MS. GRAHAM: Just a refresher, kids. Our class will be set up kind of like the branches of the US government. We’ll elect two council members to represent Congress, while our class judge will represent the courts. And I will represent the president. Here we go (unfolds a piece of paper).…Our class council members will be…drum roll, please…Emily and Kai!
CLASS: (Some clap, some groan.)
MS. GRAHAM: And I’m appointing our class judge. This will be…Sharon!
CLASS: (reacts)
SHARON: (sinks lower in her seat)
HENRY: Better luck next time, Kermit. I was rooting for you!
MS. GRAHAM: This is not an exact replica of the government—but it should give you a sense of what it’s like to balance different interests and powers for the good of the people. I, of course, will retain veto power, like the president.
BLAKE: (under breath) Big surprise.
MS. GRAHAM: In the real United States government, Congress can override a president’s veto with a two-thirds vote, but I do have to retain some control over this classroom, so my veto will be final.
KAYLEY: (whispers) Basically, she’s acting like we’ve got control, but really we have none.
MS. GRAHAM: I’d also like to remind you that any member of this class can propose a new law.
HENRY: (whispers back) I dare you to propose a law. Something outrageous. Like we get to grade ourselves.
KAYLEY: (sighs and ignores him)
HENRY: Or double recess, or no homework, or movie Fridays.
BLAKE: I’ll do it.
HENRY: Yeah!
MS. GRAHAM: Anyone brave enough to go first?
BLAKE: I want to get rid of homework. We shouldn’t have to do work outside of school.
MS. GRAHAM: (laughs) I can’t blame you for trying. Okay, okay. I’ll send your class council out to begin to discuss your proposal.
HENRY: (fist-bumps Blake) Thanks, bro. You rock!
BLAKE: (looks proud)
KAYLEY: (rolls eyes) What a waste of time. You know she’s gonna veto it.
HENRY: Kayley. You’re missing the point. Wasting class time is a GOOD thing. Get with the program!
KAYLEY: (sighs) I’m actually looking forward to an all-girls private school. And they have to wear plaid skirts every single day. That’s how irritating you are.
HENRY: Success!
EMILY
Status:
Dear Hope,
I can’t believe I made it onto class council! Kai and I sat outside at the round lunch tables to discuss Blake’s proposal. We both agreed this was pointless. There’s no way Ms. Graham would approve getting rid of homework.
Kai showed me how he can solve a Rubik’s Cube behind his back. So it wasn’t entirely a waste of time. The funny thing was that we did start to talk about Blake’s proposal a little. We figured we had to approve this law or we might as well drop out of school, because everyone would hate us. So we were basically passing a law knowing that Ms. Graham would veto it.
And then inspiration struck. What if we proposed only doing half the homework? Like half the math problems? Or half the vocab definitions? Ms. Graham might actually approve that.
So we tried it.
Love and crossing-my-fingers luck,
Emily
BLAKE
KAI
Hey, Frog!
Yes!!! Ms. Graham approved our half-homework law! She’ll watch our test scores on Fridays, and if our scores go down, she’ll veto the law. But if they stay the same, she’ll let the law stand. Today at lunch three different guys offered me their chips to thank me. Sweet!
After lunch, Ms. Graham set a stack of books on my desk. I guess she’s noticed how worn out my favorites are. (I read them over and over until they actually fall apart.)
“Looks like I won’t have to convince you to read,” she said, smiling, and patted the top of the stack. “Want to branch out and try something new?” I took a quick peek—four new books, all fantasy. Yes!
Ms. Graham is the first teacher who hasn’t banned me from keeping books in my desk (although it is only the first month of school, so she still has time). I can listen to the teacher and read at the same time, but nobody seems to appreciate this talent.
KAYLEY
Dear Ms. Graham,
My mother’s having a Reaction. She’s got hives all over, she’s so upset. She has a Reaction a couple of times a year. When I was little it freaked me out, but now I bring her cream for her hives, and a diet ginger ale from the garage fridge, and I hide in my room.
My mother thinks it’s ridiculous that you’re letting the kids run the classroom!!!! Sharon doesn’t even know how to pick clothes that match. How can she make important decisions as our judge? Plus my mother can’t believe you’re letting us do half the homework. She’s making me do it all, by the way. Usually after she has a Reaction, she goes on a Mission to fix the Problem.
In this case, she’d say the Problem is you. Be careful, Ms. Graham.
PS I count seven frog-related decorations in the classroom. Eight if you include Kermit. Don’t you think that’s a bit overboard?
CECILIA
Hola Abuelita,
Last night, I woke up to Mami crying. She saves her tears for after I’m asleep. I couldn’t stand to hear her sadness and do nothing. Finally, I got up and made her a cup of té de manzanilla just like she does for me.
Do you know, Abuelita, that she worries about you being all alone without Abuelito to keep you company? I never hear her tell you this during phone calls. I also never hear her share how terrible she feels that she missed a chance to say goodbye to Abuelito in person. It doesn’t matter that you told her not to come, that it was too risky, that if she left the US, she might not be able to come back.
