Birth Order
January 16, 2008
Targets For Today:
Describe birth order and how it affects
relationships with others
Question whether or not birth order
research matches your own unique
personality
Birth Order
Birth order refers to the order in which you
were born among your siblings.
Many believe that the order in which you
were born among brothers and sisters
influences how you develop.
Though birth order gives us clues about
our behavior, it is not always accurate.
What if?
What if there are 5 years separating you
from your sibling?
You can be characterized as an only child or
first born sometimes having both only child and
first born child characteristics.
Who do You Think You Are?
1. Manipulative, charming, blames others,
shows off, people person, good
salesperson, precocious.
2. Mediator, fewest pictures in the family
photo album, avoids conflict, independent,
extreme loyalty to the peer group, many
friends
3. Perfectionist, reliable, list-maker, wellorganized, critical, serious, scholarly
The Results
If you are most like number…
1. You may be the youngest child in the family.
2. You may be the middle child in the family.
3. You may be the first born child in the family.
What do you think?
Activity
Get into groups with your classmates
depending on your birth order.
Brainstorm together and come up with why it is
cool to be in your birth order and what stinks
about being in your birth order.
Write down your ideas on the poster paper in
each group.
Share with class.
Feelings of First Born Children
"Everyone depends on me."
"I can't get away with anything."
"I don't get to be a kid."
"Why do I have to do it? Nobody else does
anything around here."
"How come I'm responsible for what my
little brother or sister did?"
First Born
Personality Traits
Confident
Determined
Born leader
Organized
Eager to please
Likes to avoid trouble
Feelings of Middle Children
"I'm tired of being left out of things."
"Nobody understands me!"
"Nobody ever listens to me!"
"I'm always in the shadow of my older
sister/brother."
"My youngest brother/sister gets away with
everything."
Middle
Personality Traits
Roll with it
Great negotiator
Lots of loyal friends
Feelings of Youngest Children
"I have to work hard to get other people to
pay attention to me!"
"Nobody takes me seriously."
"Everyone treats me like I'm younger than
I am."
Youngest
Personality Traits
Persistent
Great story teller
Affectionate
Feelings of Only Children
"I didn't do as well as I should have."
"Sometimes I feel lonely."
"I would be much happier with a brother or
sister."
"I'm not getting enough attention."
Only Children
Personality Traits:
Confident
Pays attention to detail
Good in school
It’s MINE!
Overly critical
Famous People
First Born Children:
Bill Cosby, George W. Bush, Hilary Rodham
Clinton, Oprah Winfrey and Jessica Simpson.
Middle Born Children:
Jay Leno, Donald Trump, Susan B. Anthony,
Barbara Walters
Famous People
Youngest Children:
Drew Carey, Jim Carey, Eddie Murphy,
Cameron Diaz, Whoopi Goldberg
Only Children:
Robert DeNiro, Natalie Portman, Sarah
Michelle Gellar, Tiger Woods and Charlize
Theron
Why?
On a separate sheet of paper that you will
be turning in for credit, answer:
Why does it matter? Will this information
benefit me and my relationships with others?
Do you agree or disagree with your
characteristics of your birth order? Why?
Why Does this Matter?
Parents should attempt to help each child
to see themselves as unique individuals
and avoid comparisons with siblings or
others.
For Additional Information
You can go to:
http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/htmpu
bs/4359.htm
http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/family/birthorder/