Virtual Lab 1 – TemperamentSubmit AssignmentDue Sunday by 11:59pmPoints 25Submitting a file uploadAvailable until Feb 14 at 11:59pmThis week you learned about temperament and specifically how “goodness of fit” can affect your approach to behavior and guidance with each child. Step 1: Take a look at the Infant Toddler Temperament Tool (IT-3) Toddler Version (Links to an external site.)Step 2: Then view the following case study: https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/mental-health/article/temperament-case-study-use-training (Links to an external site.)Step 3: Now you take the IT-3 (Links to an external site.). Answer the “I am” based on your own temperament and answer the “your infant is” based on the case study, a child you know, or just randomly choose answers. When complete, click “print your results” and “save as a pdf.” Step 4: View these final considerations: A Recipe for SuccessWhen working with infants and toddlers, it is important to remind yourself that they, like adults, are unique individuals. What is helpful for one infant may change daily, and even change within the same day. It also may not even work for a different infant. Flexibility and creativity go a long way. It might be helpful to think of yourself as a cook following a recipe. Just as a creative, flexible, and knowledgeable cook recognizes that there are key ingredients and principles of cooking that affect the outcome, there are key ingredients and principles that can help you manage when your child has a different personality than you. However, there is not one “cookbook” for handling differences in temperament.Avoid Making Comparisons or Labeling ChildrenIt may be tempting to compare a child to yourself or others; for example, “Why can’t you be more like so and so?” Try to avoid thoughts and making comments like this to children. Avoid statements like, “I wish you were more outgoing,” or, “I wish you were less sensitive.” They are not helpful and risk making a child feel inadequate. It may be helpful to use words that state what you see and hear versus using a label like “shy.” These labels can stick.Slow Down and Loosen the ScheduleMany of us are busy multitasking and rushing from one activity to the next. Children, even those with active temperaments, have not perfected that skill and require a bit more time to transition between activities than adults. Avoid having a schedule that is not flexible enough to accommodate children’s needs and developing interests. Leave room in the day for unstructured time with a child.Empathize with Young ChildrenThink about how vulnerable it feels to be a child. You are dependent on someone else for food, a good night’s rest, love, and reassurance. You have little control over much of what happens in life. Seeing life from a child’s perspective may not be easy, but once learned, can lend clarity into how best to work with a child.Remember the PlusesIt is all too easy to focus on the challenges of a child’s temperament, particularly when it does not match your own. But for every drawback, there is at least one major advantage. For example, slow-to-adapt children are less likely to be influenced by peer pressure; highly active kids are often good at sports and do well in demanding jobs as adults; and serious children tend to be analytical and good evaluators. Look for and acknowledge children for their special traits and talents.Aim for Support, Not ChangeThe goal is to better understand and then effectively support a child’s temperament, not to change it. Temperaments make every child unique and remarkable in their own way.Step 5: Write a reflection on what you learned about goodness of fit, your own temperament, and considerations when reflecting on temperament as it relates to behavior and guidance. This reflection should be a one-page paper, double spaced, times new roman 12 point font. Step 6: Upload a PDF copy of your IT-3 and your one-page temperament reflectionRubric
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