When we think about gender, we often think of biological sex – the physical differences between men and women.
But gender is more than that – gender refers to the social roles of men and women, and what we say men and women can’t do based on these roles.
It can be tricky to think about, so try the activity below.
Thinking about gender and biological sex, drag and drop the following activities into the table below, based on who you think can do the activity, or if both men and women can do it.
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Actually, both men AND women can do everything on the list!
There is no reason why a man can’t wear a skirt, or a woman can’t have a shaved head.
These are assumptions that we have around what is socially acceptable for men and women, but they don’t have any basis in our biological differences.
Hmm, you might need to think a bit more about the difference between sex and gender.
Remember, the only things that both genders CAN’T do are things that are prevented by our physical sex (like giving birth, or donating sperm).
Is there any physical reason why both men and women can’t do the activities listed here?