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Toddlers - Functions at a young age

raindancing

actinomycetes
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My son is almost two and I find it utterly fascinating to observe his mind working; the way he plays, learns, everything… I'm particularly interested in how functions might manifest and show themselves at such a young age

I would be fantastically interested in anything anyone would be willing to share about yourself/siblings/your own or other kids around the toddler age.

Speculations or thoughts on how it relates to the type/functions, even better. :)

Thanks! :D

(Not sure if this thread is in the right place...)
 

Totenkindly

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When my eldest son (INTP) was four, he suddenly got scared when we went driving down the road because he felt like the entire minivan was going to flip upside down based on the laws of physics as he imagined them to work. Once he cried because we were going to get out of the car in a parking lot, and he thought the redistribution of weight would result in the entire vehicle spinning upside down.

His logic wasn't bad per se, his initial assumptions about gravity and balance were just still off. If the entire car had been on a pivot, it would have worked out just as he had imagined.

He was also very articulate, he used extensive qualifiers (possibly, definitely, certainly, potentially) in his speech at age three, and and liked to explain how things worked based on his understanding. It was funny, he sounded like a little college kid with a little three-year-old voice.

My ESFP son spent two months in the hospital was born, and he was a people magnet. I was able to compare him to my first born, who everyone liked (because he had been a pleasant baby) but didn't necessarily get DRAWN to... this was just very intense and bizarre, everyone in the room would literally flock around our younger son and respond to his personality glow. Nurses would consistently would spent their lunch shifts coming up to the NICU to hold him. He just responded and engaged in such a basic and positive way that people fell in love with him right away and wanted to be around him.
 

SD45T-2

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When my eldest son (INTP) was four, he suddenly got scared when we went driving down the road because he felt like the entire minivan was going to flip upside down based on the laws of physics as he imagined them to work. Once he cried because we were going to get out of the car in a parking lot, and he thought the redistribution of weight would result in the entire vehicle spinning upside down.

His logic wasn't bad per se, his initial assumptions about gravity and balance were just still off. If the entire car had been on a pivot, it would have worked out just as he had imagined.

He was also very articulate, he used extensive qualifiers (possibly, definitely, certainly, potentially) in his speech at age three, and and liked to explain how things worked based on his understanding. It was funny, he sounded like a little college kid with a little three-year-old voice.
Do you ever watch Top Gear (BBC)? He sounds just like James May. :D
 

Qlip

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Holy crap, my ExFJ daugter was hell as a toddler. She started toddling and talking at 9 months and never stopped. The hell part is that she was the most willful little twerp ever, she viewed punishment as a chance to show us down.

INTJ(?) son was just very quiet and observant. He learned very early to say a few words, and then didn't talk again till he was like 3. I think he decided he didn't really need to say anything to get what he wanted. As a result he had to do a lot speech therapy to work on pronunciation early in life.

Hmmm.. I remember my ISFP learning her colors and shapes very early.. she would point to people's teeth and say "yellows". Hah.
 

Chaotic Harmony

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This site might be interesting to you.

I've got an (almost) one year old.... I've found it very interesting comparing her to her nephews and other friends little ones that are relatively close in age. As my husband and I are so different, I'm eager to see what personality traits she picks up.
 

prplchknz

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I don't remember my toddler years but from what i've been told is I was very quiet and observant and loved being held. and instead of crying when i wanted something i would point.
 

Chaotic Harmony

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I don't remember my toddler years but from what i've been told is I was very quiet and observant and loved being held. and instead of crying when i wanted something i would point.

*now ponders if I have the makings of a future INFP* :newwink:
 

prplchknz

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*now ponders if I have the makings of a future INFP* :newwink:

that or an ISFP the auxilary function doesn't manifest its self to either 7 or 8 or possibly as late as 11 or 12 i don't remember which. don't look at me!
 

raindancing

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Thanks for the comments everyone :)

[MENTION=7]Jennifer[/MENTION] - My ESFP sister always drew people as well, this crazy magnetic thing. She's 18 now, and loved by everyone.

[MENTION=10714]Qlip[/MENTION] - Well my son sounds nothing like your ExFJ daughter lol. Reminds me of how my parents talk of my ESTJ sister when she was little. Interesting about the talking thing with INTJ son. My son hasn't talked a lot, but just this last week started talking non stop all these words he's never used before, sentences. It's bizarre.

