No Messin' with My Lesson (6 page)

“Because we want you to be nice to Mrs. Derkman today,” said Miriam.

“Yeah,” agreed Zoe.

“That means no jokes, George,” Kevin said, laughing.

“Oh, boy,” replied George.

“George, please be nice to Mrs. Derkman today,” Katie pleaded.

George sighed. “Do I have to?”

“Come on, George,” Kevin said. “If I have to be good, so do you. Besides, it will really freak her out if
you’re
good.”

George smiled brightly. He liked that idea. “Okay,” he agreed. “But just for today.”

Katie looked at her friends and grinned. Mrs. Derkman wasn’t going to get a big trophy. But she was going to have an easy day teaching class 3A. Surely that would make her happy.

The kids were all true to their word. No one spoke without raising their hand. No one passed any notes in class. No one chewed gum, or stared at the clock, or doodled in their notebook.

But Mrs. Derkman didn’t seem to notice how well her students were behaving. She just frowned and sighed a lot.

At the end of the day, Mrs. Derkman told the kids to open their free reading books. Usually, Mrs. Derkman watched the kids as they read to make sure no one misbehaved. But today, Mrs. Derkman stared out the window. She didn’t seem to notice the class at all.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Mr. Kane walked into the classroom. He was carrying a gold trophy.

Mrs. Derkman turned and looked at him in confusion. “What is this for?” she asked. “I don’t understand.”

“This is for you,” Mr. Kane said. “It’s from the Cherrydale Teacher of the Year Award Committee.”

“But you said I didn’t win,” Mrs. Derkman reminded him.

“You didn’t win Teacher of the Year. That went to a teacher at the middle school.”

“Then what is that trophy for?” Mrs. Derkman asked him.

“It’s a special award,” Mr. Kane said. “It’s the first time they’ve ever given it.”

“What’s it for?” Katie asked excitedly, forgetting that she wasn’t supposed to call out in class.

Mrs. Derkman must have forgotten that rule, too. She didn’t yell at Katie. Instead she asked, “Yes, what is it for?”

Mr. Kane looked at the plaque on the base of the trophy.
“This award is presented to Mrs. Barbara Derkman for her creative lesson on consideration and caring for one another’s feelings,”
he read.

Katie smiled. She
knew
the judge had liked that part of the class.

Mr. Kane gave Mrs. Derkman her trophy. “The contest judge called to tell me he liked the way you were able to get your students to apologize and see the good in one another,” he said. Then he added, “Asking the students to write nice things about each of their class-mates was a great idea.”

“Oh,” Mrs. Derkman said. “I guess you’re talking about that pile of papers on my desk.”

“You sound like you don’t know where those papers came from,” Mr. Kane laughed.

Mrs. Derkman didn’t say anything. The truth was, she
wasn’t
completely sure about anything that had happened yesterday.

“Anyway, he was really impressed with the way you were able to talk to your students on their own level. He said you almost sounded like a third-grader yourself.”

Katie choked back a laugh. Mrs. Derkman had sounded like a third-grader yesterday because she
was
a third-grader. But, of course, Katie was the only one who knew that. And she wasn’t going to tell anyone.

“I’m sure your class is very proud of you,” Mr. Kane told Mrs. Derkman. He started to clap for her. The kids clapped, too.

“I’m proud of them,” Mrs. Derkman told Mr. Kane. “I may not be the teacher of the year, but 3A is definitely Cherrydale’s Class of the Year. To celebrate, I’m not giving any homework today. I want you all to go home and play!”

The class cheered even louder.

“Does this mean we can stop being good now?” George whispered to Katie as the class cheered for their teacher.

Before Katie could answer him, she felt a cool breeze on the back of her neck
. Oh, no! Was the magic wind back again? Was it going to change her into someone else right here in front of all her friends?
The magic wind had never come when other people were around before. But there was a first time for everything.

“Katie, you’d better close that window,” Mrs. Derkman said. “That wind isn’t good for Speedy. He might catch a cold.”

Katie breathed a sigh of relief. If Mrs. Derkman felt the breeze, then the magic wind hadn’t come back. At least not right now. But it could come back anytime, and turn Katie into anyone.

She hurried to close the window. She never knew who the wind might turn her into next. It could turn her into Speedy again! And the last thing Katie would want to be turned into was a hamster with a cold.

For now, though, Katie was herself. And that made her very happy. After all, of all the people the magic wind had turned her into so far, Katie Carew was the one she liked best.

This apple graham cracker snacker is a snack even Mrs. Derkman can’t resist.

 

 

Here’s what you do:
Ask an adult to core the apples and cut each one in half. Then cut each half into three wedges (so you have 12 apple wedges). Dip the wedges in lemon juice to keep them from browning. Place the wedges in a single layer on a microwavable plate or baking dish. Cover the wedges loosely with waxed paper. Ask an adult to microwave the wedges on high for 3 ½-4 minutes (until apples are tender). Drain the apples on a paper towel.

In a small bowl, combine the peanut butter, honey, and cinnamon. Snap the graham crackers in half to make 12 squares. Spread a layer of the peanut butter mixture on each of the six graham cracker squares. Top each square with the remaining graham cracker squares to make sandwiches.

 

 

Makes six snacks.