Students viewed a variety of toys for different age levels. Some students were shocked to see what sells on the shelves in many stores. For instance, a father-daughter wrestling team brought horrified looks and gasps. The young girl was portrayed as a teen Pamela Anderson, while the father looked like the hulk on steroids. This toy was for ages 6 and up. What messages does this send kids?
What about "The Top Model Barbie"? Students described the barbie as a "skank", and a "slut". One student said that "the barbie's full make-up, elongated legs and red laced, half stockings made her look like a street walker". The question is, who is buying this barbie for their kids? Luckliy, the barbie was half-price, which probably means it is not selling fast.
What are your thoughts on the above issue?
Monday, April 14, 2008
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3 comments:
at first i could not believe, what I was seeing. some of the toys were shocking. this class rely got me thinking about what toys are available for kids today
as well as how these toys are affecting the behavior and the way children are think and behave for example the father daughter wrestling team had weapons will some 8 year old kid see that and think that it is okay to take a weapon to school is this why there is violence in schools today?
this lesson rely got me to think about what toys kids are playing with and how they effect the child this is not saying one toy will effect all children the same but how could it effect the child and how they think ?
~Kailyn
Kailyn,
Glad to hear the media literacy lesson had you questioning.
As I read over the Retell, Relate, Reflect activity, many students shared your surprise and concern regarding the racey and hostile toys.I think the way to minimize the impact of these toys is to spread the word to others and we need to make sure that the toys we buy are instilling a positive message in children.
Ms. Windsor
Much like the rest of the class i was appalled at many of the so called "childrens'" toys. However throughout this activity some people felt that not all the products had alternative motives behind them. The toys r us flyer for differently abled children was viewed as a resource meant to benefit parents of these children! Some of the class tried arguing that it was almost discriminatory, however it created a lot of controversy. Overall the activity opened my eyes to some of the products that were on the market, but at the same time demonstrated that some people were looking for alternative motives in the media and almost creating them thereselves.
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