Oh, boy!

That's what some people are saying about the paparazzi photos that recently surfaced of Shiloh Jolie-Pitt -- the 3-year-old daughter of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. She's dressed in head-to-toe boys' clothing on several occasions and you have to look twice to make sure this "she" isn't a "he."

In Touch magazine has a series of photos of Shiloh -- in one, she's wearing a fedora, T-shirt and pants, as well as boys' shoes, while in another, she is sporting camouflage pants, another boy's T-shirt and boy's sneakers; in a third, she dons the fedora and camouflage pants again, as well as a T-shirt and vest -- and she's armed with a toy sword.

Yet another photo shows Shiloh sans hat, with her formerly girlish blonde locks cut (allegedly by Shiloh herself with safety scissors) into a short, boyish style.

In Touch had "insiders" saying that Shiloh is copying Brad Pitt's style, "goes straight to the boys' section" when shopping, "loves wearing her brothers' clothes," and "wants to be a little boy."

Life & Style magazine actually asks the question, "Why is Angelina turning Shiloh into a boy?" Alana Kelen, senior fashion stylist at VH1 said in an interview, "Shiloh is pushing the boundaries of a tomboy look and crossing over to cross-dresser territory."

And Glenn Stanton, director of Family Formation Studies at the conservative organization Focus on the Family, told Life & Style that allowing Shiloh to dress like a boy is sending her the wrong message. The article notes that, in an interview Pitt once did with Oprah Winfrey, he even said Shiloh also answered only to boy's names when addressed, and that he'll ask her, "John, would you like some orange juice?"

We say that while Shiloh's appearance has caused some to question what's behind it all, we see the whole thing as kids' play that shouldn't raise eyebrows -- at least at this point.

For one thing, she may just be a daddy's little girl, wanting to emulate her hero. Pitt is known for his signature retro fedoras. Or she might admire and enjoy the company of her brothers and want to fit in with them.

"Little girls have never been women before," Stanton tells Life & Style. "They need help, they need guidance of what that looks like. It's important to teach our children that gender distinction is very healthy."

But Emma Jenner, a child development and behavioral specialist who founded a nanny training academy in the Los Angeles area, sees nothing to be concerned about. "I honestly think this is absolutely harmless, unless they are forcing her to do or be something against her will," says Jenner, who starred in the TLC series, "Take Home Nanny."

"I wouldn't be concerned about it at all unless she is being forced and isn't allowed to wear a dress," she says. "In most families, a younger child will get hand-me-downs from their older siblings."

Jenner didn't find Shiloh's 'do hair-raising either, and she says a Shiloh by any other name is no cause for alarm. "I'm not concerned about Shiloh being called John, as she probably chose it herself," Jenner adds.

Regarding the haircut, Jenner says: "I think it's still girlie, it's not shaved back and sides like a boy's cut. And who knows, perhaps she cut a chunk out of her own hair and her parents had to cut it shorter to fix it. Children do it all the time."

Children doing the gender-bending thing at a young age is common, Jenner says. "She isn't consciously saying 'I want to dress like a tomboy,' but children imitate what they see and perhaps Shiloh wants to be like her older brothers," Jenner adds. "Her parents are absolutely right in going along with it and not making a big deal about it." Fighting it will make it more appealing.

Wendy McKenna, who holds a doctorate in psychology and is on the gender studies faculty at Purchase College, SUNY, agrees. "I have no idea what's going on with Shiloh or her parents," says McKenna, who also is a member of the psychology and women's studies faculty at Barnard College and has a private psychology practice in Westchester. "But generally, the phenomemon of little boys wanting to dress like little girls and little girls wanting to dress like little boys (at age 5 and younger) is pretty common."

She says that whatever gender they are, children at that age can become fixated on something and not let it go, whether gender is involved or not.

"They're very rigid in their thinking," McKenna explains. "They decide they want something and that's all they want to do -- like a little girl who wants to wear the same princess dress every day, even if it's filthy; or they might decide they want to only eat peanut butter for six months." She adds, "I think this is the clothing version of that."

McKenna says, however, that parents willingly going along with gender bending can be another story. "It's unusual for parents to go with it if it violates gender norms," she adds, but she says that Brad and Angelina are unconventional.

"Their approach to gender and sexuality is not conservative," McKenna says, "They've said they weren't going to get married until marriage (involves) true equality."

It's likely all a phase, according to Jenner and McKenna.

"Most kids who do this decide, at some point, they don't want to do it anymore," McKenna adds. "It makes them feel comfortable, then they outgrow it."

Lisa Irizarry may be reached at lirizarry@starledger.com or (973) 392-5977.