[MENTION=7420]Chaotic Harmony[/MENTION] - Thanks for the link, I have seen that site before but it seems aimed more at older kids. Still interesting though :) I also find it fascinating to compare my little boy to children his own age. It's difficult though, he never acts the same when around other people as he does at home. I'm sure all kids are like this to varying degrees, can make comparisons difficult.

[MENTION=360]prplchknz[/MENTION] - I've always been told I was very quiet and good baby. Slept through the night at a couple weeks old, loved to sit in a swing and watch things. Didn't nap much even as an infant. Apparently I also did the pointing thing.


Don't have much time for my own anecdotes, just about to leave on a 6 hour drive. But one thing that comes to mind: My husband, an INTP, had a whole trio of imaginary friends as a toddler and young child. One was called social climber and was yellow. :D
 

Chaotic Harmony

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[MENTION=360]prplchknz[/MENTION] - I've always been told I was very quiet and good baby. Slept through the night at a couple weeks old, loved to sit in a swing and watch things. Didn't nap much even as an infant. Apparently I also did the pointing thing.

*SERIOUSLY considers that she has an INFP on her hands!* :D
 

prplchknz

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Thanks for the comments everyone :)

[MENTION=7]Jennifer[/MENTION] - My ESFP sister always drew people as well, this crazy magnetic thing. She's 18 now, and loved by everyone.

[MENTION=10714]Qlip[/MENTION] - Well my son sounds nothing like your ExFJ daughter lol. Reminds me of how my parents talk of my ESTJ sister when she was little. Interesting about the talking thing with INTJ son. My son hasn't talked a lot, but just this last week started talking non stop all these words he's never used before, sentences. It's bizarre.

[MENTION=7420]Chaotic Harmony[/MENTION] - Thanks for the link, I have seen that site before but it seems aimed more at older kids. Still interesting though :) I also find it fascinating to compare my little boy to children his own age. It's difficult though, he never acts the same when around other people as he does at home. I'm sure all kids are like this to varying degrees, can make comparisons difficult.

[MENTION=360]prplchknz[/MENTION] - I've always been told I was very quiet and good baby. Slept through the night at a couple weeks old, loved to sit in a swing and watch things. Didn't nap much even as an infant. Apparently I also did the pointing thing.


Don't have much time for my own anecdotes, just about to leave on a 6 hour drive. But one thing that comes to mind: My husband, an INTP, had a whole trio of imaginary friends as a toddler and young child. One was called social climber and was yellow. :D


haha I was very colicky as a baby i cried for hours and hours everynight until my mom took dairy out of my diet, but this was when i was an infant and not a toddler.
 

Chaotic Harmony

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haha I was very colicky as a baby i cried for hours and hours everynight until my mom took dairy out of my diet, but this was when i was an infant and not a toddler.

LoL, I had to do that too. :( Life was SO much better after I did that! :)
 

Chaotic Harmony

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I was able to add dairy back and don't have problems with it anymore though.

We've slowly added dairy back in with her... And most of it is okay... She still has terrible fits with some dairy though. Hopefully she gets over that soon!
 
A

Anew Leaf

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My son is almost two and I find it utterly fascinating to observe his mind working; the way he plays, learns, everything… I'm particularly interested in how functions might manifest and show themselves at such a young age

I would be fantastically interested in anything anyone would be willing to share about yourself/siblings/your own or other kids around the toddler age.

Speculations or thoughts on how it relates to the type/functions, even better. :)

Thanks! :D

(Not sure if this thread is in the right place...)

I like this thread idea. :)

Looking back, I can see a lot of Fi when I was young.

Storytime!

When I was three, we moved back to where my parents were from and they built a house. They decided to make their own white picket fence to put around the back yard. My dad designed and cut out all of the pieces, and my mom painted them. My job was to stay out of the way and to not fall into the paint tubs.

I spent most of my time watching clouds and playing with blades of grass. I finally got bored of that and decided that my official job in all of this was to save the bugs that kept flying into the drying boards and getting stuck in the paint. There was one particular bug that was I was most concerned about; a ladybug. I carefully excavated her from the paint and ran into the house with her. I washed the paint off of her but in my enthusiasm I also washed her off my hands and down into the drain. I immediately began to cry and I proceeded to be impossible to live with for the next 4 hours of tears and anguish. My parents tried being logical with me: It's just a bug. My parents tried being whimsical with me: She is on an epic watery adventure!! My parents tried distracting me with ice cream: ITS YOUR FAVORITE. But to no avail.

