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Esty Waits for Report Card Day

Ages 6-9 | Story and 9 activities

The week before report cards, Esty's stomach starts doing flips.

She has worked hard. She has studied for her spelling tests and finished all her math pages. But she has also had a hard time with the long division unit, and she isn't sure what her grade will be.

At lunch, her friend Chavi says, "I hope I get all A's."

"Me too," says Esty, and she pushes her sandwich around.

At night, she lies in bed with her eyes open. What if she gets a bad grade? What if Mommy and Totty are disappointed? What if the other girls see?

On Thursday, Bubby comes over for supper and finds Esty sitting by herself in the corner of the living room.

"Esty'le, what's on your mind?"

"Report cards. They're coming tomorrow. I'm scared."

Bubby sits on the sofa and pats the cushion. "Come."

Esty snuggles against her. Bubby's sweater smells like cinnamon.

"You know, when I was in school, I was nervous too. I remember the day my report card came. My hands were shaking."

"Did you get good grades?"

"Some good, some not so good. I wasn't good at arithmetic."

"Me neither," whispers Esty.

"And do you know what my mother said? She looked at the report card, and then she looked at me, and she asked, 'Did you try your best?'"

"What did you say?"

"I said yes, I did. And she said, 'Then I'm proud of you.'"

Esty thinks about that. "Did the grade matter?"

"A little. It showed me where I could grow. But what mattered more was that I tried. The grade is a picture of one moment. It doesn't tell the whole story of you."

Esty feels something loosen in her chest. "I did try my best. I worked really hard on the long division."

"Then you have nothing to be afraid of."

That night, Esty sleeps better. The next morning, Morah Chana hands out the envelopes. Esty holds hers for a long moment. Then she opens it slowly.

She has a very good grade in reading and writing. Good in spelling. A little lower in math. In the comments, Morah has written: Esty works hard and never gives up. A pleasure to teach.

Esty reads the last line three times. She smiles. The math grade isn't what she hoped, but it isn't terrible. And it tells her where to practice.

At home, Mommy reads the card at the table. "I'm so proud of you," she says. "Look at all this effort."

"What about the math?"

"We'll work on it together. It's just a place to grow."

Esty hugs her. That Shabbos, Bubby sits at the table and winks. "See? A picture of one moment."

At the end of the day, Chavi comes over, a little teary. Her report card has a surprise on it, too. Esty sits beside her and says what Bubby has told her. Chavi wipes her eyes and nods, and they walk out together.

Over the next weeks, Esty practices long division after supper with Mommy, one problem at a time. By the next report card, her stomach stays quiet.