Every individual child has his nature which will be similar throughout his life. A child may be formed, but he can be formed or can form himself only according to his nature, which is almost homoeostatic. This homoeostatic state can be called the constitution. The constitution is “what is” and the temperament is “what becomes”.
The Temperament of a child may change over time, and be affected by many external factors, such as the physical and emotional environment in which the child is raised, the illnesses to which they are exposed, vaccinations, drugs used, and so on.
The Sanguine Child
Let’s take a look at the Element of Air: It belongs to no one person or place, but is shared by all. Air is in constant movement itself and the cause of movement in other things. It is busy locally and travels far distances with ease. The sanguine child prefers to skip, or jump, or run on his toes rather than to walk. A delicate “taster” of food, with a bird’s appetite and a butterfly’s preference for sweetness, the sanguine child seems to be nourished more by his five senses than by his three regular meals.
The body opens itself to the air through its many orifices, and the sanguine child experiences the inner and outer worlds through all of them with equal devotion. His mouth will be more often open than shut (in complete contrast to the phlegmatic) and if not savoring words and sounds will be well occupied with licking fingers, nibbling pencils, chewing shirt collars or other obscure isometrics designed perhaps to develop mobility of expression or firmness of jawline, who knows? Not the sanguine child, for sure, who will be totally unaware that he was doing anything at all. The nose becomes a centre of intense activity, from the usual childish habits to use as a resting place for biros or the ends of pigtails, and then on to a sort of clearing house for smells of which the rest of us are happily unaware. All this, coupled with the birdlike movements of the eye shows us that the sensory world is never dull for the sanguine personality, which can present problems in the classroom. The wrong way to handle a sanguine child is to “sit” on him. He will only find a way of wriggling free and, most probably, like the air in a joke cushion, make a rude noise as he goes. The Sanguine’s creative spirit sees potential in every situation. The air is used by all weaves between individuals and whole nations an invisible web of relationships, and it is in making relationships that the sanguine personality excels. Not only does the child need to feel surrounded by many friends, (the thirst for company is a strong characteristic of this temperament), but the mature adult is able to develop a real gift for bringing other people, and also facts and ideas, into relationship. (1; 207)
A characteristic remedy for this temperament, as an example, could be… Sulphur
According to Paul Herscu N.D. Sulphur children tend to fall into one of four categories of temperaments: happy-go-lucky, irritable, hyperactive, or cerebral. Most common is the happy-go-lucky, smiling type. While some rare children needing Sulphur may be shy during the first visit, this shyness will usually only last for a few seconds or minutes at most before their natural curiosity takes over and they begin to explore both the office and the doctor. (2; 257) As the initial interview progresses or during follow-up interactions, the basically obstinate nature of the child becomes more evident. They have so much energy that it is often necessary to set limits for them while they are in the office. The doctor, nervous about the destruction of sensitive equipment and glassware or about having the office in total disarray, asks the child not to touch this or that, but the child continually tests the doctor’s patience. The child will push against such behavioral limits again and again, attempting to escape their confines. This is especially true of hyperactive Sulphur children. They nag at the doctor, asking why they cannot do whatever they wish. This type of obstinacy springs from the desire for freedom and the sense that it is absolutely necessary to let their inquisitiveness run wild. This stubbornness is seen even more vividly in the second type of Sulphur children: the nasty, irritable sort. These children have a negative attitude toward practically everything. (2; 259) It should be stressed that this irritable type is the rarest form of Sulphur. The hyperactive child is commonly cured with a prescription of Sulphur. The child has a great amount of energy, unstoppable by parents and teachers alike. Even the toddler shows this trait. The cerebral type seems to be more introverted and prefers to be alone and indulge in endless science fiction books or movies and tends to have only a few friends. They can be easily be taken as Nat. Mur., especially when this child does not want to be consoled and wants to be alone. The point is, the Sulphur child is typically all over the office, exploring everything, touching the pictures, pulling all the toys off the shelves, and generally making a mess of the office – something a sanguine temperament simply would do because it lies in his nature: in constant movement and seeing potential in every situation.
The Choleric Child
This temperament comes about when the Element of Fire has the upper hand in the constitution. The choleric temperament has the advantage, or the disadvantage, whichever way one may choose to look at it, of drawing its owner very much into the foreground socially. No one ignores a fire, its majesty captures everyone’s attention and people naturally gravitate towards it, grateful for its warmth and light perhaps, sometimes in awe of it, or simply mesmerized by its activity and its energy. This energy is the hallmark of the choleric child and cannot in any way be compared to the constant activity of the sanguine. Even at rest, the energy latent in the smoking coals is apparent in the clear, direct, penetrating gaze of the, often dark, eye. Other children are aware of this subtle force and usually defer to it. This is advantageous for the choleric child in that he can rise to his instinctive role as leader and allow full play for what he feels are his superior skills. With an audience to admire him and plenty of children around to be organized (at which he excels) the choleric child is supremely happy – as indeed is everyone else (on the good days, that is). On the bad days, he is rejected as being simply “bossy” which makes him utterly miserable and confused. This unfortunate state of affairs can occasionally lead to the child destroying a game or project from which he has been excluded just to “show them” that he still is the boss. But this uncontrolled raging of fire is rarer than it might be because the choleric child has a very keen sense of fair play and is a prompt critic of injustice wherever he sees it. Fire is quick to come to life and can also be speedily put “out”. In the heat of his enthusiasm the choleric child is often careless of the finer feelings of others, but when his own soul is wounded he feels this deeply, and his inner flame is doused. It is difficult for other temperaments to appreciate that the choleric needs to feel superior, and is most at ease and works best when he is secure in this position. The tenseness of the choleric, and his overwhelming frustration when things don’t work out his way leads to obvious social difficulties, but these are balanced out by his ability to generate warmth in a group. (1; 211)