VIDALIA — Nathan Nations is fluent in the concepts of algebra, but it’s the Spanish language the Vidalia eighth grader hopes to conquer next.

Nations, 13, was selected as student of the week at Vidalia Junior High School for consistently maintaining good grades and a good attitude, Principal Whest Shirley said.

“Nathan is always in the top of his class and always making straight As,” Shirley said. “He’s just an all-around great kid.”

Nations is one of 11 students in his class who chose to take Algebra I in junior high school ahead of time instead of as a ninth grader at the high school.

“I had a choice between that and Spanish, and I really like both, but I decided to go with algebra,” Nations said. “Algebra and math just make sense to me.”

Algebraic equations, such as y=mx+b, don’t phase Nations when he approaches the whiteboard to solve a problem in class.

“I like learning how to solve all the different equations,” Nations said. “All that stuff has always come pretty easy to me.”

A greater challenge for Nations comes in Spanish class, which he took in fifth and seventh grades.

Nations chose the algebra course over Spanish this year, but said the language is still one he hopes to become fluent in one day.

“I’m going to take it next year and see how long I can take it in high school,” Nations said. “It’s just interesting to me.”

Trips to any Mexican restaurant or other locations where Nations knows someone speaks Spanish become a learning experience for the eighth-grader.

“I like talking to people in Spanish and seeing how much I know or what else I can learn from them,” Nations said. “I think it’s the best way to learn.”

In his seventh-grade Spanish class, Nations was given the name “Nacho,” a common Spanish nickname, as his class name.

“I’ll go to the restaurant or somewhere else and say, ‘Hola, mi nombre es Nacho Naciones,’ and see what they say,” Nations said. “It’s fun.”

Apart from his academics, Nations also plays junior varsity football at the school and is involved in the Viking Voice Club, where he writes human-interest stories with other students that are published and distributed throughout the school.

“We’ll write about anything from the LSU vs. Alabama rivalry to hunting,” Nations said. “It’s fun to do on the side, but I don’t think I want to write all the time.”

Nations said he plans to use his math skills to pursue a career in mechanical engineering after high school.

“I’m not sure what all they do, but I know they use a lot of math, and I’ve been pretty good at math so far,” Nations said. “I’m sure I’ll need a lot more math courses before I get to that point, though.”

Nations is the son of Keith and Candice Nations.