Page 72 - South Mississippi Living - April, 2017

KIDS self expression
72 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • April 2017 FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net
From the day children are born, parents begin dressing them, putting the little ones into clothing of the parents’ choice. In today’s atmosphere of political correctness parents may ponder if they want to dress their children in gender specific clothing or designer clothing, and how much freedom children should have in choosing what they wear. Does it really matter if a five-year-old boy wants to make an unfashionable statement by tucking his sweat pants
into cowboy boots? Or if a four-year-old girl insists on wearing her princess dress everywhere?
Try to understand what’s important to your children and get on their level
She says girls like to wear leggings, over-size shirts and stylish sandals. Boys like Under Armour, anything athletic and sports shoes. “The cutest thing I’ve seen was a first grader who wore her onesy pajamas under her school clothes and during the day took off her outer clothes,” Jordan said.
Morgan notes that communication is the most important thing in families when it comes to making clothing decisions. “It’s okay for parents to say no and still be willing to hear what their children have to say,” she added.
story by Lynn Lofton
A mental health nurse practitioner with Memorial Behavioral Health, Kimberly Morgan, suggests that parents take a deep breath and chill. “Try to understand what’s important to your children and get on their level. They probably love certain items of clothing because it gives them some sort
of comfort,” she said. “Boundaries and rules are important, but let them express themselves within reason.”
The mother of two children, Morgan recalls when her daughter went through a princess stage and wanted to wear her princess dress everywhere. “The dress was okay, but she also had to wear those matching cloppy plastic shoes that she could hardly walk in and we had to walk much slower,” Morgan recalled. “She got over it before too long.”
Jordan Taylor teaches fourth grade science and social studies at Gulfport’s Central Elementary School where she observes that her nine and ten-year-old students are starting to notice what they wear and care about their peers’ opinions. “They’re still more casual at this age and their choices are more laid back than they will be when they’re older,” she said.