Now that you have identified your child’s temperament traits, you can use that information to help your child adapt to certain situations. You can encourage her in activities for which her temperament is best suited. You can provide activities that work with your child’s temperament that he can enjoy. You can help guide decisions about his room, his school environment, and the friends he chooses.

Think about your own child. Your goal is to help your child’s world fit better with her temperament. To do that, you need to create a clear picture of what your child’s world is like right now. Picture your child’s world. Close your eyes if you need to in order to focus on seeing the environments that your child is in on a regular basis.

How would you describe your child’s world?

Friends, Family, and Home

How colorful is your child’s room? What is the noise level in your home? What are her siblings like? Does the family keep a routine schedule?

Activities and Television

What kind of games does he play? Does TV hold his attention or does he walk away? Does he have time to play outside?

Learning, Childcare, and School

What is the environment like at her childcare or school? How is it different from home? Does she respond to pictures or to singing or talking? Does she like you to talk to her?

Guidance and Discipline

Is it hard to keep him busy? Does he get bored easily? Does he have trouble sitting still? What does he like to do when he is tired?

Now that you have a better idea of what your child’s world looks like right now, you are ready to think about ways you can help your child achieve a better fit between his temperament and his world. Remember, children need to learn to not only adapt their world to their temperament, but their temperament to their world. Family, friends, childcare, school activities – all these things can influence your child’s temperament.