I normally agree 100% with Grinity, but this is one post I'd have to slightly disagree with some of the wording.
I will not/would not use negative words to describe behaviors that could be mistaken for character traits. "Lazy" strikes a nerve with me.
I'd prefer to change this, "He is too lazy to choose harder work, if given the choice." to this:
"He needs to have a challenge presented, and encouragement to go for the challenge."
Reword this, "He is too much of a conformist to want to stand out from his classmates." to this:
"He is uncomfortable outperforming his classmates for fear of offending them, or possibly even thinking he will upset his teacher if he performs above her expectations."
The general theme I'm getting from Grinity's post is to have the school see this is a child with a problem which is in their power to solve, I agree with that. I just don't like giving a school the words they can use to make the child's character & behavior a scapegoat for the school to absolve themselves from coming up with a solution.
