Express & Star

Didn’t get the grades you wanted? This author’s tweet will show you not to give up

‘I love to write and I hope to become an author someday’.

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An author has shared her childhood test scores in a bid to show exams are not the sole indicator of ability.

Alexandra Penfold, whose sixth book has just been published in the US, was at her parents last weekend when she came across a folder of her school work and achievements.

“As I was leafing through the pile I came across my 4th grade self-evaluation which was mostly about how much I liked school, how much I loved reading and writing and how I wanted to be an author,” Penfold told the Press Association.

“Moments later I uncovered the score report for my 4th grade standardised test which said I was ‘minimally proficient in writing’. That brief, dismal pronouncement about my writing ability made me laugh.”

Penfold, who the evening before had signed copies of her new book All Are Welcome in her hometown, was inspired to post the test results on Twitter.

She posted the results alongside an excerpt from her fourth grade (ages 9-10) self-evaluation, in which the girl Penfold wrote: “I love to write and I hope to become an author someday”.

Penfold has been passionate about reading and writing from an early age.

“My first story, at age five, was a gripping saga about the time our dining room table was delivered, called Today Our Table is Coming.” Later she had a poem published in a student anthology.

After graduating from the Gallatin School of Individualised Study at New York University, Penfold interned at publishing house Simon & Schuster, later securing a job in the children’s publishing department.

While there she collaborated with a colleague to write a recipe book based on food trucks around New York City, and later penned a number of children’s books.

Penfold’s tweet spoke to many of her Twitter followers, who shared and replied to her tweet with supportive messages.

“I’ve been astounded to see the positive reactions to the tweet,” said Penfold.

“It’s really heartening to see all the teachers and parents out there who are shaping young minds and directing them towards a growth mindset.”

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