One does not get far into studying the field of child life, or even child development as a whole, without running into dozens of theories that attempt to explain the way children act and mature. Each theory tends to apply to a different aspect of a child's life and maturation, but I find Thomas and Chess' theory about temperament to be the most effective when determining how to help children from a child life perspective. There are nine different characteristics of temperament, including sensory threshold, mood, approach/withdrawal, persistence, and distractibility. When we support a child, we must always assess what will be the most effective. Determining their temperament, which often shapes their personalities, will guide us in preparing the most effective interventions to prepare, support, educate, and calm down a child. Just as every adult is different, every child is different as well. What works for one child, will probably not work for each child. In order to develop the best plan of care, we must be cognizant of the temperaments of the children we work with.