Finally they produced an actual clever alternative: telling me that my ladybug friend had climbed out of the sink in the kitchen. (My dad having made the unfortunate decision to teach me about how plumbing works just a few weeks beforehand.)

the End.
 

Cellmold

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I cried all the time and nothing my parents could do was able to stop me. I was fussy in the extreme over food....in fact I used to only eat Fromage Frais yogurts and nothing else if I could help it. Ironic as these days im pretty adventurous with food.....to an extent.

I was quiet and shy and at the same time aggressive and violent. I was that weird kid who hung in the corner not talking to anyone and when they did I would usually attack them. I despised new people and new situations or environments. I was intensely clingy as a child, my mum had a hard time getting me to do anything.
I think I was tested for autism about 2-3 times but they never confirmed it. I was incredibly defeatist and negative, I used to go on about dying all the time and killing someone, (lol me killing). And yes this was as a toddler. I also didnt talk until I was well into the age of 3 but when I did it was full sentences.

I used to like being read to and listening to audiobooks to fall asleep by....although I usually never fell asleep.

All in all I was a little bastard.
 

Lady_X

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my entp son never played with toys as tho they were meant to be played with
he made piles of chaotic messes that only he knew what they were
he was/is hilarious and had this humor that was way beyond his years. like before he could even talk he seemed to understand why certain things were funny. he really fed off of people reactions to him and turned up the charm and made everyone crack up.
humor was his way of communicating with adults
he was also very charismatic and everyone was drawn to him. he had big sparkly eyes...just a giant personality...very loving affectionate and silly

my esfj daughter
played mommy before she could even walk
favorite thing to play was kitchen and mommy
very loving but a lot more independent than my son
she wanted to do everything by herself my son was happy to let me or anyone willing to do it for him (still is)
she was/is bossy and tries to tell my son what to do
she is very outgoing and can make friends with everyone
always tries to please everyone and make everyone happy
is always willing to compromise to make others happy

my son...loves to debate. he thinks everything is up for debate and rules only need to be followed if they make sense.
very artistic and loves to have long conversations about facts that he's learned

it is unbelievably cool seeing their personalities develop. :wubbie:
 
G

Glycerine

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I was quiet, stubborn, in my head, didn't start talking until I was 2-3, somewhat anti-authority, curious. If I got pissed, I would go sulk in a corner and then reengage.
 

Nicodemus

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Probably my most prominent feature during childhood was an immense stubbornness: I would decide what to wear (a bizarre combination of clothes; a black-yellow sweater would become famous for being chosen very often), what I wanted to do and, most importantly, what I did not want to do: wear what my mother chose for me or go to places that I did not know or want to be at. Going for a walk with me when I did not want to resulted in me not going even if I had already been brought to the desired location by car: I would refuse to walk and just wait at the car until the rest of the family had finished their walk.

A year or so ago my mother recounted a story in which I was playing with other children but somehow broke the rules of the game. They said that if I did not do it their way, I would not be allowed to continue playing with them. Well, so I played alone. It was much easier to play with my sister, because there I would make the rules.

And a story I recently shared with Jennifer: When I was supposed to go to kindergarten, which is around age three, I was vehemently against it. My mother, knowing what was right, brought me there anyway. Apparently, I was screaming and crying when she left for work while I had to remain, and for weeks to follow I would scream and cry every time I was brought there and irately sulk during my stay, being wary of and angry towards the kindergarteners, so that, when she picked me up again, they would beg my mother not to bring me back the next day. She did, of course.

I am sure an avid believer in cognitive functions can find some Ni, Te, and Fi in there.
 
G

garbage

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I apparently didn't cry or seek attention much at all when I was young. I jumped in the 10' deep end of the pool when I was 3 years old just for the hell of it (and I'm pretty sure I managed). I built lots of stuff out of Construx. I didn't talk much, to the point where my parents thought that I might be autistic. Apparently I got better, because I was pretty sociable with the ~10 other kids my mom babysat simultaneously on a regular basis.

I quietly got myself into things (lead in the school play, etc.) without bothering to let my parents know. My parents did fight for me to get into certain programs, but they neither chain-whipped me into studying long hours nor paid money to administrators to let me into their programs--more 'looking out for my best interests,' making sure that I was able to seize opportunities if they were in front of me. Some of those opportunities were experimental, and I still take on experimental opportunities to this very day (e.g. a brand spanking new degree program of which I'll be the first graduate).

That's all I remember. I wonder what that makes me?
 
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