathy and kindness. When a boy is given building blocks, he learns to see things in a structured way. What if all genders are given all toys. That way children become critical thinkers who can communicate in an empathetic manner.

3. Movies and books- This plays a huge role as to how a child sees the world. If we critically analyze most fairy tales promote damsel in distress mindset. That doesn't mean we stop reading those books to children, instead, encourage them to question and come up with an alternate ending to books and movies. If you see a boy being shut down and asked not to cry, talk to your child about it. How does it make them feel?

4. Do not try to erase gender- Gender neutrality doesn't mean erasing gender overall. Instead, it focuses on treating gender as a fluid identity instead of putting children in gender rigid boxes. Use gender-neutral parenting to help children identify stereotypes around them.

5. Help them express themselves- Often boys are asked to suppress their tears and girls to speak softly or to sit in a certain way. Body movement, voice, and tears and ways to express what a child is feeling. Create a safe space and help them express themselves.

6. Encourage all genders to play together- Encourage all children to communicate with each other. Let children play with each other and understand each other better.

7. Role models- A child's ambition are largely shaped by role models they see. Introduce them to teachers, chefs, crickets, lawyers, dancers, etc. of all genders.

8. Promote equality- Lastly, a child does what they see. As parents play an equal role in your child. Cook together, work together and communicate at an equal level to set an example of what gender equality looks like.

Remember, gender-neutral upbringing empowers kids to be confident in their choices and expression. It makes them openminded individuals who can have effective conversations to fight gender stereotypes and biases as they grow up. Let's raise children who are accepting and empathetic in this world.