Karen's Yo-Yo

  Kids started whispering to one another. Everyone had forgotten that Ms. Colman was going to be away.

  “Class!” Ms. Holland said, clapping her hands sharply. “Quiet, please. And young lady” — she pointed at Natalie Springer — “deposit that gum in the wastepaper basket. There will be no gum chewing in this classroom.”

  Natalie hurried to the wastebasket and threw her gum away. When she returned to her seat, her face was red. She had been embarrassed by the substitute.

  I had a feeling I was not going to like Ms. Holland very much. But Ms. Colman had asked us to behave while she was gone, so I told myself to be good.

  “Now I will take attendance,” said Ms. Holland. “Tammy Barkan?”

  “Here,” said Tammy.

  I raised my hand. “Um, Ms. Holland?” I said. “Ms. Colman does not take attendance herself. She lets one of us do it.”

  Ms. Holland looked at me for a moment. Then she said, “And what is your name, may I ask?”

  “Karen Brewer,” I said.

  “Well, Karen, Ms. Colman is not here today. I am. And when I teach class, I take attendance. Is that clear?”

  I nodded. “Yes,” I said. It was clear. It was clear that Ms. Holland was no Ms. Colman.

  Recess

  The rest of the morning did not go as badly as the first few minutes. Ms. Holland read aloud from the newspaper. (Borrrring!) Then we did writing exercises. Then it was time for recess. Yea!

  I made sure to take the Genius out of my desk and stash it in my jacket pocket on the way outside.

  On the playground, I pulled the Genius out to show Hannie and Nancy some simple up-and-down movements.

  “Wow,” said Hannie.

  “I cannot believe how good you already are,” said Nancy.

  I smiled at them. “I will teach you both everything I know,” I said. “Because we are best friends.”

  “Cool yo-yo,” said Ricky Torres, my pretend husband. (We had once had a wedding on that very spot of the playground.)

  “Thanks,” I said proudly. “It is called the Genius. Watch this. I can Walk the Dog.”

  I flicked the yo-yo down, and it skittered across the blacktop.

  “Wow!” said Bobby Giannelli. “That was great.”

  Bobby had a yo-yo too. (It was not nearly as fancy as the Genius.) He flicked it up and down a few times. He could get it to sleep for a moment or two, but not long enough to Walk the Dog.

  “I wish I had a cool yo-yo like yours,” Bobby said.

  “It does help with tricks to have a top-of-the-line model like the Genius,” I said. “But there are no more at Toy City. I bought the last one. Maybe you could find one somewhere else,” I added. I did not want to make Bobby feel bad that his yo-yo was not as good as mine, even though it was true.

  “Maybe,” Bobby said sadly.

  Just then Pamela Harding, my best enemy, joined us.

  “Cool yo-yo,” said Pamela. “It is almost as cool as mine, the Spin Wizard.”

  Pamela held out the Spin Wizard. It was emerald green, with specks of gold. I had to admit it was pretty cool looking — almost as cool as the Genius.

  “Watch me go Around the World,” said Pamela. She threw her yo-yo out underhanded, flung it around in a big circle, and snapped it back to her hand.

  “Wow!” Ricky, Bobby, Hannie, Nancy, and I shouted.

  “Now watch me Loop the Loop,” said Pamela. This time she flicked the yo-yo down, swung it up in a big loop, sent it down again, and then snapped it back up.

  “Cool!” we exclaimed. By now three or four other kids, all with yo-yos, were crowded around watching Pamela do tricks.

  Pamela grinned. “All it takes is a little practice,” she said modestly.

  My mouth dropped open. Pamela Harding, modest? This was something new and surprising.

  Then something else new and surprising happened. Leslie Morris, Pamela’s best friend and my second-best enemy, actually said to me, “Karen, I heard you saying that you saw Team Yo! perform. I did too. They were great!”

  First Pamela acting modest, and now Leslie being friendly with me. Yo-yoing really brings out the best in people, I said to myself.

  “Yes, I thought Team Yo! was fantastic,” I said to Leslie.

  “I hear they even come to schools,” said Leslie. “They teach science with yo-yos. I hope they come to Stoneybrook Academy sometime.” (That is the name of my school, in case I have forgotten to tell you.)

