Topic - Personality Styles. Julie is a socially dominant, straight-forward 8 year old who has no tolerance for the “drama” of the other girls in 3rd grade. She doesn’t giggle or act silly, but she’s no tomboy. What’s up with her?
Julie is not on the same emotional page as her female classmates. They don’t understand her, either. They become confused over her intensity because they have learned to temper theirs.
They have more ability to observe and monitor themselves than Julie has. They more readily adjust their behavior to fit situations.
Julie has yet to learn these skills and stands out as a result. Her assertiveness is misinterpreted as bullying because her leadership style is different from the other girls.
Help Julie to see how her behavior impacts others. “Julie, you may not be aware that when you get mad so fast, it scares the other girls”. Reflecting the behavior instead of judging will help her to develop insight and self-monitoring skills more quickly.
