"Rosa leksaker" - skadliga eller inte?

I Storbritannien pågår de senaste månaderna en våg av debatter och reaktioner mellan föräldrar, forskare, experter och leksakstillverkare om invasionen av rosa leksaker. Är de rosa leksakerna "skadliga" för flickor?

Experter hävdar att denna så kallade "pink plague” (rosa pesten) på butiksgatorna i själva verket är en hjärntvätt av flickor och förstärker könsstereotyper. De hävdar att flickor håller på att bli "beroende" av färgen före tre års ålder och i nästa steg kommer att vägra leksaker och kläder om dessa inte är rosa.

Enligt Ed Mayo, tidigare brittiska regeringens konsumentexpert, “förbereder leksaksindustrin våra barn för att generera vinster”. Rader efter rader av rosa leksaker såsom musikinstrument, rosa kostymkläder, rosa låtsaskök, allt som tenderar att uppmuntra till en besatthet av skönhetsideal som startar i allt lägre åldrar och inspirerar flickor att tänka att "skönhet värderas mer än hjärna". Denna "pinkification" av leksaker skadar flickors utveckling, enligt en mamma som har uppmanat till en bojkott av "Early Learning Center", återförsäljaren hon anser är en av de värsta förövarna.

Kampanjen "Pink Stinks" lyfter en verkligt viktig fråga som annars lätt förbises. Jag håller fullständigt med denna kampanj och tycker att det är en viktig fråga. Rosa färg är bara början, men frågan går mycket djupare.

Det förefaller att under de senaste 25 åren så har vi (kvinnor) delvis låtit våra drömmar om lika möjligheter glida ner vid vägkanten. Unga flickor som serveras historierna om "drömprins / lycka" upplever vid c:a 12 års ålder en första konflikt med jämställdhetfrågorna. De flesta som studerar barns tidiga utvecklingen håller med om att lärdomarna från de första åren (yngre än 6 år) tenderar överskugga senare lärdomar.

Jag skulle säga: - Om barnen vill ha rosa, låt dem få rosa men låt det i så fall vara deras eget val, inte vårt. Tyvärr gör många föräldrar tvärtom när deras döttrar är barn. De väljer rosa kläder, rosa leksaker, rosa baby-möbler, rosa prydnadsföremål....

Jag har sett många av mina vänner köpa nästan allting i rosa till sina flickor och hört så många gånger i samma mening: "Min dotter är så värdefull för mig, jag vill att hon skall känna sig som en prinsessa".


Och det "rosa modet" går över gränserna. Småflickor i USA precis som i Sydkorea älskar rosa kläder, accessoarer och leksaker. Detta fenomen verkar även vara utbrett tvärs över olika etniska grupper, oavsett deras kulturella bakgrund, som "Det rosa och blåa projektet" av Jeongmee Yoon visar.

Våra barn måste få förverkliga sina egna drömmar, utan att marknadsföring och könsstereotyper sätter falska idéer i huvudet på dem. Vi måste se till att de utan tvekan vet att de kan uppnå vad de själva vill.

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Bredaste sortimentet av soldrivna leksaker

The solar toys and construction kits have finally arrived! For a while, all our Windmills were out of stock - seems kids like them, and probably adults as well:-) All in all, here is a new range of great solar toys and construction kits, all made in Europe, (not easy to find solar toys produced in Europe!). Most of these toys are new in Sweden - so far I have not seen them in eco-toy web or other shops. I hope you will enjoy them, as much as we do. I have even put aside one solar construction kit for my father in law as a Christmas present. True he is 81 but likes so much the little solar helicopter... and now, he will get something more "advanced" so to enjoy assembling and "playing". Cannot wait for the sunny days! Vive le Soleil!


And here is our press release:

"Klimatförändringar är i fokus idag. Jordens resurser är begränsade och användandet av fossila bränslen leder till omfattande luftföroreningar. Vi söker ständigt efter nya energikällor som inte skadar Jorden: vinden, vattnet, solen…

Solenergi är redan idag närvarande i våra liv och många vet att solkraft med tiden kommer bli ännu viktigare och dominerande, i våra barns framtid.
Hos Touffie ...lek för en grönare värld hittar Du det bredaste sortimentet av soldrivna leksaker och byggsatser för små och stora barn: ett vikingaskepp, ett glatt bi, väder- och vattenkvarnar, en karusell, sportbilar, flygplan och helikoptrar samt annat intressant grönt skoj.

Touffies soldrivna leksaker har som syfte att bringa kunskap om förnyelsebar energi. Leksakerna och byggsatserna visar barn (och vuxna!) på ett enkelt och lekfullt sätt hur solljuset kan användas för att producera energi.

Vi hoppas att genom våra leksaker inspirera barn att lära om världen omkring dem, hjälpa dem att utvecklas till miljömedvetna ”eko-medborgare” och på så sätt bidra till att skapa en hållbar framtid för barnen och vår planet!"
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"Baby Einstein" ökar INTE barns intelligens!

For years we have been seeing "Baby Einstein" (so called educational) videos in toy shops throughout Sweden. But now, the Walt Disney Co. has set-up a refund program for its "Baby Einstein" videos for toddlers in response to challenges about the legitimacy of its educational claims. (Just a reminder, the "Baby Einstein" company was founded in 1997 by Julie Ainger-Clark, a mother and former educator, and was bought by Disney in 2001).

The company has started, from last month, offering cash refunds on any DVDs bought from June 5, 2004 to Sept. 4. (However, I believe this is valid only for US and Canada). Buyers can also exchange DVDs for a "Baby Einstein" book or music CD, or receive 25 percent off a "Little Einstein" product. The offer expires March 4.

