I do think it varies dog to dog - I know a Sheltie who is not at all good with children. I would go for the bigger dogs - I grew up with a German Shepherd mix who was wonderful with kids. Shepherds are also herding dogs, of course, and she always kept track of all us kids (my family, and any neighbor children), especially with no grown-ups around. No stranger ever got more than halfway down the driveway with Sheba on duty, yet I - I was a toddler when they got her - could do anything to her. At our first meeting, I staggered over to her (she was a full-grown stray who "followed my cousin home") grabbed her tail and yanked with all my might. My Dad was ready to leap between the dog and I, but Sheba just turned her head slowly toward me and growled softly. That was it - she became family at that moment, and put up with other loving torture from me (hey - I was little!). We also had a Saint Bernard who was fabulous with kids, and a Great Dane who was a sweetheart with them, too!