Fortunately for all the harried parents out there, the answer is pretty simple: mix things up. Don’t deny girls the pinkest, glitteriest princess dress-up kit on the shelf, and don’t deny boys that ninja sword. Just also make sure to get them a few gender neutral things as well, along with a few “boy” things for girls and “girl” things for boys.
This is the advice of Lise Eliot, neuroscientist and the author of the book Pink Brain, Blue Brain, which looks at how gender differences evolve in children and the small role biology plays in this.
“I wish parents would stop beating themselves up about this,” Elliot said. “The trick is to have a huge variety of toys things, and to never call anything a ‘boy’ toy or ‘girl’ toy. Don’t endorse the labeling,” Eliot said.
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