Bubblegum pink walls encompass 2nd grader Josephine L.’s room. It’s a room every little girl dreams of, filled to the brim with American Girl dolls, My Little Pony castles, and Barbies. Sitting atop her bed of floral sheets, surrounded by her stuffed animals, playing with a toy stolen from her sister, little 8-year-old Josephine is focused on her dreams of growing older.
Having two older siblings, Josephine can see the future in front of her. She can practically taste the freedom of being older. When asked about the future, she lights up. “I’m excited to get my driver’s license, so I can go wherever I want, whenever I want,” she said, eyes dancing with the possibilities.
This desire for the future for little girls has become very prevalent on social media where recent trends have been reaching younger generations earlier and earlier. Because of this, many kids have been engaging in typically teenage practices, obsessing over trends, and having an increased social media presence. We can see this with the appearance of the “Sephora Kids” phenomenon, where young preteen girls have been posting about shopping at high-end makeup stores.
Instead of targeting younger kids, other trends have been marketed to teenagers that focus on typically “childish” things like collecting Jelly Cats and watching shows like Barbie Life in the Dream House, Bluey, and Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir.
Both ends of the spectrum, though, seem to show that being right where you are is not trending.
Josephine’s dreams of the future are a reality for senior Myla Tralins, though she isn’t that enthusiastic about it. Instead of longing for the future, Tralins reaches for her past.
Looking out the window, lost in thought, she said, “I do miss my childhood years. I think that there were a lot of good components that I really want to relive right now, you know, and go back in time because I feel like life’s moving too fast.”
US Spanish Teacher Julia Cove, a mother and teacher, has an outsider’s perspective on the shift in students. “As humans, we are always looking for what’s next. We have such a hard time just being present, and then we combine it with today’s world, or the mentality of full productivity at all times,” she said. “So, we’re never okay with where we are. We’re always wondering, well, what’s next?”
Other factors also play a large role in the desire to age faster. Cove said, “I think because social media wants us to be these perfect people, and the people that are posting it, that’s who you want to be. So you’re trying to mimic that person, and that person is probably not your age.” This is evident in recent trends, such as the love for bows.
The “coquette” trend–known for its resurgence of hyper-femininity–has even reached young Josephine. When asked about trends she loves, she answered immediately, “I really like the Coquette… like, the bows and stuff.” Even at just 8-years old, Josephine has found herself drawn to the current trends.
Cove believes that part of the fascination with social media that kids Josephine’s age experience has to do with wanting to be someone else. She said, “Because we always look up to somebody, we always want to be somebody else, but in reality, we can never be them. We can only be us.” Tralins agrees. “I think that the freshmen and middle schoolers now are trying to grow up too fast, because social media, like TikTok and Instagram, are influencing them to move to their adulthood when they should really be living their lives,” she said.
Many upperclassmen seem to be holding onto their childhoods tighter as they begin to feel them slipping away. Tralins even pulled a stuffed bear out of her bag during her interview, holding it tightly.
Cove noticed how students, eager to grow up and leave, often remember these times and recall the positives. She said, “Some students talk trash on the way out to each other, ‘I’m never gonna come back here. I’m never, never, ever.’ And then 10 years later, they come back and they go, ‘thank you.’”
