Learning how to deal with your child's personality

For the highly active toddler (18 months to 3 1/2 years)
Engage your highly active child in activities that will keep her attention for long periods of time.

If you do this: Play   
Visit a local park with a range of activities to enjoy, like climbing structures, different types of swings, seesaws, sandbox, playing field for running with kites, playing soccer or tag, a bike or walking path , etc.

Your child will: Put the gross motor skills (balance, climbing, walking backwards, etc.) she has already developed to good use and practice new ones that are emerging. This is a great way to have her burn off some excess energy.

For the easygoing preschooler (3 1/2 to 5 Years)
If your child's temperament is easygoing, he may follow more than lead and may not always tell you how he feels. 

If you do this: Teach   
Plan to take your child on a special outing. Discuss the options with him – visit a museum, science centre, go on a nature walk, etc. Ask him open-ended questions about his decision, and later, on the outing, ask what he sees, likes and thinks about his surroundings, for example What do you like about this exhibit?   

Your child will: Use decision-making skills and exchange points of view with you about the options before him, rather than just going with the flow. Open-ended questions encourage him to tell you how he feels, using words beyond "yes" and "no" from his growing vocabulary.

Knowing and understanding your child’s temperament helps you tailor your expectations of what your child can and will do. It also helps you to better help your child realize their full potential. According to Invest in Kids, when you comfort, play with and teach your child every day, you open a world of possibilities for you both.

Read more:
Raise your baby the eco friendly way
Teaching your toddler good hygiene
Understanding toddler speak

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Invest in Kids is a national charity dedicated to helping parents become the parents they want and need to be. By translating the science of parenting and child development into engaging, easy-to-understand, relevant resources for parents and professionals, Invest in Kids aims to strengthen the parenting knowledge, skills and confidence of all those who touch the lives of our youngest children to ensure the healthy social, emotional and intellectual development of children from birth to age five.

To learn more about temperament, Invest in Kids and Comfort, Play & Teach®, visit www.investinkids.ca.