Thanks for all the great suggestions! I particularly like the idea of the pre-check and finding a way to cover up the other questions while DS focuses on only one.
As for why we're worried about grades, there are a couple reasons. DH and I worked hard to get the school to differentiate, and they have agreed to. Unfortunately, we're not seeing it unroll as we'd hoped, and aren't sure whether or not that's because of DS's grades. For instance, the teacher is supposed to differentiate in math but we haven't seen any so far. I hope to understand when we meet with the teacher whether that's because of DS's grades or some other reason. It is very difficult to push for differentiation when the grades aren't reflecting his abilities. I have a great deal of respect for the teacher, though, and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to come to an understanding that DS's lack of focus (or whatever) is not a good reason to hold back differentiation.
DH and I are not all-consumed with DS getting good grades (although having All As in 4th, which he's capable of, would qualify him for a 4-year scholarship which would be nice but is not something we're going to put pressure on DS for). Mostly, we see the grades as a symptom of a problem: DS's inability to proofread his own work. We think it's important that he learn how to do this in the early years before the grades really start to matter. We agree that it's part of learning how to learn, and want his good habits to be established early, so life is not harder later.
