Question About Purchasing a Boy Item for Girl

TMNT isn't "for boys." It's like Scooby-Doo. It's gender neutral. You don't need to tell her anything.

My daughter went to school with a Pokeman backpack one year, rather than being teased she was so cool because it was not available in stores so she was the only one to have one. She also loved trucks and blocks. She told me that those toys were more fun than dolls so we went with it. She's an only child.

Two answers:

1. It's highly unlikely she'll be teased. Girls can get away with doing "boy" things a LOT. And sassy, confident, sporty girls generally aren't easy targets for teasing.

2. Even if she IS teased, do you really want to teach her that she has to do everything based on what other people might think of her, rather than thinking for herself? Please(!) think through the consequences of that 5 or 10 years down the road. If you're concerned about teasing, don't teach her to conform, teach her to stick up for herself.

I seriously doubt that any of her classmates are going to care if she has a Turtle backpack.
Kids aren't nearly as gender-role fixated as adults.
My daughter's nickname is androgynous, and the only time anyone has ever said anything to her was the first day of preschool, when one little boy told her that she had a boy's name. At four years old, she put her hands on her hips, looked him in the eye, and said, "Well, I'm a GIRL, and it's MY name, so that shows what you know!"

This isn't a silly issue, and don't worry about overthinking. We're all guilty of it.

To answer your question, unless the community you live in is significantly different than the community I live in, you don't have to worry about teasing over this. I have two six year old girls and one of them LOVES LOVES LOVES Batman. She has a Batman watch, a Batman lunch box, and is getting a Batman backpack for next year. She's never had a problem with anyone teasing her. In fact, it's been a conversation starter with the boys in her class and even some older girls and boys who like her lunch box. Her sister, who loves mermaid and fairy stuff, has even expressed some jealousy that the Batman items are "cooler" than her typical girl items.

Kids this age have all sorts of characters on their stuff -- it's not like when they're 12 and they all want the same brand of jeans.

Way, *way* back when the Turtle Quartet first made their debut, my children were little. They loved them, and I kinda liked them myself.

I don't know that your daughter needs to have everything turtle, but if she wants a backpack and you can afford it, go ahead. Let her know it will be her backpack for the whole year. If, by any chance, she receives any teasing, her response can be: "I like the Turtles. What do you like?"

I can't imagine a 1st grader being teased about this. I say go for it.

there was a kindergartener when i volunteered that had a spidey back pack, she loved it, someone did tease her for it, and she was sad, but parents didn't have option to buy a new one so she used it, and the other child was talked to about how she could like anything she liked and he should keep his opinions to himself. I doubt it scarred her for life. and maybe it taught him something.

It's bad but i think it's more acceptable for girls to like boy thing than a boy to like mylittle pony or something.

if you felt strongly about it, you could get her a figurine to statisfy the urge and get a diff back pack.

Definitely buy it for her! I do not think kids will say anything and if they do - teach her about respect and bullying and how sometimes others are mean. It will show her how to stand up for herself and say she likes/loves something even if it's not 'girly'. I loved TMNT growing up too!!

My 7 YO daughter just had a Superman-themed birthday party. I say buy it! And, also, curse you because I have the theme song stuck in my head.

HEROS IN A HALF SHELL.

I might have a compromise if you don't mind spending a little more then a traditional backpack.

My 19 year old DD Loves turtles and frogs, TMNT is part of that. Two Christmases ago she asked for a turtle backpack w/ the mask. I debated this because it isn't cheap, although not really expensive either, but I figured it would end up on the side like so many other things. Nope 2 years out and she still uses it and she's not even in school anymore.

Here's the backpack.
http://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Mutant-Ninja-Turtles-Backpa...

As for being teased. My son in elementary loved purple, everything was purple, and I had the same concerns. Turned out it really wasn't an issue, when asked he just said he liked it and kids accepted it. I think some of that was he really didn't care what others thought.

I'm editing to add that it has held up remarkably well, the only thing that broke was the little tab part for zipper, but that was her fault, not the manufacturing.

This is a really silly thing to worry about.

Get the backpack she wants. Ninja Turtles aren't just for boys, they are for people.

My son loves TMNT. I didn't know ToysRus was running a deal-I'll check that out.
My daughter also loves them and she's two. I think it's because my son and she play TMNT together. I even had to make her a mask since he had one.
I wouldn't worry about it. I doubt kids will tease her about it, but if they do, then must tell her it's because they don't have the cool backpack. :)

The boys will think she's cool! She could get teased by girls but I doubt it.

