A child with a lot of personality

[Wanttogetoffthehamsterwheel]

Dd, 5, report stated this…any teachers here (or anyone else) that can read through this teacher speak 😂
Is this a positive or negative thing?

Same as the "manic pixie dream girl" trope is simply based on conventionally attractive adult women with undiagnosed ADHD/ASD

Is it? I thought it was just a cliche of much-younger hippyish yoga women or art students who middle-aged men fantasise about having affairs with.

I always used to write very honest reports...and then education in this country went to hell in a hand basket and we are no longer allowed to say anything remotely negative in them! So all we have are comments like this, where we hope that parents can read between the lines (which as we can see from this thread is clearly impossible!

E.g when one teacher says 'Tillyfloss has a HUGE personality and LOVES to involve herself in EVERYTHING that's going on in the class!'...one teacher might very well mean that Tillyfloss is indeed the life and soul of Class 2 and has a great personality, whilst another is trying to convey that she's a royal PITA and can't keep her nose out of anyone else's business! 🤷‍♀️

Not very kind of some posters (teachers surprisingly) to forget to have some sensitivity and remember this is my daughter we’re talking about and just a little girl.

The teacher said she had a lot of personality…is that the same as a big personality?
Does this imply she’s ND then?
No it doesn't and if school had any concerns your daughter was ND then they should have been on the phone to you. Also, you know your child best. If you're not concerned in that way then it not worth worrying about.

Like a PP said, having lots of personality can go either way. On the one hand you've got people with lots of personality who are enjoyable to be around, bring others out their shell, and funny and the life and soul of the situation. On the other hand you've got the people who are loud, dominant, everything is about them being the centre of attention, they like to have the last word, they "tell it like it is", don't let others get a word in etc.

She's young and finding her feet. With a parent who cares and is invested in her education, she's probably going to learn to be more like the first group I mentioned rather than the second.

In your opinion 🙄

Yes!!! 👏🏼 👏🏼 👏🏼

Teacher here - that’s a compliment! And personally, I always get misty eyed writing reports - no matter how challenging the child is, report writing is a time for reflection, and it’s always a privilege to think about how far these little people have come in just 9 months and that I’ve been a little part of that.

It's also worth remembering that posters aren't necessarily saying whether it's a compliment or not based on whether they themselves would write it as a compliment. It's very clear from this thread that it varies from teacher to teacher! That's why I wouldn't write this in a report at all - it's ambiguous and just not a very useful comment without context. I might say it at a parents' evening, but only as a compliment, and only if I sensed that the parents would take it as such.

I think this is a really mean spirited comment.

One of mine has a "lot of personality" - yes, outgoing, bit excitable and needs sitting on periodically to remind her of the limits as to acceptability with it all - but apart from one teacher who didn't like her at all (and she also hated DD2 who is a very polite, people pleasing kind kid), teachers have all been very honest with me that she's a lovely kid, absolutely one that you can bounce things off to have a really good productive lesson and just needs to be reminded to rein it in periodically. I'm utterly fine with that - I'm not going to squash that spark that is going to be what gets her through life, and I'll back school when it gets out of hand. Teacher also has said how she really enjoys the work DD produces - to the point that she'll keep it to be one of the last she marks as it'll give her a lift because her personality comes through in her writing as well.

The other one is such a kind little people pleaser - but is riddled with anxiety about trying to please teachers - probably a dream kid to have in class but I do try to teach her to speak up for herself a bit more.

Couldn't give a shit about which kid gives the teachers the easier life - they stop the nonsense when asked to stop, and I just expect the teachers to do their jobs like I do as a parent. I quite liked the sparky kids when I taught - kept me on my toes and when you get kids who can pick up and run with a concept you teach them - that's what makes the job worthwhile.

Its a lazy and unhelpful thing to write whether it's meant to be complimentary or not.
Personalities don't come in sizes and all children have one in equal measure. A teacher using an ambiguous cliche is telling you nothing of worth. What needs to be communicated is how your child behaves and areas of strength and areas that need support.
So "Takes part actively in discussion and offers her ideas, but needs help to give other children space to contribute"
"Is popular with other children and often takes the lead. Needs encouragement to agree to other children's suggestions at times".
If the teacher hasn't explained herself properly, no point guessing. Ask her how this "lot" of personality manifests and are there areas that you need to support DD with.