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Children's Literature and Gender

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Children's Literature and Gender
________________________________________ Gender Issues in Children 's Literature

Contents
How Is Gender Portrayed in Children 's Literature?

Why Is Gender-Representation in Children 's Literature Significant?

What Should Teachers Keep in Mind While Selecting Children 's Books?

How Can Teachers Use Children 's Literature to Promote Gender Equity?

References
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"Everything we read...constructs us, makes us who we are, by presenting our image of ourselves as girls and women, as boys and men" (Mem Fox, 1993).
Besides being an important resource for developing children 's language skills, children 's books play a significant part in transmitting a society 's culture to children. Gender roles are an important part of this culture. How genders are portrayed in children 's books thus contributes to the image children develop of their own role and that of their gender in society.
________________________________________
How Is Gender Portrayed in Children 's Literature?
Gender bias exists in the content, language and illustrations of a large number of children 's books (Jett-Simpson & Masland, 1993). This bias may be seen in the extent to which a gender is represented as the main character in children 's books and how that gender is depicted.
Numerous studies analyzing children 's literature find the majority of books dominated by male figures. For example, Ernst (1995) did an analysis of titles of children 's books and found male names represented nearly twice as often as female names. She also found that even books with female or gender-neutral names in their titles in fact, frequently revolve around a male character. Many classics and popular stories where girls are portrayed usually


References: Ernst, S. B. (1995). "Gender issues in books for children and young adults." In S. Lehr (Ed.). Battling dragons: Issues and controversy in children 's literature. (pp. 66-78). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. [ED 379 657] Fox, M Jett-Simpson, M., & Masland, S. (1993). "Girls are not dodo birds! Exploring gender equity issues in the language arts classrooms." Language Arts, 70 (2), 104-108. [EJ 457 110]. Lawrence, B McGowan, M., McGowan, T., & Wheeler, P. (1994). Appreciating diversity through children 's literature: Teaching activities for the primary grades. Englewood, CO: Teachers Ideas. Rudman, M Temple, C. (1993). "What if 'Beauty ' had been ugly?" Reading against the grain of gender bias in children 's books. Language Arts, 70 (2), 89-93. [EJ 457 108]. Trites, R.S
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