Are you sensitive to teasing? Try doing some things counter cultural. Or point out those you do right now. We don't have to be carbon copies.
People tease. Kids are not polite or kind sometimes, doesn't mean you are wrong.

If you stay on here long enough, you are going to get people that disagree with you. Sometimes loudly. The loudest, strongest, viewpoint doesn't win.
They can be the most wrong person. Try modeling some strong confidence in your choices and the teasing won't matter as much to your daughter.

My 6 year old daughter loves them too. I think it stems from a few boys in her K class this year and the fact that my son (15 years older than her) always liked them. She of course was not born when he was "into" them now that he is 21 and has a shirt or two and we bought him DVD copies of the movies he loved so much (which he thinks is cool), my daughter is now all about TMNT. She wants that as her party theme this year. So if she still feels this way when it's time to start planning her party (December birthday) that is surely what I will have for her.

If my daughter saw the backpack and really wanted it, I would probably get it for her. I have already got her backpack for next year because I saw a deal on a backpack/lunchbox combo that I knew she would love and wasn't a character that she could easily outgrow or change her mind about between now and September.

That said, she may feel odd once she's in school and is the only girl with a "boy's backpack" but if she really likes TMNT then she won't care. My daughter would tell them it is what she likes but then again she the kind of girl that might climb a tree or kick their butts while wearing high heels and a tutu (no, she's not actually fighting anyone...she's just known to be both extremes).

I did see a TMNT backpack online that was just the turtle shell which might be a good compromise so it's not quite so "boyish".

I would just get her the back pack she wants, I doubt it's going to be that big of a deal. Maybe one or two kids will say something, but so what? I doubt she will be teased and bullied the entire school year and maybe she will learn something about just going with what you like and not caring what everyone else thinks.

My daughter has a big brother and LOVES all the boy stuff. In fact today she dressed as spiderman all day (she's 3) which was her halloween costume last year. She loves playing soccer, watching pink panther with her brother, and playing legos. So far she has no interest in princesses, dance classes, and really girly things like frilly clothes. I say yes, of course buy a TMNT bag for your daughter! Teach her to stand up for herself if she gets teased. I've heard my son get teased and he just confidently yells back, SO WHAT, I LIKE THIS (I can't even remember what it was now). The other kid backed down.

Is it likely to be an interest of hers for a long time?
I ask because my son used the same backpack all through elementary school.
If I got him a theme backpack that he liked in kindergarten, he might not have liked it in 5th grade and we don't throw things out just because his likes/dislikes changed and since he knows this, he's careful about what he chooses.

I'd get it.
The "teasing" starts later than first grade!

Why would she be teased, is she in high school or something?
Elementary age kids carry character backpacks all the time (though I never bought them, they're usually cheaply made and fall apart within a year.)

That's funny, because I'm sitting here watching TMNT with my daughter. Lol.

A couple months ago, it was all about Buzz Lightyear.

I would go for it! It's a great chance to teach her to be herself, and not to restrict herself to societal norms. I wouldn't even mention the possibility of being teased, but would be ready to discuss it with her if it does happen.

When it comes to gender things like this I always refer people to Melissa Wardy who owns Pigtail Pals and Ballcap Buddies. Search for her business online or on Facebook. She has great responses to people who have gender limiting comments. Her big thing is not pigeonholing kids, but letting them be who they want to be.

I think it's easier for girls to like boy things than vice versa. And, frankly, I like TMNT myself. It doesn't need to be a "boy" thing just because it's an action figure. Let her have it (my friend's DD is getting all Iron Man stuff for school and my DD is into dinosaurs) and if her friends say something negative you can teach her to say, "Well, I like it and I'm happy with it." She could be teased about ANYTHING. I say go for it and teach her how to deal with it vs trying to figure out what the kids will zero in on.

So, YES, get her what she wants for a backpack. My DD likes a really ugly pattern that Jansport had but it's hers and it was on sale. Done.

My daughter is 12 and she has a TMNT shirt that is made for GIRLS (it's a girl's cut) so I think it's gender-neutral.

A lot of the TMNT backpacks I've seen look pretty gender neutral. I don't see an issue with it.

Even if it wasn't gender neutral, who cares? When I was in grade school I was obsessed with Voltron. I got a Voltron lunchbox and all the boys thought it was cool. I never got teased, and I was in 5th grade.

I would get it for her and smile to know you're raising a cool nerd :)