Read an Excerpt

President of the Whole Fifth Grade

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

1

Declaration of Independence!

My name is Brianna Justice, and I want to be president of the whole fifth grade!

That is my “declaration.”

As in, “I do declare that I will be president of the whole entire fifth grade at Orchard Park Elementary.”

My aunt Tina says that if we want good things to happen we have to make them happen. Take action! State your plan out loud. DECLARE!

And I want good things to happen. I have BIG plans. I’m going to be a millionaire with my own cooking show on TV. Cupcakes are my specialty.

Aunt Tina also says that along with declaring your goal, you have to have a plan. Think about what you want, decide how you plan to get it, then write it down and keep notes along the way. That’s how you make a plan. All really important, successful people do, she says. (Grandpa says if Aunt Tina had a husband instead of “just a career” maybe she wouldn’t have time for so many plans. Hmph!) Anyway, ever since a certain hometown celebrity spoke to our class last January, I’ve known what I need to do. Here’s my plan:

I live in Orchard Park, Michigan. We’re not far from Detroit, Michigan. But Orchard Park is a suburb. That means unless you live here, you probably never heard of it. At least, not until my hero, Miss Delicious, became world-famous as a chef, author, TV-show host, and GAZILLIONAIRE. Miss Delicious grew up right here in Orchard Park.

And she even went to the same elementary school as me!

When she spoke to our fourth-grade class, she told us that she didn’t think any of her success would have been possible had it not been for the skills she learned at our school.

But this is the most important thing she said:

“I honestly believe that if I hadn’t been voted president of my fifth-grade class, if I hadn’t learned how to manage my responsibilities back then and be a true leader, I don’t know if any of this would have been possible.”

So the best way for me to follow in her footsteps would be to become president of my fifth-grade class, too.

Ever since that day, every morning when I arrive at school, I pass through the front hallway where all the plaques hang or sit on shelves showing the names of all the fifth graders who have been president. And I say a tiny little prayer and run my fingers over Miss Delicious’s name for good luck.

That same day I told my friends, basically our whole class, that I was going to be just like Miss Delicious. I was going to be a millionaire cupcake baker and sell tons of books and be wildly famous on television.

And the first step would be to become president of the fifth grade.

So you see, it is so totally obvious: I have to win the election.

All summer I planned. I’ve written speeches. I’ve researched school-approved places for our class trip and other interests vital to our fifth-grade class.

Little did I know how much would change once school started up after summer break. My plan seemed to be going so well, until…

---

Excerpted from President of the Whole Fifth Grade by Winston, Sherri Copyright © 2010 by Winston, Sherri. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---