He OR She? Your Little One Can Recognise Gender Now

Your child is aware of his gender now and recognizes the other gender as well. Initially there might be some confusion in understanding gender specific grammar usage and he may tend to interchange words like ‘his’ and ‘her’ or use ‘she’ in place of ‘he.’ If your child says “Diya shared his book with me,” reply with “Really? Did Diya share HER book with you?” Physical differences will be observed by the child keenly though not discussed in detail.

What you need to know

It is natural to get inquisitive about private part differences. The child would prefer playing with peers of the same gender to reinforce belongingness. It is common to see your little one disagreeing to your choice of clothing and preferring to what he might think is suitable to his gender. Though media and social group influence child’s gender-based decisions on toys, cartoon watching and similar choices greatly, individual differences will exist. 

Do not shy away from talking openly to your child and ensure that his environment reflects diversity in gender roles and encourages opportunity for everyone. You can get him books or puzzles showing men and women in non-stereotypical and diverse gender roles (e.g. - working moms, male chefs, female police officers, etc). Further, get him a rnage of toys including dolls, toy vehicles, action figures, blocks, etc.

Disclaimer : Content presented here is for information purposes only, please consult with your doctor for any health queries