Subverting superheroes

Superheroes often swoop into the conversation when preschool educators talk about the impact of the media. Children latch onto the imagery of Batman (if they aren't too scared by it), pretend to be Superman, jump and kick their way into the roles of Power Rangers. For many teachers (and parents), this is problematic. Suddenly the playground is a screaming zone of chasing and pulling, and sometimes kicking and wrestling too. Coping with the aggression can wear on the most stalwart teacher.

One of the sessions yesterday at the NAEYC Institute focused on how the Joyce M. Huggins Early Education Center at Cal State-Fresno moved from banning superhero play to a qualified embrace of it. The point was not to immerse children in mass media imagery. Instead, through the use of fairy tales and other story telling techniques, the kids were encouraged to create their own superheroes (like "Night Man" and "Underwater Girl"), draw them, create paper mache models of them and build story books. "We were repositioning mass media images for literacy development," said Sharon Arias, a teacher at the center.

Educators listening intently to Arias. But they had questions: How did parents feel about the new emphasis on superheroes? (Arias said they came around to like it, but acknowledged that there were reports of more night wakings and "being scared.") How did teachers handle moments of aggression? (By showing students how to pretend to be aggressive, instead of actually pulling a jacket or hurting someone.)

I sensed a skepticisim in the room. And I admit that I too, having written a chapter in my book on how 2- and 3-year -old children respond to fearful, aggressive imagery, came away with a lot of questions. But the output of the children couldn't be disputed: home-made books, stories and artwork showed a grasp of story-telling that seemed rare among children this young.

Speaking of superheroes, I should mention that Diane Levin (see my post from yesterday) and Susan Linn of the Campaign for Commercial-Free Childhood (who was with me on the panel about technology and play) raised some provocative points about the marketing of PG-13 movies to toddlers and preschoolers.

One of Levin's examples was The Incredible Hulk, coming to theaters this summer and aimed at adolescents. She showed a slide with a photo of "The Incredible Hulk Smash Hands," a toy from a few years ago that is labeled as being recommended for children 5 and up.