Every parent knows their kids are more than just their grades. Still, they also tell kids grades matter. No wonder an English elementary school headmaster set off a social media storm when she helped write a letter to students telling them not worry so much about their scores, since “there are many ways of being smart.” Every parent knows their kids are more than just their grades. Still, they also tell kids grades matter. No wonder an English elementary school headmaster set off a social media storm when she helped write a letter to students telling them not worry so much about their scores, since “there are many ways of being smart.”