Reflections of Diana Pueyo, mum of a 5-year-old.
Yesterday, my five-year-old daughter and I were playing with several female and male dolls. We
made up the story of a horse owner who was calling the rescuers’ office because her horse was
missing (needless to say, my daughter was playing this most challenging part). To avoid stereotypical
role patterns, I usually change the roles in our games, sometimes having male and sometimes female
characters in a leadership position. So this time, it was a male assistant who was picking up the
phone and reporting to his female supervisor. To my utter surprise, my daughter firmly disagreed with
this set-up. “No, mum, the man should be the boss”, she said. “But why, darling?” “Because that’s
how it is,” she shrugged.