  “Me too,” I said. “That would be awesome!”

  The Pendulum

  “Time for science,” said Ms. Holland after lunch. “Today we are studying pendulums. Does anyone know what a pendulum is?”

  Ian Johnson raised his hand. “A pendulum is something that swings back and forth.”

  “Very good,” said Ms. Holland. “Now we are going to read aloud from our science books about pendulums. I would like the class to divide into groups of three. Students will take turns reading aloud to one another.”

  My group was Hannie (yea!), Hank Reubens, and I. We took turns reading from the science book.

  When my turn came, I read a very long paragraph. It was hard to understand.

  “I do not get it,” Hank interrupted.

  “Me neither,” said Hannie.

  “Hmm,” I said. “I am not sure I get it either. It sounds like the book is trying to say that a long pendulum swings slowly and a short pendulum swings quickly.”

  “Maybe,” said Hank. “But I am not sure.”

  “I have an idea,” I said. I reached into my desk and brought out the Genius. “We can do an experiment.” I lowered the Genius a little way down the string and let it swing back and forth. “It is swinging very quickly, like a short pendulum,” I observed. Then I let the Genius roll down to the end of the string and swung it gently. “Now that it is a long pendulum, it swings more slowly.”

  “Hey,” said Hannie. “That is great. Now I get it.”

  “Me too,” said Hank.

  I smiled. “And all thanks to the Gen —”

  “What is that toy doing out, young lady?” snapped a loud, angry voice.

  I whirled around. Ms. Holland was standing behind me, with her hands on her hips. “It is my yo-yo. I was just —” I began.

  “I can see that it is a yo-yo, and I can see that you are using valuable class time to play with toys.” Ms. Holland held out her hand. “Give it to me.”

  I started to argue. “But I was just showing how a pendu —”

  “You were just playing,” Ms. Holland interrupted. “Now hand it over.”

  This was so unfair! But what could I do? I gave the substitute my yo-yo. She put it in a drawer in Ms. Colman’s desk.

  “Now,” Ms. Holland said, slamming the desk drawer shut. “Does anyone else have a toy they need me to hold for them? No? Then it is time for spelling.”

  I was so upset my teeth hurt.

  * * *

  When the last bell rang at the end of the day, I walked up to Ms. Holland.

  “May I have my yo-yo back, please?” I asked politely. The class rule is that toys that are taken away during class are returned the next day. But since my toy had been taken from me unfairly, I figured Ms. Holland should return it to me early.

  “I am afraid not,” said Ms. Holland. “I will leave it to Ms. Colman to decide when you get your yo-yo back.”

  I guessed that Ms. Holland would call Ms. Colman at her conference that night. Then she would find out what the class rule was.

  So I would have to wait until the next day after all. Ms. Holland was sure to give me back the Genius then.

  “Well, okay,” I said. “See you tomorrow.” I turned and left.

  Counting to Four Hundred

  Ms. Holland had been very angry at me over the yo-yo on Monday. I did not want her not to like me for almost a whole week. I cannot stand it when someone does not like me even for a day. (Except Pamela Harding. That does not bother me too much.)

  So on Tuesday I decided to start
being the perfect student. I would not even mention getting back the Genius first thing in the morning. I would try to wait until Ms. Holland offered it to me, probably after lunch. That is when Ms. Colman usually returns toys that have been taken away.

  If I was as good as gold all week, by Friday Ms. Holland would love me.

  During geography class, I raised my hand every time Ms. Holland asked a question. (I am a quick map-reader.) I also raised my hand all through social studies.

  During art I did not spill my glue or get paint on my shoes. I drew a beautiful cat that looked like what Pumpkin, the big-house kitten, would look like if Pumpkin were green and purple instead of black. Ms. Holland said it was very nice.

  I had told myself I would not ask Ms. Holland for the Genius, but by the time lunch had ended, I was going crazy. There were lots of reasons why. 1) Ms. Holland should not have taken the Genius in the first place. 2) I had not played with the Genius all yesterday evening at home. 3) I had not played with the Genius this morning before school. 4) I had not played with the Genius during morning recess. 5) I had not played with the Genius during lunch. 6) My friends all had their yo-yos and were playing with them right in front of me.

