Head Of The Class

## Synopsis

On "report-card day", as they typically do, Graham and Elizabeth confront all of the teenagers and children about their grades. As expected, both Marie and Connie have done quite well, but each expects more of herself. As usual, Sherry gets very high marks, and her parents are thrilled. Cindy gets only middling average grades, but her parents are satisfied because they know that she tried her best. Unfortunately, both J.R. and Wendy get very low marks, which disappoints their parents because they know that both of them have so much more potential than they've shown, although clearly more focus is placed on Wendy than J.R.

In a desperate attempt to convince Wendy that she is entirely capable of getting better grades, Graham deceitfully convinces Wendy that she actually tested in the genius range on previous IQ tests, in hopes of increasing her learning potential. Remarkably, Wendy falls for the ruse - and actually proceeds to study more - in a serious effort to do better in school, thereby proving that her father was not lying.

As can be expected in such a large family, Sherry inevitably overhears about Graham's clever ploy. Always thinking that she's the best, Sherry is not happy to learn that someone else in the family may actually be smarter than her. This leads the young girl to convince J.R. to help her hack into confidential school records to find out the truth, once and for all. Always up for trouble, J.R. agrees to play along. Incredibly, Sherry is able to locate her transcript in the school's computer database, and what she discovers is completely different from what she has long believed and been advised by her teachers and parents.

Truth be told, Sherry is not really the "genius" she was made out to be, disappointing the precocious young girl because of how strongly she's always striving to be the best at everything she does. Now in disbelief, Sherry sneaks off to her treehouse to initiate a mock school classroom with her stuffed animals. Worried about their "missing" daughter, Graham and Elizabeth cleverly trick naive Cindy into revealing where Sherry is "hiding".

That's when the two concerned parents enter the treehouse to request a few minutes to have a heart-to-heart talk with their daughter to help her understand that they are proud of her regardless of how well she does in school or on her test scores. After taking some time alone in her treehouse to reflect, Sherry begins to realize for herself that she doesn't have to always come out on top for others to be proud of her.

## Memorable Quotes

**Recurring Gag**: "*Swear on [his/her/my/your] underwear.*"

--

**Graham**: "*Are you happy with these grades?*"

**Wendy**: "*Are you happy with them?*"

**Elizabeth**: "*Sherry could get better grades."*

**Wendy**: "*But she's in the 4th grade. If I was in the 4th grade, I could kick butt.*"

**Graham**: "*Well, Sherry could kick butt in your grade.*"

--

**Wendy**: "*Ask me a question.*"

**Cindy**: "*Okay...How do you like my hair?*"

**Wendy**: "*From the book.*"

--

**Sherry**: "*Swear.*

**Cindy**: "*Dammit!*

## Trivia

* Only mention/appearance of the treehouse.
* Marie and Connie appear during the teaser and opening scenes, but not again for the rest of the episode.

### Running Gag

* Multiple people "swear on their underwear" that they are telling the truth.

## Mistakes

### Continuity Errors

* It is unknown when Graham would have built the treehouse, or precisely where it was located on the property.

### Plot Holes

* It is well-known that Sherry is intelligent, but it is highly unlikely that she would thrive so easily in Wendy's grade.

### Revealing Errors

* In most strict institutions, Sherry & J.R. would never get away with "hacking into school records" so easily, let alone their attempts. There should have been better security guarding both the school and such confidential information.
* It should have occurred to Sherry (and others) that different states have different policies & standards regarding education. Sherry likely would have needed to search her old school records back in New York to find what she is really looking for.