Were you ever that kid?

Let's flash back to elementary school. The social world: varying degrees of intelligence, varying degrees of motivation, varying degrees of behavior. You had smart kids and not so smart kids, you had good kids and troublemakers, you had friendly kids and unfriendly kids. It wasn't until junior high for me that categories of popularity entered the scene. So in elementary school, you could be a total geek and a goody-two-shoes, and you were no worse for the wear.

But teachers picked up on it.

That being said, were you ever the kid, who, when assigned to a small group, was placed in a group with two contentious or unfriendly or trouble-making or not-as-intelligent kids, simply because the teacher knew that you could deal with it (due to your good disposition, good grades, good behavior, etc.)? Or were assigned to present, say, a book report on the first day of presentations, because the teacher knew that others wouldn't be capable of being prepared early, but you would be? It wasn't so much that teachers decided to give you a challenge because you were capable, but rather that teachers had to accommodate first those who weren't so flexible, or didn't have as many options, or who didn't get along as well with everybody, or who were less patient, etc...and then, by virtue of your "virtue," you were given the leftovers.

Did you ever have the experience of feeling stuck or slighted merely because you were, ironically, viewed favorably by those in charge?

(Such is the irony of the current existence.)