  So after lunch, I could not wait any longer. I stood by Ms. Holland, who was sitting at Ms. Colman’s desk.

  “May I have my yo-yo back now, please?” I asked.

  Ms. Holland raised her eyebrows. “I told you already, Karen. I will let Ms. Colman decide when you get your toy back.”

  “Oh, was Ms. Colman out when you called last night?” I said, smiling. “That is bad luck. But I can tell you what she would have said. The class rule is that toys are returned the next day.” I held out my hand. “I would like my yo-yo, please.”

  Ms. Holland looked at my hand as if it were a disgusting slug.

  “I do not think you understand, young lady,” Ms. Holland said. “I am not going to bother Ms. Colman at her conference. Your toy will be in her desk waiting for her when she returns next week. She may or may not choose to return it to you then. In the meantime, I do not want to hear another word about —”

  “But it is the class rule!” I wailed. I was almost crying, I was so frustrated.

  “When I am the teacher, it is my class, and I make the rules,” Ms. Holland said in a mean voice. “Now take your seat. Class is about to begin.”

  * * *

  Boy, was I angry. It was so, so unfair! Ms. Holland should not have taken the Genius from me in the first place. And now, on top of that, she was breaking the class rule and not giving it back to me.

  I hardly heard a word that was said all through phonics and math and silent reading. Okay, not much was said during silent reading. But if anyone had said anything, I would not have heard it. I was too mad.

  Mommy tells me to count to ten when I feel like I am about to lose my temper. Well, that afternoon I counted past four hundred before I began to feel okay again.

  I reminded myself that I still had almost a whole week to go with the substitute. It was not too late to get back on her good side. Maybe, if I won Ms. Holland over and proved to her what a great kid I really am, she would change her mind and give me the Genius back early.

  Four hundred twelve, four hundred thirteen, four hundred fourteen, I counted silently to myself. I was not angry any longer. I was determined once again to be the perfect student.

  Ms. Holland was writing at the black-board. She was drawing some kind of square or rectangle. (I had not been paying attention, so I do not know what she was trying to teach us.)

  “I need colored chalk for this diagram,” she said. “Class, does anyone know where Ms. Colman keeps the colored chalk?”

  I raised my hand. “I do,” I said. “I will get it for you.”

  “Thank you, Karen,” said Ms. Holland.

  I opened the drawer in Ms. Colman’s desk where she keeps chalk, glue, staples, and other fun supplies.

  There was the Genius, right next to a stack of construction paper! In the back of the drawer was a box of colored chalk.

  I reached into the back of the drawer with my right hand to grab the chalk. Somehow my left hand fell on the Genius. My fingers curled around it. As if it had a mind of its own, my left hand slipped the Genius into the waistband of my jeans and smoothed my sweater over it. I could not believe it.

  I shut the drawer, walked to Ms. Holland, handed her the chalk, and returned to my desk. My face was burning, but I felt happy.

  The Genius was mine again, just the way it should have been all along.

  Cuckoo for Yo-yos

  I was very, very careful the next morning to make sure Ms. Holland was not on the playground when I took out the Genius. I had played with it all the night before at home. I had been very glad to have it back. I did not really want to think about how I had gotten it back. I just wanted to practice, practice, practice.

  “I see Ms. Holland gave you your yo-yo back,” said Hannie. “I am glad she stuck to the class rule. Not all substitutes would, you know.”

  “Um, yes, I know,” I said. For some reason I did not want to tell Hannie what I had done. “Anyway, I am glad to have my yo-yo back.”

  I was sure Ms. Holland would never even notice the Genius was gone. She was probably sure it was gathering dust at the back of Ms. Colman’s desk drawer. But I did not want her to see that I had it, just in case.

  Hannie and Nancy had now gotten new yo-yos of their own. I was glad we could practice together. Hannie’s was purple with a gold rim and was called the Magician. Nancy’s yo-yo had swirls of yellow and orange and teal (that is a kind of blue, remember?) and was called the Spin Doctor.

  “Those are both great,” I told my friends.

