I was glad to see this article touched on the impact advertising is having on our kids:
http://www.newsweek.com/2009/03/29/generation-diva.htmlIt's been estimated that girls 11 to 14 are subjected to some 500 advertisements a day�the majority of them nipped, tucked and airbrushed to perfection. And, according to a University of Minnesota study, staring at those airbrushed images from just one to three minutes can have a negative impact on girls' self-esteem. "None of this existed when I was growing up, and now it's just like, in your face," says Solomon, 30. "Kids aren't exempt just because they're young."
by David Elkind, is well worth reading on this subject. The author clearly distinguishes being hurried from accelerating to meet intellectual abilities.
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/elkind.htmPromotion of intellectually gifted children is simply another way of attempting to match the curriculum to the child's abilities, not to accelerate those abilities. Accordingly, the promotion of intellectually gifted children in no way contradicts the accepted view of the limits of training on development, nor the negative effects of hurrying.
I limit my dauthers' exposure to ads and shows like Hannah Montana to keep this at bay. Of course this makes them even more asynchronous compared to their peers. I'm amazed to see parents rail about schools expecting too much from young kids but are fine with them watching what are essentially pre-teen soap operas.