Sometimes I wish you didn’t take Abuelito back to Mexico. I understand why you did it, because you didn’t have medical insurance here, and he was so sick. But I was just seven back then, and I didn’t understand that my goodbye to him was final. I don’t think Mami understood either.
I know the schools are good in the United States, and I know it’s safe here. It’s just—I don’t want to grow up without you. Someday I’ll be old enough to travel to Mexico by myself. But it’s so hard to wait.
Maybe I’ll buy some sticky notes for the fridge and write Mami a special note—“una sonrisa es algo hermoso.” A smile is a beautiful thing.
WORDS TO PRACTICE
travel = viajar
Besos y abrazos,
Cecilia
* * *
—
Dear Emily,
You rule! I’m so glad you’re on class council. Half the homework is a great start. Maybe next…longer recesses? Then we might actually be able to finish a soccer game.
Your friend,
Cecilia
EMILY
Status:
Dear Hope,
I’m writing you from my bedroom closet. Ms. Graham said we can bring our journals home whenever.
MY LIFE IS OVER!!!!! (I know that sounds overly dramatic, but it’s true!) At recess Kayley pranced over to me, acting all important. And Aviva stood there looking at the sky. Then Kayley dropped this colossal bomb. They’re BOTH going to La Ventana next year!
WHAT?!!!! I will have NO friends!
None! What will I do? Who will I sit with at lunch?
Unloved and unlucky,
Emily
PS In the old days, before the divorce, I’d have gone downstairs to talk to Mom about this. She’d have brought me a soft blanket and told me some story that had nothing to do with anything but was still nice to hear. I’m not sure why I stopped talking to Mom about sad stuff? Maybe because she doesn’t need me adding any more tears to the mix. But crying al
one is the WORST.
SHARON
No matter how smart we all think we are,
And no matter how hard we try
To cushion our eggs,
Some of them are gonna crack.
I know I said I didn’t care
What other kids think.
But that’s not completely true.
There’s a teeny-tiny part of me
That cares a whole lot.
Do you know how many letters I’ve written to other kids?
Seven.
Do you know how many letters I’ve gotten in my mailbox?
That’d be a big fat ZERO.
Why?
If I was an egg,
There’d be hairline cracks
Along my sides.
Every time I get hurt feelings,
Another crack zigzags
Across my smooth, hard shell.
KAI
Hey, Frog!
Yesterday I brought my journal home. I wanted to work out some measurements for our egg drop. Only, when I opened it, I realized I’d grabbed the wrong book. I had Blake’s instead.
I swear I didn’t look.
Well, I didn’t look on purpose. I flipped through it, and it took a few seconds to figure out I had the wrong one. (We both have the same exact marbled cover.) By then I’d seen a couple of pages. I didn’t realize what a great artist he is.
When I brought it back this morning, all of a sudden I started stressing. Maybe I’d get in trouble for taking his journal. So I was real careful about how I dropped it back in the lockbox. I slid it under my shirt and walked over there on my way to get a drink of water. I dropped it in quick. Nobody saw.
Side note—the key to the Egg Drop Challenge is suspension. In order for the egg not to break, it can’t feel the impact. The other teams are all trying to cushion the egg. But I’ve got a strategy to string the egg into the center of the box, suspended. I’ll use a pair of my mom’s nylon stockings and put the egg inside. I’ll twist and tie the ends so that it stays secure, and then suspend it in the box. When the box hits the ground, the nylon will rebound up and down, but not enough for it to bang into the bottom of the box. The egg won’t be jolted, it’ll just be a gentle impact. It’s my theory, anyway.
I’m usually not a big supporter of class projects (boring), but I’m totally getting into this one. I even spent time last night working on this at home.
PS Now Ms. Graham’s giving me a stack of new books every week. (Not all fantasy, though—she’s sneaking in realistic fiction too.) Today I’m reading The Crossover—and it’s the kind of book I want to read out loud, because it’s filled up with poetry that sounds like music.
BLAKE
HENRY
SCENE: Henry circles the room, recording with his phone camera. Ms. Graham grades a mountain of papers.
TEAM A: Foam packing peanuts?
HENRY: (from behind camera, whispers to self) Good idea.
TEAM B: What if we suspend it? With nylon or something?
HENRY: Ooh. Better idea.
AVIVA: (quietly) Are you recording them?
HENRY: No. I’m holding this camera up beside my body all sly because I’m NOT recording them.
AVIVA: Turn it off. We could get in trouble.
HENRY: This is purely for research. There’s no rule against researching.
KAYLEY: (hisses) Shut up, Aviva! You’re such a baby. I told him to do that. We need to know what we’re up against.
AVIVA: (quiet)
KAYLEY: (walks away)
AVIVA: I was thinking we could use hay.
HENRY: (puts camera down) Good idea. That might work! I’ll turn the camera off if it makes you feel weird. I was just joking around.
AVIVA: Thanks. We can come up with our own idea. We don’t need anyone else’s.
HENRY: True. I forgot we have a genius on our team.
AVIVA: Who? You?
HENRY: Nope. You.
