I have often thought about the topic of sexualization of
early childhood, perhaps because I was exposed to many shocking comments or
behaviors. It is shocking to read
some of the scenarios, but when I think back to my childhood I think that all
those things did happen. The
biggest thing that I have noticed over the years is what girls are wearing and
toys that children are playing with.
In the article there was a fourth grade girl writing a love letter,
though I do not think this is untypical, I believe that her comments were
untypical (even though they were not all shared). I can remember having “boyfriends” in Elementary school but
there was nothing sexual about it, I was still wearing stretch pants in the 5th
grade and would have cried if I had to wear something uncomfortable (like a
short skirt). Girls dress so
proactive to me now a days, I want to cover them up. But it comes from the messages they are receiving from the
media (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009). I thought about all the media messages
that we receive even as an adult. I thought about how when you get to be in
your upper twenties or thirties that people expect you to get married, even
close friends have said to me “when are you getting married?” And I always respond, “not until I am
sure.” There is this expectation
to get married and have babies and not I try and filter through if it really is
something that I want or if I am feeling just the societal pressure (but I am
sure that I do want all of this, just not as fast as some people go after it). So
of course young girls feel they need to live up to something because it is
ingrained in our culture to always be wanting for the perfect body/clothing/boyfriend/relationship/job,
etc.
I have so many examples…
- When I was in high school I worked at an after school
program. Each day we ate lunch
with our students and a 4th grade girl was going on diet because she
felt fat and that no one would like her that way.
- A student of mine started to sing “All the single ladies”
and then would do a dance and would shake her booty (she would say “I am
shaking my booty). My cheerleading
in high school was not this proactive and she is only 5.
- I also have a student who is so attracted to violence,
which he wants to act out. He is
five and has Autism, he has a very difficult time filtering though what is
expected vs. unexpected. His
father allows him to watch adult movies, movies that are PG-13 or R. He is only
five. His mother has talked with
his father about this and he doesn’t see the problem, even with the example of
him acting out in the classroom.
He is not intentionally trying to hurt someone but he ends up punching a
teacher or a student and then will say it was in the movie.
I can see the negative impact on children right in front of
me. I can see the skewed views of
expectations vs. reality. Children
think that one thing is okay and then being told that it isn’t. For the little girl singing the song
and doing the booty dance. I
showed her a cheer that was appropriate to do at school. Then I got her to make up her own dance
to a song in our classroom, and no, in her own dance she did not do a booty
dance. We talked about the words
in her song and I said that is wasn’t appropriate for school. As for the little boy and violence, his
mom talks with me about it and has handled the situation by providing his
father with examples. She says
that it might take him awhile to understand.
As the school year is about to start up, I think that I will
pay close attention to where a child may have gotten something. I feel very out of the loop, in regards
to toys and children’s TV shows. I
think that I need to take the time to familiarize myself so that I can react
more appropriately to my students.
Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf
It is unfortunate that society is taking negative aspects and glorifying and making them appealing to young people in terms of clothing, body size and so forth. I really appreciate the points you made in your blog. I am especially glad that you have decided to place a focus on how children thoughts and action originated for some children it confusing when their parents thinks it’s okay and the teacher doesn’t. Here is another good example of why it is important for parents and teachers to have good partnership. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about how society is sending such strong messages about sexuality through clothing. I cannot go out in public without seeing young girls dressed as much older women. It makes me sad that young girls are believing that they must meet a standard. Clothing has become a huge way media and society send messages about sexuality and belonging! Even the outfits of some of my kindergarten students surprise me from girls dressing much older to boy wearing shirts like "Call for a good time" "Party in my crib" and much more!
ReplyDeleteI'm really worried for the children of today. I feel like society will hit a bump and realize how disgustingly sexual everything is and fashion will start to cover the body and people will start to respect themselves more than they do today. I pray that this happens because I'm terrified for the future children that I want to have of my own and the world that they will grow up in. I don't know what else to do but educate the children in my care and show them the proper way to be and act. There need to be laws that restrict the provocative nature of our society (beyond the sleeves that cover the front of the magazines in the grocery store).
ReplyDeleteCaitlyn
It is scary how far media will go in order to get ratings or sell a "hot product", however, our children are the ones who are being impacted by it and mostly in a negative manner. It bothers me to see girls dressing like they are my age, talking about relationships when school should be the main focus. Society thinks that all of these things are okay, but it is a shame that children are growing up entirely too fast.
ReplyDelete