As you get older, parents and teachers (and therefore, kids) talk a lot more about grades. Some schools give marks like “satisfactory” or “needs improvement” in earlier years, but by third grade, many schools have switched to the more common A, B, C (well, you know the rest . . .) system. This makes a lot of kids nervous because they seem more like “real” grades, something that will count and cause them trouble in the future if they don’t do well.
Sometimes boys put lots of pressure on other boys to NOT do well in school because they don’t think it’s “cool” to get good grades. If this is happening to you, talk with an adult you trust about it. This can be a hard situation to handle, especially if the kids who are teasing you about your good grades are old friends. You’ve probably heard the term “peer pressure” (pressure other kids put on you to be, act, or dress like them) and this is a perfect example. See Chapter 7 for tips on dealing with peer pressure. One thing an adult can do is help you figure out ways to meet other kids who like to study and don’t mind being thought of as “smart.” Also, ask your teacher for help in keeping your grades private. Teachers sometimes like to praise their best students in front of the other kids, but he or she might not know about the trouble it is causing you!
Learning begins when you say, “I don’t know.”