Engage children in conversation by talking about their favorite TV character or pop singer. Try to play games or use puppets as part of an exam. When listening to a child's breathing, for example, you can ask a child to blow on a pinwheel or pretend to blow out candles on a birthday cake. By encouraging laughter, Hennessey says, I get what I need and the child is having fun. Pay attention to appearance theirs and yours.
Appearance can be very important to children, especially to teenagers.
It is quite likely that adolescent patients spend considerable time and effort getting ready for their appointment. Find something to compliment in their appearance be it their clothes, nails, hairstyle, or even belly-button ring. Your appearance is also important. Hennessey, for example, often wears brightly colored clothes and sometimes adds a light-hearted touch to her wardrobe, such as wearing a pin that squirts water. By dressing this way, she finds she can gather far more information than she might when she is wearing a traditional lab coat.