Moms Talk: What if Billy's Playing with Barbie and Jenny Tries out for Football?

The issue of gender stereotyping, or gender socialization, has garnered a bit of attention recently, since the news story broke about a Canadian couple who opted not to share their baby's gender with hardly anyone - even the grandparents.

While that's arguably extreme, the concept of gender socializing, learning cultural roles according to one's sex, prompted discussion by some parents with Patch about whether they should encourage less traditional toys for their boy or girl, and how they should react if Billy wants to play with Barbies or Jenny, with her amazing speed, wants to try out for football.

It may be an easy decision to paint the baby's room yellow, but how do you address your kindergarten son's wish to join his sister's ballet class?

Therefore, this week's Moms Talk question: How do you, or do you not, socialize your child according to his or her gender? Why? 

Previously, this column has addressed a number of potentially sticky parenting issues such as social media and cell phone use, and we've gotten some great feedback.

Here's a a quick look at some of our past questions:

Do you see cliques starting younger than when you were in school, and if so, how do you help your child navigate those social land mines?

How do you discuss different academic abilities with your kids?

At what age do you allow your children to have a Facebook or My Space page?

So, Moms, when is advanced placement, advancement overload? Are parents (and kids) overbooking kids?

If you missed any of these discussions and would like to read responses or post your own, just click on the links above or in the right-hand sidebar and share your thoughts.

You can also follow this feature  by clicking on the "Yes, Keep Me Posted" button below this article. And if you'd like to pose a question without identifying yourself, email  donna.evans@patch.com.