Lego Friends - Good or Bad?

So do we need Lego sets specifically for girls? Can't they just play with Star Wars Lego and Lego City like the boys?

Well yes, they can and they should. When I was a tween (not that the term existed then!) I would have loved the upcoming Lord of the Rings Lego range. I would have been so happy to get that and be able to reenact scenes from my favorite books. No one would have bought it for me though, because it's a boys toy. Grr. 

One of the problems is that most physical and online toy stores are separated out into girls toys and boys toys. When people are buying gifts they tend to head to the gender appropriate section. And toys are usually marketed to either boys or girls. 

I think it's good to see Lego making a clear statement that Lego is for girls as well as boys. 

Also you have to be realistic about what most young girls are interested in. I have two nieces and they are inexplicably drawn to pink and lilac even though their parents have not encouraged this at all. 

It's all very well saying that girls should play with auto mechanic sets and city trader sets. But would they actually want to!

There's part of me that doesn't quite get why girls wouldn't want to play with Lego Star Wars and Batman sets more than beauty sets and cafes. But I'm a geek and an IT professional. 

I'd rather girls were bought these Lego sets than no Lego at all. Building Lego models and following the instructions is actually a great start for a technical career path. 

I don't think Lego on its own can steer girls away from pink and purple. (OK I admit it, I like purple, and purpley-pink.)

The Lego Friends Inventor step is a small step in the direction of introducing girls to less stereotypical careers. And being a vet is a pretty impressive career for girls to aspire to (my female vet friend is doing very nicely!) Hopefully we'll see more sets along those lines in the future.