Pink for a Girl, Blue for a Boy Comprehension Questions PDF

Pink for a Girl, Blue for a Boy text *Activity 2: Comprehension Questions* 1. llustrate to what extent gender still seems to matter today and what the consequences of these so-called "unspoken assumptions" are. 2. *Fill in the chart with the missing information. (Use a separate workshee...

Pink for a Girl, Blue for a Boy text *Activity 2: Comprehension Questions* 1. llustrate to what extent gender still seems to matter today and what the consequences of these so-called "unspoken assumptions" are. 2. *Fill in the chart with the missing information. (Use a separate worksheet*A screenshot of a computer 3. *Why did the Swedish parents decide to raise their child gender-neutral?* *Opposed to a gender-specific style of upbringing, denouncing it as both restrictive and obsolete, the Swedish parents wanted their child to grow up more freely and be able to have more opportunities in life. In other words, they rejected the idea of putting their baby into a traditional gender-specific box since they considered these labels to be cruel and unfair, hindering their child from exploiting its full potential.* 4. *Why have Kathy Witterick and David Stocker decided to raise their children gender-neutral?* *Kathy Witterick and David Stocker have decided not to disclose the sex of their baby (Storm) to stress the importance of freedom and choice in a world with gender roles setting boundaries for males and females, hoping that our society will become more progressive as regards raising children in a gender-neutral fashion. Indeed, the parents are striving to dismantle the gender-conforming expectations imposed by society so as to give children more freedom when forming their own personality. At the same time, they are hoping to spark discussions about broader issues including gender-based bullying.* 5. *How did the public react to gender-neutral upbringing?* *In Canada, the home of Kathy Witterick and Davis Stocker was besieged by news outlets after their decision to raise Storm in a gender-neutral way. Moreover, they received abusive letters through the mail and some passers-by even shouted insults from cars. In the UK, when Beck Laxton decided against revealing the gender of her child, Sasha, to her motherand-toddler group, she was also similarly derided and unjustly branded as crazy for not knowing whether her baby was a boy or a girl. However, columnist Heather Mallicjk (Toronto, Canada) showed support because children can excel as "intellectual adventurers." In fact, she justifies her stance by claiming that they will eventually conform to social norms and become blue-collar workers, besides voting for the Conservative party. She also suggests that gender-neutral children will go through a rebellious teenage phase and oppose their parents' lax parenting style either way at some point, before indefinitely conforming to social norms.* 6. How do children react to boys being raised as gender-neutral children? There have been mixed reactions to boys being raised as gender-neutral. Jazz, who prefers to wear dresses and whose favorite color is pink, has been ridiculed for his unconventional choices. However, a number of friends still decided to go to his fairy-themed birthday party*.* 7. What criticism is leveled at parents who raise their children in a gender-neutral manner? Provide specific examples*.* Catherine Porter asserts that children cannot escape gender differences, as manifested by her own son, Noah, who identifies himself as a boy and whose friends are boys. She does not oppose boys displaying traditionally female character traits per se, but depriving children of essential guidelines on how to behave and react is irresponsible. For Noah, being a boy is just one thing that defines him, but children (e.g. Storm) whose gender is not clearly defined may get caught up in endless discussions. Lorraine Candy acknowledged the fact that her boy, Henry, preferred to wear girls' clothes and that he ran an imaginary boutique and a hairdressing salon. However, she felt compelled to put a stop to his unusual behavior when he was five by making him wear boys' clothes. She says that all children must part of a peer group in order to feel validated and safe. This in turn will then bolster their confidence and personal growth because if he continued acting in a feminine way, he'd be made fun of and thus suffer. 8. What was Beck Laxton's decision with regard to raising her child? How does she justify it? Beck did not want anybody but her close family to know about the gender of Sasha for five years to shield him from any harmful gender-based stereotyping. She herself refused to know the sex of her baby at birth in order to react to it in an unbiased way. She also believes that by determining what children can wear and play with, we essentially shape their personality & skills without giving them a say in it. For example, girls made to wear intricate and impractical dresses are less likely to master climbing skills due to their unsuitable clothes. Therefore, Beck decided to go against the grain and adopt a gender-neutral parenting style so as to make people reflect on and potentially question conventional gender-specific upbringing. 9. How did it affect Beck's child? How did the people around her react? Sasha was free to choose his clothes right from the outset and has worn girls' and boys' clothes ever since, besides opting for a blouse from the girls' uniform list to school, which shows that he isn't really bothered either way. In fact, Beck only wanted her son to fulfil his potential and to foster healthy interpersonal relationships. However, when she decided against revealing the gender of her child to her mother-and-toddler group, she was disparaged and unjustly branded as crazy for not knowing whether her baby was a boy or a girl.