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I still remember my child carer days. When planning for a child. A boy. Setting up the home corner for his interests. 

It was nice to see him engage with the dolls and hold them.

I am not a mum of boys, at all. But girls.  But I have noticed while gender titles are becoming more morphed, that we do tend to give girls the dolls to care for.

I feel we expect a lot of males, to be caring and to be nurturing when they’re often not given a lot of opportunities to try or to feel this is really apart of their role as a male.

A practiced skill growing up.

That it can be expected by an older male figure, even female that the young boy be rough-housing or be called a “girl” if playing with dolls or blankets and doll. 

In a modern era where men and women can have careers. Men and women can be at home with the children.

Some dads are brilliant with the kids and the best at running around for the after school activities.

But what opportunities as kids are males given to feel that these play opportunities are open to them? And not just on Tuesday/Thursday daycare days with the homecorner.

But as an integral part of their world. Open to them at school, at home, at the grandparents.

Boys Don’t Cry!

Domestic violence, which is an extreme topic but relevant to our society. Is this perhaps contributed by a lack of learning, growing up in the area of nurturing another human being. For boys. Encouraged more to be macho and to turn up the nose at dolls and girly things. To be tough on the footy field. To not cry.

Its certainly ok for the boys to be physical as kids, even encouraged to be, rather then expected to just turn into nurturing, connected partners and parents.

At  high school there is generally the task of taking home “a baby doll” to look after for three days. But in the scheme of things it’s not really enough.

Could more activities be created? More encouragement to be a nurturing human being from a young age for the boys?

For sure, girls can reach for the girly things, instinctively  alot of the time and boys go for the soccer field at lunch times. It’s their interests.

I do feel that boys could be assisted more, though with being able to be caring. Lessons on shared roles.

It is nice when a big brother is protective of his baby sister.

When a boy puts the baby doll to bed in the home corner at daycare.

I just think there could be more done in the way we talk to our young ones. The way in which we lead.

Old-school ways with the young boy being called a sissy for playing nicely with the girls and brushing their hair. 

“What are you doing playing with the dolls?”

These statements are not OK. Hopefully phasing out.

Perhaps there could be more in the school curriculum for boys to have caring roles. A lot of it is instinctive to be more boisterous and in stronger physical strength but alot is learned behaviour. Messages given, over and over. To the boys.

Then again the boy and girl titles are becoming debatable in this day and age. Times are changing there, too.

Living as authentic-self.

Do you give you boys dolls to play with? Tell us in the comments below.

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  • Growing up in the 80s my brother and I played with each other’s toys on a daily basis! Inside we would play barbies together (his play was a lot more sinister than mine) and outside we would play trucks, sticks would become swords and bows and arrows!
    Now I have children of my own and guess what? It’s the exact same thing! My son owns a doll and unicorn, my daughter owns cars and trucks. I cross the genders when it comes to clothing for both of them!
    I honestly don’t think there is a gender divide, there hasn’t been for a very long time. But every once in a while ONE person decides to try bring it up.
    If boys want to like cars and not dolls that’s cool. Same goes for girls. If girls are into pretty dresses, hair, make up and everything “girly” that’s cool to. Same for boys!
    If we stop making a big deal about this the imaginary gender specific clothing and toys will just disappear

    Reply

  • We are expecting our 2nd baby, another boy in December.
    Our current boy is just about to turn 2, and I am going to be getting him a baby doll for his birthday so he has his “own baby” and I’m hoping it will teach him a little before the baby comes.
    I don’t think there is anything wrong with boys playing with Dolls and I think its a good opportunity to learn.
    When Mummy is changing the actual babies bum, he can change his baby dolls bum etc.

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  • Over 30 years of fostering children I let them play with whatever toys they liked. We had one little boy who carried around a baby doll that he loved dearly. Attitudes are changing for the better.

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  • open to all kids toys… be it cars , balls, dolls or superheroes.

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  • I tried giving my son baby dolls to play with before I had my daughter. He used them more like balls lol

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  • Boys should be able to choose if they wish to play with dolls or cars, and same for the girls. Let them make their own decisions.

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  • My son absolutely plays with whatever he wants to play with. He love playing with his sister with the dollhouse and dolls but really if he had his way he’d only ever play with Lego.

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  • I let my son play with whatever he likes to play with, because its all learning and growing. He sometimes plays with a dolls house, somedays its mud, some days cars and some days in his play kitchen. I love that he can explore and choose what he wants to play with, not what society tells him he should be interested in

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  • Although my little fella has a stroller (it has wheels!) when I’ve introduced dolls into the equation they get short shift….. he isn’t 2 yet but tosses them or determinedly plonks them in a corner and I get the stink eye. He just loves his cars. I definitely don’t think playing and caring for a doll will make him more caring….he is so gentle with littler kids and swoons over babies, patting them ever so softly. He is who he is without me gender directing him whether with cars or dolls.

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  • Absolutely, just like my girls loved playing with trucks and cars! Experiencing all toys for both genders is fun and interactive for kids.

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  • Definitely do and he couldn’t be happier ????

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  • I think boys enjoy the imaginative play with dolls just as much as they do their cars and trucks. Girls too enjoy playing with the cars and trucks. In this day and age both boys and girls can grow up knowing there is nothing to stop either from branching into careers that have been gender specific in the past. Just time that some adults accepted that!

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  • My daughter wasn’t too keen on playing with dolls so we gave them away.

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  • My son isn’t interested in dolls but is obsessed with cleaning and has his own vacuum

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  • My 3yr old Loves playing with my Daughters doll, and I never stopped him from doing so, he holds her, looked at her and sings that song “Chubby cheeks , dimple chin” and that is so fun to watch him. There is nothing wrong in boys holding dolls, there are going to be dads one day and will hold their little girls so would we stop them from doing it??????? No Its totally normal and human.

    Reply

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