Many parents, family members, and  early childhood professionals today express concerns about raising  children in a highly sexualized culture. According to the ideas in So sexy so soon, children are  being bombarded with messages in the advertising and media industries  linking physical beauty and sexual attractiveness with happiness. The  authors assert that young children’s exposure to an overly sexualized  environment plays a significant role in undermining their healthy gender  and sexual development and negatively impacts their sense of self  worth.

Think about the topic of the sexualization of early  childhood and provide insights about the implications it may have for  children and early childhood professionals.

Consider the following:

• What is your reaction to the ideas shared in this reading?
• In what ways have you observed the sexualization of early childhood  in your own personal and professional experiences? What examples have  you encountered in store advertisements, television, the Internet, other  types of media, and/or other types of environments?
• How might these messages impact children and their healthy  development? Consider the ways they might influence gender identity,  what children learn about being a girl or a boy, the expectations  children may develop about gender, and other related concerns.
• What can early childhood professionals do to tackle this problem and reduce the negative effects that it has on young children?

Then:

Important Part

• Share your reaction to the topic of the sexualization of early childhood.
• Provide three or more examples, from your personal or professional  experience, that further illustrate the exposure of young children to a  highly sexualized environment.
• Explain the implications this may have on children’s healthy  development. Include ideas you might have, as an early childhood  professional, to best respond to these concerns and to reduce the  negative impact on children.
• Describe the ways in which your awareness of the sexualization of  early childhood has been influenced and/or modified by studying the  topic this week.

See link to the introduction of the google book (So sexy so soon):

https://www.google.com/books/edition/So_Sexy_So_Soon/rwVf9kiWQtgC?hl=en&gbpv=1

See upper right hand corner (preview pages-only look at the introduction pages 3-14)