Subversive gifts for girls
As the proud aunt of 6 nieces (and 3 nephews), ranging in age from 7 to 11 and in attitude from tomboy to girly, I devote much thought to picking out presents, especially at this time of year. Some of my recent ideas:
- A subscription to New Moon magazine plus back issues (so there’s something to enjoy right away)
- “Shero” stories, such as Tamora Pierce’s series about girls who become knights, The Song of the Lioness and Protector of the Small. (I enjoy the books too.)
- A computer of her own for a niece whose brother had taken over the family computer
- Anything from Chinaberry
- The Creative Cosmetics Kit from Edmund Scientifics for the girly niece
Something I’ve considered but haven’t given is the Hary Potter Nimbus 2000 electronic broomstick, whose pulsing vibrations make it very popular with teenage girls but not with the anti-feminist group Concerned Women for America. Maybe when they’re older.
I’d welcome reader suggestions of other gifts to foster my nieces’ education and empowerment.
November 20th, 2006 at 9:24 am
I was going to post something about suggestions for a 6 year old niece. She’s very artistic and creative and I wanted to find something that would compliment that but also introduce her to science more.
November 20th, 2006 at 10:13 am
Thank you; on behalf of my nieces, thank you! Please suggest more! Not only that, but I want parallel subversive gifts for boys, too - stuff that can give my Godson and nephews chances to break out of the expectations they get saddled with (if they choose to).
November 21st, 2006 at 2:06 pm
My thanks as well. As the father (is it OK for me to be here?) of two girls (eight and three) and a geek/nerd/hacker/creator I am concerned that my girls get nudged in a scientific direction.
I suggest any of the books on Rube Goldberg’s drawings and constructs. Those wheels have gotten many an imagination turning.
November 21st, 2006 at 7:02 pm
YellowIbis sells a t-shirt that says, “I’m too pretty not to do math”, along with a lot of interesting science clothing that might appeal to older kids of either gender (although they do have some kid and baby stuff).
https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop.php?sid=13298&search%5Btext%5D=pretty
November 26th, 2006 at 3:51 pm
For girls who like to play with circuit boards and LEDs, there’s Lady Ada’s line of build-it-yourself kits: http://www.ladyada.net/make/index.html
There’s also MAKE magazine, which has technical projects in every issue ranging from fairly simple to quite advanced: www.makezine.com.
November 27th, 2006 at 8:58 am
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November 27th, 2006 at 9:11 am
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November 29th, 2006 at 9:42 am
Emilia, what about something that’s both geometrical and artistic, like Hearthsong’s Geocolor Coloring Cards? There are a lot of intersections between science/math and art.
November 29th, 2006 at 9:44 am
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December 7th, 2006 at 10:17 am
[…] Several days ago on this blog Ellen Spertus suggested several subversive gifts for girls, and several commenters offered other good ideas as well. […]
December 21st, 2006 at 8:16 am
I know a designer who makes jewelry with lab-grown colored stones, including rings shaped like rockets and cocktail rings. Maybe not for the young girl, but made for grown up geek girls by a geek girl designer.
August 14th, 2007 at 3:03 am
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