This decline can be explained by changes in the school environment and the changes children go through. One of the changes children will experience is a change in their conception of ability and effort. Before the age of seven, children believe that the ability one possesses is equal to the effort one puts into the task. Seven to nine year olds, elementary school age, think that a child's performance on a task demonstrates his or her ability. As they get older, they believe that greater skill at a task correlates with less effort put into the task