I have a five-year-old daughter and I have always believed in giving her the freedom to be adventurous and all without restricting her to girly games. She is hyperactive and she is always all over the place and wanting to know everything about the new place she gets to. My friends now suggest that she is being naughty like a boy and accuse me of not teaching her manners. Is there anything I am doing wrong? – Mai Kiki
Dear Mai Kiki
I do not see anything wrong you are doing in raising your daughter. Your friends are just making those comments because of the gender stereotypes they have been socialised to accept as normal when they were raised.
They have come to believe that being adventurous is for boys and they seem to insinuate that being naughty is okay for boys but not girls. Those are just perceptions, which are not true.
I believe if you raise your daughter the way you are doing, she will grow up a much stronger person with ambition and determination. Sometimes women are not found in professions where men dominate because they have been raised to be soft and gentle – whereas some areas of society require them to be aggressive.
Having no manners and being adventurous are two different things. You need to make sure that you have not confused the two – but as long as your daughter responds well to discipline I don’t see any problems. – Aunty Lisa
Post published in: Lifestyle