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, a Boston-based advocacy group, claimed "victory" Friday (2009-10-23) in its years-long battle to protect consumers from falsely believing the videos could, for example, teach words to babies under 2 years old.

I have never been a fan of "Baby Einstein" and in fact never bought any of their videos, neither for my children nor for my friends. However, one must admit that the marketing of Baby Einstein is genius, appealing to every parent’s desire to have a smart child. Probably many parents have "fallen" for the fantastic marketing and have forgotten that children DO NOT develop best from passively watching videos, but from interacting with their environment and loved ones. Playing with open-ended toys, such as blocks, exploring nature, reading books, etc. benefit children in ways a Baby Einstein product NEVER can. In fact, a research study reported on in Time magazine states:

"…with every hour per day spent watching baby DVDs and videos, infants learned six to eight fewer new vocabulary words than babies who never watched the videos. These products had the strongest detrimental effect on babies 8 to 16 months old, the age at which language skills are starting to form."

So, for those of you who have Baby Einstein videos home, send them back to Disney or just throw them in the recycling bin... and consider maybe buying simple-educational-natural-long lasting fun toys. And do not forget to play with your children!
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50 enkla saker barn kan göra för att rädda Jorden

By encouraging children to form "green" habits early on, "The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do To Save the Earth" book, promises earth-friendly behaviors to last a lifetime.

I believe we all would like our kids to become eco-responsible citizens and (many of us) are trying to teach/direct them in that way. Books always help and I try to find those that are interesting and fun enough to not only attract but keep children attention - not easy now days when kids spend hours by the computer!

The book "The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth" entertains, educates and inspires children (and the adults that care for them), to become active participants in the quest to solve or lessen many of our planets woes. Printed on recycled paper with soy ink, this book is full of interesting facts and fun activities that offer our earth’s future stewards hands-on opportunities to start making a positive impact now!

The original edition, published in 1990, is the best-selling kids’ environmental book of all time, with more than one million copies sold to date. It created the “kids environmental how-to” genre and spent nine weeks on the New York Times best-seller list.

"Helping Kids Keep It Simple

As 15-year-old coauthor Sophie Javna points out in the introduction,“There are lots of things that grown-ups are allowed to do, but most kids aren’t.” The 200 pages that follow make one thing abundantly clear: Saving the Earth is NOT one of those things.

The book has been published in 1990 and revised. Why? Sadly, not because the problems have been solved. But the good news is there are now more tools than ever to help kids be active and get involved, the most accessible of which is the Internet. This revised edition includes hundreds of URLs for the best kids’ Web sites, providing resources for kids to keep digging long after the first reading. The book’s Web site, www.50simplekids.com, has even more information, updates, and links to these great sites, and serves as a place for kids’ voices to be heard.

The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth demonstrates fun, practical ways to improve the planet. Simple things like taking showers instead of baths are steps any kid can take to make a difference. The chapters focus on such issues as climate change, pollution, and conservation, explained in kid-friendly language with interesting facts and easy-to-do projects to try at home, at school, or around the neighborhood, to get kids involved and enhance understanding.

Children today learn early on that the Earth is in trouble and that it is the responsibility of all of us to save it. Kids are not only willing, they’re eager to do their part, but they need information, encouragement, and the sense that they have the power to make a difference.This book has those tools, and makes saving our planet a family affair."

Recommended for children 8 to 12 years old.
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Habitat Heroes - socialt nätverkande för eco-kids

Habitat Heroes is the first global, social networking site for eco-kids. Habitat Heroes is designed for kids 6-12 years old and is free to join.

Habitat Heroes is an interactive online destination where kids can adopt an endangered animal, create a life for it, play games, learn facts about the planet, and communicate with other young conservationists. Kids can create and personalize animal avatars.

It was created by Sharon Lowe, an Australian mother of three, after she observed her daughter playing/chatting online. Lowe decided her daughter and children like her needed a safe social network that was entertaining as well as worthwhile.

Receiving help from environmental experts the site was created and launched just in time for Earth Day 2009.

Habitat Heroes looks like a fabulous site where kids can play, interact and learn. It is something to keep them busy while educating them about recycling, the environment, endangered species and other important topics.

Safety features have been built into the site. Online chats are closely monitored to keep out predators and inappropriate content while parents also have the option to limit use of this function or any other aspect of the site.

In addition to environmental topics kids can explore other continents, learn about healthy eating, and learn about celebrity eco-heroes.

Finally a site that is green and I believe one does not have to worry about kids getting into any trouble while playing on it.
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Tidig fostran för ett hållbart samhälle

I have always believed that best investment one can make is in education for children. And nowadays we speak so much about the need for creating a sustainable future for our children and generations to come. But what can we do, as a society, to help our children become earth-friendly citizens? When looking for answers I have found a publication which originates from the international workshop ‘The Role of Early Childhood Education for a Sustainable Society’, held in Göteborg, Sweden, in May 2007. Maybe too long for reading (only 135 pages :-) but worth having a look at, just to get an idea.


“The Contribution of Early Childhood Education to a Sustainable Society” report published in 2008, explains how to educate young children with the aim of preventing further degradation of our planet and contributing to a sustainable society where values of human rights, peace and justice are upheld.

The publication argues that as early childhood education is about laying a sound intellectual, psychological, emotional, social and physical foundation, it has an enormous potential in fostering values, attitudes and skills that support sustainable development.

There is a great deal in the traditions of early childhood pedagogies that align with education for sustainability for example, like use of the outdoors for learning and learning through real life projects.

The publication cites concrete case studies and best practices in Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, France, Iceland, Japan, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

UNESCO is the lead agency for United Nations Decade for Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014). Read more...