First Grade Dropout: An Illustrated Story About Embarrassing Mistakes at School for Children

First Grade Dropout #1

by Audrey Vernick, Matthew Cordell (Illustrator)

The first grade narrator of this book has been lots of Hungry. Four years old. Crazy bored. Soaking wet. Pretty regular kid . . . until he makes a mistake so big that he's sure he will never be able to go back to Lakeview Elementary School. All readers, even those not in first grade, will find the narrator's feelings familiar, and discover that even though embarrassing things happen, they're usually not as bad as they seem. And sometimes they're even funny!

Genres: Picture Books, School, Humor, Friendship, Childrens, Realistic Fiction, Fiction

32 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 7, 2015

About the author

Audrey Vernick is the author of books for young readers.

Forthcoming titles:

When I Redraw the World, illustrated by Heather Fox

Homesick, written with Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Daniel Miyares


www.audreyvernick.com

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

After an embarrassing mishap in class, this little boy feels that he has no choice but to drop out of school, in the first grade. He ponders how things might be and what he can do to make things better, only to discover that his foible is not as critical as once thought. Neo laughed at this story, though I was first to stress that dropping out of school in Grade One was not an option. Best get used to things not always being... peachy!

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the young narrator of this engaging picture-book exploration of childhood embarrassment says something extremely awkward in class - he accidentally calls his teacher 'Mommy' in front of all of his classmates! - he decides that he can never return to school. Imagining all of the things he can do as a first-grade dropout, the boy dwells almost obsessively on the circumstances surrounding his embarrassment, particularly the fact that his best friend joined the laughter at his expense. It is only when he sees his friend again at soccer, and is himself witness to his friend's embarrassing mistake, that he begins to get a more balanced perspective...

A sensitive appraisal of the sometimes extreme feelings of embarrassment that young people experience, First Grade Dropout follows a believable trajectory, as the would-be dropout works his way through his emotional reaction, and eventually comes, through further social interaction, to the conclusion that all is not lost. I appreciated Audrey Vernick's tale, and I think a lot of first graders will as well. The artwork by Matthew Cordell, done in pen and ink and watercolor, is entertaining and amusing, ably capturing the protagonist's anguished musings in humorous cartoon-like style. Recommended to all first graders who feel that they'll never recover from the grade-school faux pas they've committed.

[Lesley Burnap · Rating 4 out of 5]

It DOES happen every year.

[Cynthia Levinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vernick gets cleverer and cleverer. There's so much depth and complexity to this endearing story that all kids can relate to.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Something very embarrassing happened at school. Very cute story. Same thing happened to me in 4th grade!

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

My soon-to-be first grader and I laughed hard at this. It’s a great book with a great message. Being able to laugh at yourself is such an important lesson!

[babyhippoface · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Sunday morning after church, when all the adults were still gathered below the church steps, chatting about the service or their families, I sidled up next to a tall man in a dark suit with deeply-tanned skin and slipped my hand into his. I looked up to discover the hand belonged to the music director and not my daddy. My stomach flopped and I was mortified to the point of tears.

So I can genuinely appreciate our hero's situation here. Mistakes happen. Sometimes we can erase them like an incorrect math solution, and sometimes we have to live with the public humiliation they bring (however short- or long-lived it may be). Audrey Vernick knows how kids think. As adults we view accidentally calling a teacher "Mommy" no big deal. To the child who does that, though, it can be traumatic.

The illustrations are a perfect match for the story. The slightly messy lines reflect the narrator's anxiety over his mistake.

This is a fantastic book for helping new first graders calm their school-related worries.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

First Grade Dropout, written by Audrey Vernick and illustrated by Matthew Cordell, is a nominee for the 2017-18 South Carolina Picture Book Award.

What could be so bad that it causes a boy to consider dropping out of the first grade? He tries to think of other ways to escape the embarrassment he's feeling, but there's really only one choice. He can simply never go back to school after what he's done. The kids at school (including his closest friend) will never stop laughing at him!

There are some things about first grade he'll miss, though. He'll especially miss all of his friends. Maybe he can smile through the embarrassment. Or maybe it's not as big of a deal as he thinks it is.

Will this embarrassed boy stay in school? Find out when you read First Grade Dropout!

This book is an excellent story for helping young readers deal with embarrassment, something that everyone feels at one point or another. Mistakes might feel huge and impossible to get over, but they're usually never as bad as they are in a person's own mind.

[Sails and Scales · Rating 3 out of 5]

The boy in this story has been a lot of things (hungry, bored, and wet), but the worst of all those things is when he knows he will have to become a first grade dropout. He has done something so embarrassing that he cannot go back to school. He tries to come up with ways to avoid going to school, like casting a spell to undo what he did or building a time machine to go back before it happened, so that he doesn’t have to face his classmates knowing that he called his teacher “mommy”. He’ll miss being around his friends, but he knows he can’t go back. However, at soccer practices, he and his friend realize that everyone makes mistakes and it is okay to laugh when embarrassing things happen.

Although sometimes the vocabulary and thought process might be a little advanced for first graders, most first graders will be able to identify with something embarrassing happening to them and feeling like they need to drop out of school so that they don’t have to deal with people laughing at them. Kids will enjoy laughing at the story and the funny pictures and side comments, and adults can talk to kids about how it is possible to laugh about things that are embarrassing for them.