AVIVA: Shut up. (smiling a little)
HENRY: I wasn’t joking. You’re smart. Hey, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings when I said you sound like Minnie Mouse.
AVIVA: That’s okay.
HENRY: Sometimes my mouth gets ahead of my brain.
AVIVA: (looks at Kayley) You’re not the only one.
HENRY: True dat.
SHARON
This assignment
Has put Eggs on my Brain.
If I was an egg myself, I’d be
Soft-boiled—
My firm outsides
Protecting my soft insides
Of gooey, gloppy yolk.
Aviva would be sunny-side up—
Nice to look at,
But easy to puncture.
And Kayley…she’d be rotten.
Slimy, stinky, and toxic.
I do not like that girl.
Kermit’s an Easter egg.
Fun to look at
And search for.
The frog “escaped” today.
It took all of math and history
To track him down.
Question—Just how exactly
Does a frog escape
During math?
KAYLEY
Dear Ms. Graham,
Our Egg Strategy rocks! I can’t wait to see if we win.
I assigned Henry to listen to everyone else’s strategies. It wasn’t like we were going to copy them or anything. Aviva got all stressy about it, but it’s called research, right? Then Aviva and Blake brainstormed some of our own ideas. I did both jobs, of course. That’s what I hate about group projects. One person puts in all the work, and everyone else gets credit. Sheesh.
It was my idea. Hay. Sounds simple, right? We’ll take a bunch of hay from Aviva’s barn and pack our box full of it. In the very center we can place our egg. We’ll win, for sure!
I invited my whole group over to my house this Saturday. We’re going to do a trial run. There’s no rule against that. There’s this balcony outside my dad’s study, and it’s about the same height as the roof of the portables at school.
EMILY
Status:
Dear Hope,
I’m trying really hard not to let Kayley and Aviva get me down. They’re practically BUZZING about this egg drop thing. I bet Kayley’s parents hired some kind of egg drop expert to coach them. It’s NEVER a fair competition when Kayley’s involved.
Kai and I made a mini-carrier for Kermit so that he can be out of his tank but not totally loose in the room. Kai’s been bringing him over to our table group during class.
Sharon invited me to sit with her at lunch. Instead of PB and J or turkey on wheat, she brings strange food. Like this thing she calls spanakopita (little triangles that look like pastries but have cheese and spinach inside). She let me try a bite. Normally, spinach makes me gag. But there were enough spices to cover it up.
I always used to think Sharon was weird. She’s okay, I guess. I can’t see being best friends with her or anything. But she’s nice. Also, Cecilia has been stopping by to say “hi” on her way to the soccer field. That girl LIVES for soccer. It must be nice to love something so much.
Love and luck,
Emily
CECILIA
Hola Abuelita,
How are your English classes going? I wish you could come be a part of MY class. We’re doing an egg drop. It’s so cool! I guess it’s science, but I can’t believe this counts as school. It feels more like un juego to me.
It’s practically a puzzle because eggs are so fragile. The outsides are as thin as paper, and even a tiny crack can send the insides leaking through. My team is smart, though—all A and B students (including me). We’ll come up with a good idea, I’m sure.
I love to watch Mami’s face when I bring her my grades. Good grades mean a good university, a good job someday, and a better future for us all. Sometimes I think our family is like that nursery rhyme where the egg falls off the wall and cracks. Mi familia is cracked into pieces, and we’ve landed so far apart from each other. I just hope I can put us back together again.
Oh, and I did put a sticky note on the fridge for Mami. “Una sonrisa es algo hermoso.” Next thing I knew, Mami left one for me! “Your smile makes me smile.” I was so proud of her for writing in English.
WORDS TO PRACTICE
conversations = conversaciones
puzzle = rompecabezas
Besos y abrazos,
Cecilia
HENRY
SCENE: Ginormous richie-house, like something from a movie, with a remote-controlled gate around it, and tractor mowers for the lawn. Two kids standing on a balcony, throwing eggs off, two kids on the ground, checking them after they fall.
KAYLEY: (yells) Are you ready?
HENRY: So actually, you don’t have to yell. It’s not like you’re dropping the egg from the moon. We can hear you just fine if you talk.
KAYLEY: (sighs)
HENRY: See! I can even hear you sigh.
KAYLEY: I sighed extra loud to make a point.
BLAKE: Drop the egg already!
EGG: Whoosh! (falls in box) Thud!
KAYLEY: Wait! Don’t open it. (disappears from balcony, appears a few moments later out front with Aviva behind her)
BLAKE: (opens box, pulls out hay, dripping with yolk) Oh, gross.
AVIVA: It didn’t work.
HENRY: Maybe we packed the hay in there too tight.
KAYLEY: Don’t stress, Aviva. This is why we’re doing the trial run. I have another idea.
AVIVA: Yeah?
KAYLEY: Yeah. I think we can suspend the egg with my mother’s pantyhose.
HENRY: Isn’t that Kai’s idea?
KAYLEY: I had it first! Two people can have the same idea, you know.
KIDS: (silence)
KAYLEY: I pinkie swear on my puppy’s grave that I had the idea first. What? Are you calling me a liar?
Operation Frog Effect Page 3