  They showed me the tricks they could do. Hannie could Rock the Baby. Nancy did a Lunar Loop. I was impressed.

  “Watch this!” called Pamela. “It is called Johnny Round the Corner.”

  A bunch of kids gathered around Pamela to watch her do her trick. She flipped her yo-yo down into a sleeper. Then she put her right hand over her shoulder, as if she were throwing a ball. She flicked the yo-yo up, and it shot over her hand and down again. Then she pulled it up one more time and caught it. It was a great trick.

  “Cool!” we cried.

  “Watch how long I can make my new yo-yo sleep,” said Bobby. He flicked his yo-yo down and started counting slowly. He got to twenty-eight before he twitched the yo-yo back up the string. “My record is thirty-seven,” he said.

  Wow. That was a long time. I had not even tried to see how long I could get the Genius to sleep. I wondered if I could beat Bobby’s record.

  Everyone in my class had gone cuckoo for yo-yos. My friends were doing fancy tricks. But all I could do was Walk the Dog. And I was not even the best one at that. Addie Sidney could Walk the Dog and make it look like her yo-yo was pulling her along in her wheelchair.

  I had lost valuable practice time while the Genius was in Ms. Colman’s desk. I would have to study the rest of Mastering the Art of the Yo-Yo tonight and start learning some fancy new tricks quickly, if I wanted to keep up.

  “It would be fun to see who in our class knows the most yo-yo tricks,” I said to Hannie and Nancy.

  “Yes. And who is the best at doing them,” said Nancy.

  “That would be fun,” said Hannie. “But who could we get to judge? I do not think Ms. Colman knows enough about yo-yoing to say who is best.”

  Suddenly I had an idea. “Hey!” I said. “Leslie said that Team Yo! sometimes visits schools. Maybe they could come to Stoneybrook Academy and judge a competition! Kids could compete for patches and other prizes, and maybe there could be a school champion.”

  “That is a terrific idea, Karen!” said Nancy.

  “Yeah, I think we should tell the other kids,” said Hannie.

  And so we did. All my classmates thought my idea was great too. (Leslie said something about Team Yo! visiting schools to teach science, not to judge competitions. But we did not pay much attention to her.)

>   We were more cuckoo for yo-yos than ever.

  Rock the Baby

  That morning during class, I did not touch my Genius once, not even to make sure it was still in my desk. And every time Ms. Holland opened Ms. Colman’s desk, I held my breath. But she did not seem to notice the Genius was gone. I tried to convince myself that she had forgotten about it. But I am not sure I believed myself.

  After lunchtime, out on the playground again, all the kids (except me) took out their yo-yos. I did not take the Genius out of my jacket pocket. I had seen Ms. Holland walking through the playground on her way to the teachers’ lounge. I could not take any chances.

  “I can do Around the World now,” said Bobby. He threw his yo-yo out underhand, whirled it around in a big circle, and caught it.

  It looked like one of the easier tricks, much easier than Pamela’s Johnny Round the Corner, for instance. I knew I would be able to do it, and I was dying to try. But still I did not take the Genius out of my jacket pocket. I had to be strong.

  Then Hannie showed us Rock the Baby again.

  “That is really neat,” said Bobby. “Will you show me how to do it?”

  “Sure,” said Hannie. “Karen, do you know how to Rock the Baby?”

  I shook my head no. This was killing me.

  “Why don’t you get out your yo-yo and I will teach you too?” said Hannie.

  I glanced around. Ms. Holland was at the edge of the blacktop. “Um, I will just watch instead.”

  “Okay,” said Hannie. Then she showed Bobby and me how to Rock the Baby.

  First she put her yo-yo into a sleeper. Then she reached down with her left hand and grasped the string about halfway down. With her right hand she pinched the string again, halfway between her left hand and the yo-yo. Then with her left hand she made a little triangle of string, for a cradle, beneath the yo-yo. And finally she rocked the “baby” (the yo-yo, really) in the cradle. When she was done, she let go of the string all at once, the yo-yo fell, and then zipped back up to her hand.

  “Ta-daa!” said Hannie. “Linny taught me that.” Linny is Hannie’s big brother. He is nine.