[Emma Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary:
"Throughout the book, Spencer navigates his feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt as he compares himself to his older sister and feels pressure to excel academically. Despite his initial struggles, Spencer finds encouragement and support from his family and teacher, who help him realize that making mistakes and feeling unsure are normal parts of learning" (ChatGPT, July 15, 2024).

Commentary:
This story tells a deeper meaning that talks about how everyone makes mistakes and that it is okay to be embarrassed. You just have to move on and keep going and eventually you will forget it ever happened. This is something that I personally struggle with. I mentally feel like dropping out of the situation when things keep embarrassing or I do something too obnoxious. I want to use this story to teach everyone that you will be embarrassed a few times in your life, but you are not alone.

Application:
In my classroom, I would read this to my first graders as a daily read. We can talk about times that we have been embarrassed and I can even share a few of my own stories to the students to help them feel more comfortable. This will help create a safe space for the students in my classroom. We can also have this in the classroom library for independent reading times or even for centers/groups.

[Bookishrealm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book and completely cute and hilarious. I won't go into much detail about what exactly happened, but I can tell you that it kind of surprised me at the reason why the little kid wanted to drop out of first grade. I don't know if I would say this is a good read aloud for something like storytime; however, I think it's a great story to share with kids that are anxious about going to any grade.

[Connie T. · Rating 2 out of 5]

After a young boy calls his teacher "Mommy" he decides he can't go back to school and face the humiliation. Later at the park, his friend makes a similar mistake and he realizes it isn't the end of the world. At first, I couldn't get this book, it just didn't grab me. But then it picked up. The humor was cute.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

My children love these little books. They thoroughly enjoy each and every story, as if they are all unique and individual without any cause for similarity among them. Even though sometimes, they might seem tedious and repetitive to me as a parent, I do enjoy being able to read short-stories to my children that are clean and respective.

[Leopoldo Bustos Del Pino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Conocido en latinoamérica como "El desertor de Primero básico" nos muestra de una manera ágil y entretenida como se pueden enfrentar las vergüenzas que suceden en la vida escolar y las respectivas risas de los compañeros y compañeras. Es un gran cuento ideal para los niños más pequeños donde la guía del padre o madre es un gran apoyo para comprenderlo y aplicarlo.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute book about dealing with embarrassment. The story is well paced and structured with the story coming back around in a believable and logical way. Kids will relate to the situation of the main character, feeling embarrassed and thinking the whole world is super focused on the thing that embarrassed him then realizing no one even really thought of it again.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

We've all been so embarrassed we fantasized about dropping out of school, and in this clever, relatable picture book, the main character thinks up some elaborate ways to dodge his shame before realizing he'd miss his friends too much.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really cute story about an embarrassing moment. I think everyone can identify with the awful feelings that this little boy feels and the dramatic way his first grade mind views them. Funny, relate-able, and well resolved.

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book. Little boy is embarrassed that he called his teacher Mommy. He wants to quit school or build a time machine. He has a lot of ideas. But he realizes he will miss his friends. So he goes to school and holds his breath. His friend acts like everything is normal. All is well.

[Gwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who hasn't been there? I've been on both sides of this. In 2nd grade I did it and when I taught 2nd grade a couple students did it to me. Cute story that would be fun to read to a class so that if it does happen they'd know they weren't alone, it happens to the best of us.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young boy vows to not return to school because of an embarrassing moment that caused his entire class to laugh at him. But when he does return to school and greets his best friend, he realizes that no one is still thinking of what he did and also that everyone has embarrassing moments.

[Alice Kuhn · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read-aloud. A nameless boys tells his audience that he is dropping out of 1st grade. This story deals with how one person feels when they are laughed at. This book is fun to read and has a teachable moment.

[Viviane Elbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a funny book about embarrassment. The main character does something embarrassing in class, and the whole class laughs. Obviously the solution is to drop out of school. Or, maybe not. Kids enjoyed it. Good book to discuss embarrassment.

[Jessi Gaul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does a good job of relaying the message that its ok to make mistakes and sometimes its easiest to laugh at yourself instead of being hard on yourself. The pages were nice and simple with good illustrations on them.

[Haley Muench · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. In the book the boy was embarrassed about something that he did so he wanted to drop out of school. But as it progressed he learned that everyone does something embarrassing so there was nothing wrong with how he felt and he felt okay after that.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was really cute and relatable. What person hasn't had an embarrassing moment happen to them?! We enjoyed the humor in the story and the message that everybody does something embarrassing. It's up to you whether to make it a big deal or just roll with it.

[Emma House · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good book. About a first grader who calls his teacher "mommy" and is embarrassed and wants to drop out, but soon realizes mistakes aren't that big of a deal. I would recommend this book for younger grades like 1st-3rd as I think they would enjoy it.

[Brooklyne Swarts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore this book; the illustrations are cutely drawn, and the story is cute. The main character is embarrassed by something he said at school and talked about he wanted to dropout from embarrassment. However, in the end he realized it is fine and things happen we just have to laugh and move on.

[Rebecca Gomez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny and relatable, even for adults!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little boy gets laughed at in school, so he decides he needs to drop out of first grade.

[Chad Seevers · Rating 4 out of 5]

good book to have on the shelf.