Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
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Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
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Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#2Why can't we just give them meccano and Lego the same as the boy kids?
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#3I don't know. It feels kind of pink lego to me (the marketing successes of which aren't lost here). When my daughter (now 2) gets just _this_ much bigger, I'll probably find myself showing her Adafruit.
To be clear, I don't have a problem with the product itself... more that it's clearly pushing itself exclusively toward girls. My son would _love_ this thing.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#4Why can't we just give them meccano and Lego the same as the boy kids?
Many of the parents I know report that despite their best efforts, their kids display a powerful innate tendency towards gendered behaviour. So I guess engineering toys "for girls" might be met with greater enthusiasm, even if they're basically the same as boys' toys.
It seems to me that there is a slightly problematic relationship between "toys for girls" and the "anti-pinkification" movement though.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#5Roominate is to Erector Set, as GI Joe was to Barbie.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#6Why can't we just give them meccano and Lego the same as the boy kids?
Many of the parents I know report that despite their best efforts, their kids display a powerful innate tendency towards gendered behaviour. So I guess engineering toys "for girls" might be met with greater enthusiasm, even if they're basically the same as boys' toys. It seems to me that there is a slightly problematic relationship between "toys for girls" and the "anti-pinkification" movement though.
My equally scientific observation is that the tendency comes from the parents. However, it doesn't matter from the perspective of a toy maker, there is a market to be filled, and they seem to go after it.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#7Why can't we just give them meccano and Lego the same as the boy kids?
I wonder the same thing. I have 2 girls (8 and 6) and I kind of cringe when I see these types of learning toys 'for girls'. Slap some Disney colors on them and they suddenly become attractive to girls? My personal experience is that they will play with interesting toys regardless of coloration. Mine have many of the same toys that I grew up with and will play imaginative games with them for hours given the opportunity.
Instead of creating/perpetuating a separate toy market for girls, I'd love to see more efforts to bring girls together (along with boys) to participate in activities that include these those toys...STEAM clubs, etc.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#8Why can't we just give them meccano and Lego the same as the boy kids?
As JoeBoy said, little girls and boys will fiercely defend their perceived gender. I remember being a young girl and my parents expecting me to play with my brother's legos: not going to happen. Then an aunt sent some swedish blocks, which no-one else had, and it was acceptable for me to share and play with these with my brother. I wasn't self-aware at the time to know why (and still can't recall!).
Edit: see children's toys from the victorian era: boys have rocking horses and hoops, which would now be considered girl's toys. Social expectations, anyone?
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#9The US is really weird when it comes to gender roles. When I was growing up Legos were gender-neutral, and by the time I was in college it seems like Legos were gender-coded. And there were almost no girl lego people :(
The color-coding is not my thing but might be subversive enough to help it get through to girls who are enforcing pinkness on themselves and others.
Three things (I'd like to see): * ship extensions with Raspberry Pi or Arduino integration! How cool would it be if your fan went on only when it's hot or the roman shades went down when it got sunny? * make a little solar panel kit extension for real, so on a sunny day you can have a solar-powered dollhouse.
Re: Roominate: A Building Toy for Girls
#10Girls can do wonders with duct tape, craft sticks, paper, scissors, clay, pipe cleaners, and blocks. I am sure boys are good at it too. These toy sets are almost a step back from the crafts.