In my developmental pysch class yesterday, we started talking about gender and we got on the subject of toys for gender, and this question arose.

Do you think boys and girls are inherently different and are born with a preference for either boy or girl things or do you think children learn to choose their toys and if so how do you think they do? Also do you think gender specific toys are good or bad and should children be encouraged to play with their gender specific toys or with the neutral ones? With in mind at what age do you think children start preferring gender specific toys?

Here's what I think. Agree or disagree?. I want to know what you guys think

I don't think children are born with a preference for a certain type of toy, I think that's all chose through experience. I also think that children should have the opportunity to play with boy gender specific and neutral toys. I think the gender specific toys are bad in the sense that girls are more likely to want to play with boy toys than I think boy would want to play with the girl ones. I would encourage my child to play with both gender specific toys and neutral. I think that around 8 or so children start figuring out what exactly they like or don't like , to the point where they know what kind of toys they want.

My opinion on this subject is that yes children are born to certain toys. That has more to do with the body and how it changes then it does with the mind. You hear about the curve all the time. I have seen it myself. There is a big difference in the toys one chooses when it comes down to the difference in gross motor skills and fine motor skills. That sets up the basis for future toys. You also have logical and fantasy types of a thinking process. Those early expanding years we take in a tremendous amount of information. Not just sites and sounds but those of survival. Look at the generation gap of how children are treated from your grandparents times up to today's times. It's a different world. Video games have brought together the sexes in ways that before were unimagineable. Now first person shooters have both boys / girls and men / women competing against each other. The world and its influence is ever changing. But in reality the basics are just that. The basics.

You've made some valid points, I agree with you

Having two young children I can tell you that children are conditioned, mostly by their parents, on which toys are "boy" toys and which toys are "girl" toys. Without that conditioning kids would play with any and all toys regardless of their supposed gender purpose.