The segment on Mornings on Channel 9 raised the question - do we parent boys differently to the way we parent girls? Are there fundamental differences in boys and girls which mean it is easier to parent boys or girls? Do we need to be careful not to be influenced by our children's gender when we're communicating with them? Read full article
Growing Great Girls is the must-have parenting book for those with daughters. It contains a wealth of excellent, practical advice on bringing up girls from babies, preschoolers, tweens and right through to teenagers. Read full article
Tonight I read some extracts from a UK School Health Education Unit report called “Young People Into 2011”. The headlines about the report tell us that about one third of primary school girls are missing their meals and are unhappy with their weight. I’m only a little surprised because there’s so much media coverage of teenage girls who are unhappy with their body image. Read full article
Not so long ago, I wrote about my six-year-old daughter’s ambition to be a builder. Cunning inventions made from sunglasses and old CDs attached with straw flow from her fingers, and nothing makes her happier than a new box of Lego. She is also uncannily gifted at Monopoly, so I look forward to enjoying old age supported by my wealthy and astute property developer of a daughter.
She is not a keen clothes shopper (‘no’ is her assessment of most garments), but given the choice she would prefer to pick a Ben 10 t-shirt from the boys’ side of the store than a pink fairy dress from the girls’ aisle. Read full article
There have been a few posts on here lately around the issue of children and body image. And now the whole beauty pageant fiasco is coming to Australia. I do not like children's beauty pageants (not one bit). Here's a light-hearted but powerful video spoof that covers many of the issues, starring Tom Hanks and his daughter. Another reason to love Tom Hanks. Read full article
A shoe manufacturer is marketing shoes to 7 to 12 year old girls that are designed to tone and shape legs - is this appropriate? Yvette Vignando spoke about this with Christine Morgan from The Butterfly Foundation and Julie Gale from Kids Free to Be Kids. Read full article
Yvette Vignando, Melissa Hoyer and Melinda Tankard Reist on Channel 7, The Morning Show, discuss decision by Glamour Magazine to include 5 year old Suri Cruise in the Best Dressed Women of 2011 list. Was this a good decision by Glamour magazine. Can we just allow little girls to be little girls please? Read full article
A student of St Patricks College Campbelltown sued her former school for damages saying it failed to protect her from physical and verbal bullying. She said she now suffers from a range of psychological symptoms including depression and anxiety. Yvette Vignando spoke on Sunrise on Channel 7 on 14 April 2011 about this story & bullying by girls. Read full article
I once saw a study that showed that teenage girls’ self-esteem was linked to how represented their race was in the mainstream media. It was an American study. So Native Americans who were the most under-represented racial group in the media had the highest level of self-esteem, followed by African Americans with Caucasian teenagers at the bottom of the pile. They drew the conclusion that it was because if you see somebody of the same racial group on the front of a magazine you think that if you just lost the right amount of weight, did the right exercise, had the right clothes or wore the right make up you could look like that. Whereas, somebody of a different racial group would never be able to look like that no matter what changes they made. Read full article
Glee star Lea Michele appears on the cover of the March edition of US Cosmopolitan. The actress is apparently 24 years old but plays the role of a teenager in the internationally popular television series Glee. In the news is the reaction by some Texas newsagents who have removed the magazine from display and others who have said that the cover shot is overtly sexual and inappropriate for a celebrity who plays a teenager. The implication is that Lea Michele is also something of a role model for young women who watch Glee. Read full article
