Variations of the question, "How are you doing in school?" are among those most frequently posed by adults to students (Reeves, 2004). Grades represent the primary source of that information; indeed, Olson (1995) called grades "one of the most sacred traditions in American education" (p. 24). There is so much trust in the messages conveyed by grades that they have gone without challenge and are resistant to change (Marzano, 2000). Yet reporting only a single mark for each subject may be insufficient to answer meaning questions about student progress (Guskey, 2001). Bailey and McTighe (1996) noted that when clear responses to these questions are not available, grading's other purposes cannot be effectively carried out. Although a body of scholarship explores issues pertaining to standards-based grading (SBG), there is a dearth of research addressing student perspectives. The purpose of this study, then, was to gain a more thorough understanding of the attitudes, understanding, and experiences of students impacted for the first time by an SBG initiative at their high school. At the beginning and end of an academic year, students shared their perspectives on issues such as the pace of SBG implementation and change, fairness of grading processes, motivation, preparation for college, inconsistencies between courses, the role of homework, and communication with teachers.