Psychobabbling

I’m in the middle of a great book about prenatal and early childhood brain development, that I may not finish before the little girl arrives, so I thought I would mention it now.  It’s called What’s Going On in There: How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life, and it is a great, if dense, read for anyone interested in actual research on this stuff.  It’s written by a neuroscientist and parent, Lise Eliot, Ph.D., and I’ve been particularly impressed by her thorough discussions of data on so many things that one hears during pregnancy, like “you shouldn’t drink coffee” (just not more than three cups a day) and how different types of labor and childbirth (drug-free, c-sections, etc) actually affect a newborn (rather than focusing on judgements about how a baby should be brought into the world).   I’m getting a little bogged down in the chapters about hearing and vision, but I’m really looking forward to her discussions of socio-emotional growth and the development of language.  I just hope I get there in time!   

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Has anyone else noticed that all of the original Sesame Street muppets are male?  I’ve been watching a bit more Sesame Street in the past year than I have in, say, the past 30 years, and the addition of two relatively new female muppets, Abbie Cadabie and Zoe,  since my own Sesame Street heyday, made me notice their conspicuous absence in years past.   I totally didn’t even pay attention to this when I was a kid, but what is this communicating about gender?  Can you imagine a show with all female characters, and no one taking notice?  Sesame has been so progressive in the inclusion of diverse types of people in their neighborhood, so what’s up with the all-dude muppets? 

Ok, so I’m not there first person to notice this.   Here’s a study that found that male characters appeared twice as often as female characters in randomly selected episodes of Sesame Street (though this study predates the two new female muppets), and “the total number of characters portrayed in stereotypical roles was 10 times greater than characters portrayed in non-stereotypical roles.”  Why is this important?  As we all know, children learn the norms of society from, at least in some small part, television.  And though women are 51% of the population, they are usually portrayed as a minority or “other” group.  Just think about the use of male-normative language (this is a nice post too), like “mankind” to refer to both women and men, and what this implies about our cultural values.  I really expected better from you, Sesame Street.     

2 Comments | In: gender, media | | #

I find this story about Salma Hayek breastfeeding a baby who is not her own on a trip to Africa really interesting.  First of all, images of women breastfeeding are few and far between in the media these days (PhD in Parenting recently had a great post about this).   And the story has generated a range of responses, from the juvenile (boobies!) to outrage (how disgusting!) to praise (what a humanitarian!)  Here’s a discussion (and here’s another) of  some of the responses and what the story belies about the cultural significance of breastfeeding, and wet nursing, from ABC News who originally broadcasted the story.  And here’s an opinion piece by a pediatrician who is concerned about the health implications of “cross-feeding.”

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Thanks to PhD in Parenting for the link to this awesome public service announcement.

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My new favorite television show.  Now you know what I’ve been doing with all of my time. 

And I realize that I’m a bit late to the game on this one, but I hadn’t had much occasion to watch children’s shows in the past few years.  I dig the great music, the acknowledgment that “listening and dancing to music is awesome,” and the lovely life lessons.  Also, my little dude squeals every time it’s on, so that’s a thumbs up as far as I’m concerned.

1 Comment | In: media, personal | | #

I was watching A Charlie Brown Christmas with the little dude the other night, and I was really excited to be sharing it with him (this was lost on him, however; he enjoys anything with pretty flashing lights).  It was the idea of introducing him to traditions and things that are important to me and things from when I was growing up that seemed at that moment really amazing and significant.  I tend to get a bit sappy around the holidays anyway, but there’s nothing like that Charlie Brown Christmas music.

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So if the dude is going to watch television, at least I’d like it to be quality programming.  In trying to figure out what this might include, I’ve been thinking about the programs I really liked as a kid, many of which have been released on DVD for parents of a certain age to share their nostalgic love with their kids.  And I’m thinking that Schoolhouse Rock is definitely on that list.

1 Comment | In: commentary, funny ha ha, media, personal | | #

My little dude loves the television.  The flashing lights, the changing colors, and the moving shapes grab his attention when he is anywhere in the vicinity of them.  And I can relate; there have been so many times when I’m in a bar or restaurant, having a perfectly lovely conversation, and I find my self being drawn repeatedly to the television in the corner, even if I can’t hear what’s going on.  Even if it’s showing a sporting event that I couldn’t care less about.  And part of me thinks that I should protect my kid from the mind-numbing potential of the idiot box.  There’s a whole lot of bad programming out there, not to mention manic commercials trying to hawk junk food and barbies.  Which is why I was happy to read this posting at Baby Shrink on this very topic.  She discusses this book, which argues that television can be beneficial to children if it’s used properly, specifically if the content is good and it is not a child’s the primary means of entertainment.  It’s just so easy to plop a kid in front of the television when you need a brake, it’s a great distraction for the dude during the dreaded tummy time.  We just have to keep in mind the whole moderation is key thing, and get some Pee-Wee’s Playhouse and Electric Company DVDs.

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Is this contest from Babble hilarious, or has my brain turned into parent mush?

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Nostalgia trip of the day, but in Spanish!  You gotta start them early with the second language…

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