Child of our Time, tonight, BBC1, 9pm

[OldieMum]

For anyone who hasn't seen this before - it's a fascinating, long-term study of a group of children born around 2000 being done by a team working with Prof. Robert Winston. This is the latest instalment, focussing on how children first become aware of social distinctions like class and race and also looking at their first day at school.

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Thank you for that - DH said he'll have a bath then

Thanks oldiemum- think this could be v relevant to my essay (for which I'm gathering evidence on some other threads if any of you 4 y.o owners want to contribute- would be v grateful. ) I've always managed to miss these and then wish I'd seen them as the polarised aftermath of Winston loving/hating ensues. This time I'll know what I think!

Thank you SO much for posting this - I knew it was on - but was sure the ad for it on BBC1 at lunchtime had said 9pm 'tomorrow' not tonight - can't believe I could have missed it!!

I love watching it, so intersting to see how the children develop so differently, and how their family situations have an influence on them.

DS1 was born September 2000 so find it interesting to see how he 'compares'.

One of my 4 y o threads is here if some/any of you wouldn't mind adding your answers. Sorry to be a nuisance- am collating info at 10 so irriatating bumps and links will cease quite soon.

ooo goody!!

will watch whilst labelling

dd1 was born march 2000, its interesting to compare.

I loved the answers to "where do you live?

child 1. here!!!!

child 2. ASDA!!!!!

absolutely brill

I liked this one:

'what do you want to be when you grow up?'
'a rabbit'

PMSL! So cute!

I was staggered by the wealth and ethnicity experiments - ds1 is only 3.10 so I know is younger but I'm pretty sure he has no concept of differences between black and white or rich and poor. I guess I could do a similar experiment but I know that at nursery, as well as all the boys he has a good friend called Katie (sorry, that's going back to the gender one) and he's got friends of other ethnic backgrounds and doesn't seem to think anything of it.

And what about William?! My goodness, what a handful!

Mind you, my ds1 is getting like that. Nothing I do phases him and he just laughs at me!

I knew he said ASDA. Excellent!

I found it quite sad in a lot of respects. I found the self image thing quite sad, especially when you think about the ultra pc way we are supposed to be living. I bet people were shocked that Tyrese's mum felt the need to reinforce his self image as a black boy and yet he had the most positive self image.

I found it sad that the stereotypes that we fight against prevailed (choosing the houses and who lived there and what they were like etc).

Also the boy/girl stereotypes. The more things change the more they stay the same.

Will be interested to watch it again in 5 years.

felt sorry for williams brother and sister

they probably really like school to get away from him

yes we liked the rabbit answer too

you can watch it next week marslady . i found it fascinating, & it made me cry quite a lot too.

Fab. Make sure someone posts and reminds me. Remember I left my brain/memory in the labour ward many moons ago. lol

I was quite shocked at the extent to which Tyrese's mother goes to to reinforce his ethnicity I must say. She obviously has her reasons for feeling that she needs to though.

Yes, he had a positive self image but it was just as extreme just in the opposite direction. At the end of the day, where all the white children chose to link good aspects with the white child, he just did the same with the black child so I'm not sure that's necessarily a good thing. It's very difficult though - in some ways, his mother has made such an issue of his colour/ethnicity that I can't see that being such a good thing. Wouldn't it be better to make no issue of it at all if, after all, it's meant to be no issue, iyswim?

I found it disappointing, while I enjoyed the earlier programmes. The analysis jumped around a lot and they made no attempt to control for differences in children's analytic abilities. It was also very sad in places, as hoxtonchick says, but that would be expected, given the tremendous inequalities in these children's life chances.

Didn't you feel for James? And the thing is, with good support his mother could be wonderful I'm sure because she clearly loves them and absolutely wants the best for them but she is so disadvantaged

Did anyone noyice the bad sunburn on williams back and shoulders in that pool in France?

James story was sad but hopefully things will start to get better for him and his family in their new house etc. Their mum certainly is trying her best for them.

but Gobbledigook, there was a difference in the way the little black girl saw positive and negative images. She saw the white children as the good positive images and the black ones as bad and negative.

I don't feel that her reinforcement was extreme. Bear in mind the fact that all the children were affected by stereotypes. I think that it is good that Tyrese can see himself in such a positive light. It is easier for the white children to because that is the way that stereotypes point. I'm not saying that I agree that it should be that way. That is what makes me sad. We shouldn't have to see white as good or black as bad, but it is the way that things point.

I think that 7up seemed to do it better, despite the background music. Maybe more will come out of the programme next week.

Yes - found myself wondering whether that was all part of the 'making a man of him' agenda. And then the mother complains about his ultra masculinity.