How Are Infants & Toddlers Unique Individuals?

Temperament

• A child̵7;s unique temperament can be defined as how he ̶0;approaches and reacts to the world,̶1; according to the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations of Early Learning at Vanderbilt University. You might think of temperament as a child̵7;s personality. It plays a role in determining how an infant or toddler acts. Just as infants and toddlers have individual times that they reach certain milestones, they each have different ways of looking at and interacting with their environments. Having a solid understanding that temperament is important in determining a child̵7;s behavior will help you to provide better care for him.

Types of Temperaments

• Children can generally be described as being flexible, active or cautious, although not all fit neatly into these categories. Flexible infants and toddlers typically stick to regular eating and sleeping habits and are adaptable to change. They are usually calm. Active children may be less regular in eating and sleeping schedules and afraid of new people and surroundings. Cautious infants and toddlers may be more fussy and less active, but, over time, they warm to new situations when they are exposed to them more than once.

Overlaps in Temperament Types

• Children typically do not fall into just one of these three general categories of temperament. Your infant or toddler may show signs of cautiousness when meeting new people but be very active at home in a familiar environment. Also, if a child is raised a certain way, perhaps with a strict daily routine and schedule, this is likely to influence her behavior, in addition to her temperament.

Caring for a Certain Temperament

• One of the most important experiments in caring for an infant or toddler is to find out about a child̵7;s temperament. You can do this through observation and trying out different ways of caring for her. For example, watch how she reacts when you put her to sleep in different ways. If she smiles when you rock her or when you wrap her in a blanket before nap, it indicates that she likes what you̵7;re doing. Watch your child see how she communicates when you try different ways of touching, entertaining, feeding, holding, changing and attending to other daily needs.

  When you understand the individuality of each child in your care, you can help each to learn to express what he wants appropriately. You can also prevent problems before they happen by avoiding or ameliorating situations that can him.