Replies

When I asked a group of 5-yr-old kinder kids, "What do you want to be when you grow up?", one little boy answered, "A girl." The other kids didn't laugh at him or react in any way. He was effeminate for a 5 yr old boy so I assumed the other kids thought nothing about it.

When I told his teacher what he had said, she said she had to watch him on the playground because he would slip into the building and put on the women's clothes--meant for little girls, of course-- in the play area. She said the kid's father was a big redneck and would probably kill the little boy when he found out the kid's problem.

If I had not known this little boy, I would think kids didn't know about such things. The thing is, they don't know yet there is anything "wrong" with the way they feel.

I have wondered whatever happened to that little kid.

I don't think anybody expressing opinions here has any expertise in knowing anything about the subject. I know I don't!

The parent may be transgender-identified , but an eight-year-old child ?

When I told his teacher what he had said, she said she had to watch him on the playground because he would slip into the building and put on the women's clothes--meant for little girls, of course-- in the play area.

As a little girl, I never felt an obsession to wear women's clothing. Outside of school, I wore jeans, sneakers, and t-shirts. Given the choice, we girls chose to dress essentially the same way the boys dressed because it was most comfortable. So, the fact that a little boy feels compelled to dress in women's clothing - when most little girls don't feel compelled to do so - indicates an emotional/mental reason, not a biological reason.

I believe these kids who are gender-confused have parents with very restrictive ideas about how males and females should behave. Maybe the father of that 5yo boy caught him doing something innocent when he was younger - like trying on mommy's shoes - and he overreacted. Now the kid feels compelled to do it when his father isn't around. Same with the parents who "accept" that their child is "transgendered" because "he said he wants to be a girl." They overreact, too. They bring him to doctors and therapists. They only reinforce the behavior by being hypersensitive to it - by believing their child has some sort of medical/gender condition.

Kids say and do all sorts of things. It's the responsibility of the adults to lead them in the right direction, to teach them about reality: Little boys grow up to be men, and little girls grow up to be women. That's reality.