Understanding Your Child's Temperament

Book excerpt: UNDERSTANDING YOUR CHILD'S TEMPERAMENT From their earliest days some children are shy and others are bold. A brother may be flexible, while his sister is rigid. One child is highly active, another far less so. One may stick with a challenge for hours, while another gives up easily. All children display distinct profiles of nine largely inborn temperament traits that determine how they experience their environments and respond to them. These interactions have a major impact on children's physical health, development, social behavior, and school performance, and on the caregivers themselves. If adults learn to recognize and tolerate temperament traits, they will be able to manage them more harmoniously and care for each child's individual needs. "What an important book for parents to consider. Treating each child as an individual shows them the respect that will engender self-esteem in them later. This book about differences in temperament by Dr. William Carey, an esteemed pediatrician, will give parents the backup they need to treat each child individually." T. Berry Brazelton, M.D Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School Author of numerous books on child development and care. "America's favorite pediatrician" "This classic work is now more useful than ever. The too often neglected role of temperamental patterns is explained brilliantly, so that all adults who live or work with kids can understand and manage these all-important differences between them." Mel Levine, M.D. Professor of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina Medical School. Author of national bestseller, A Mind at a Time, and 10 other books about children's learning issues.