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Sparkle (2)
Still need ideas for family, friends, teachers, coworkers, bloggers, zombie lovers, special needs kids, app addicts, photographers, style mavens, or foodies? We've got you covered and then some with our gift guides, chosen by BlogHer staff, contributing editors and members. We wouldn't steer you wrong.
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When shopping for my kids this year, I was amazed at the kids' aisles of toys. It's the same thing. Boys' toys are all about building, creating, battling, teaching assertiveness and using intelligence. The girls' toys are all about teaching them nurturing and homemaking, beauty and vanity. And I am just appalled by these toys and the meanings behind them.
A lot of people have been writing back to me and telling me that mothers have a greater influence over their kids than toys and media images; I disagree. Your one voice is drowned out by the multitude of voices that define them in terms of toys and images that portray their gender in the public spaces in which they spend most of their time. These voices are louder, bolder, and are followed by children's boisterous, squealing laughter, regaling in youth and fun.
When my son was born, I spent all my time buying him gifts geared towards his intelligence and preparing him for life and success. I spent a lot of my time at Discovery Channel stores, and now that my daughter is here, I am shopping with the same mindset. I want her to have all the opportunities that her brother has, the same kind of toys, the same kind of training, because when we have kids, that is in essence what we are doing -- we are training them to do well in the society that will be theirs. I want my daughter to be just as prepared as and on equal footing with the boys that surround her. Buying presents for her is very time-consuming because the girls' pink aisles at toy stores do not offer many choices for girls -- at least, they don't offer the same choices that boys get in their solid blue, green and red aisles.
This year, I found myself in a daze, overwhelmed with pink babies that talk and poop and vanity tables that will teach her to revel in her beauty, but nothing that will guide her towards utilizing her natural potential as a thinker, a shaker, a creator of buildings and worlds of her imagination. I left the stores and returned to my computer, logged on to DiscoveryChannel.com and discovered a world of toys that engendered creativity and favored brains over beauty, especially in the sciences.
Here is a list of toys that will foster personal growth, curiosity, intelligence, and creativity you can share with your favorite girls this Christmas. These toys are mostly gender-neutral and appropriate for all kids, no matter their age group. Although the site separates toys based on gender and age, I found that the same list of toys were intended for both boys and girls. The toys are for everyone -- as they should be since they all function to foster creativity and ingenuity in children. Even if you like giving your girls the girly fru-fru stuff, throw in one of these and challenge her. These are the kinds of gifts that all kids will benefit from and have fun with. Every item on this list is suitable for kids ages 4-12, so let's teach our daughters to explore, discover, think, and challenge themselves early on.
Spark Talking Telescope -- Your little girl will be a microbiologist and study real life specimens under the 5x microscope that talks to her and identifies various objects. There is also a "parent's guide" with which to help her use this learning toy to its maximum potential.
Discovery Send Away Storybook Publisher -- Encourage your little girl towards assuming the role of a published author. This includes a publishing kit with which your child can write a series of short stories, or drawings for the little ones, and publish them. Share her accomplishment as a creator with friends and family, fostering pride and increasing her self-esteem.
Interactive Globe -- Give her an interactive globe that will enable her to virtually travel the expanse of the world and absorb facts about countries that will be useful for her in school and in the
