afternoon break and take the test?’ Mrs Brisbane suggested. ‘You might feel calmer if the other students aren’t here.’
Cassie did a lot of deep breathing as she took the test later in the day.
I breathed along with her, just to help her feel better.
I felt better, too.
‘I hope it wasn’t as bad as you’d expected,’ Mrs Brisbane said when Cassie handed in her test.
‘It wasn’t,’ Cassie said.
And then she smiled. Whew!
8 The Big Break
You’d think, by now, my job as a classroom hamster would have taught me what to expect in the classroom. But still, I was often caught off guard by humans and their behaviour.
Especially that Friday.
Friday is always the day of the week when I go home with one of my classmates for the weekend. I have FUN-FUN-FUN, and I get to learn even more about my human friends.
But instead of revealing who would take me home for the weekend, Mrs Brisbane made a surprising announcement.
‘Class, I’m going to be taking Humphrey and Og home for the Easter break. Joey istaking the tadpoles to his house for the week,’ she said.
‘The week ?’ I squeaked. ‘Don’t you mean the weekend ?’
‘I’m not giving you any homework over Easter,’ she continued. ‘But I want you to bring in more signs of spring. I think you’ll find a lot of them. And when we get back, we’ll make a plan for Family Fun Night and start a great new project.’
‘I still like the tightrope idea,’ Tell-the-Truth-Thomas said. ‘I might even try it over the holidays.’
Some of my friends laughed, but not me.
They all seemed extra excited for the bell to ring at the end of the day, but I was extra confused.
Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE-LOVE-LOVE going home with Mrs Brisbane and spending time with her and her husband, Bert. And it’s NICE-NICE-NICE that Og would get to come with me. I thought he needed a break from the specks – I mean tadpoles. But I wondered what my friends would do over the holidays.
Even more, I wondered what would happenwith Joey’s tadpoles. Would they grow legs and arms and heads?
Up to now, I hadn’t seen much progress.
It didn’t matter what I wondered, because at the end of the day, Mrs Brisbane brought my cage out to her car. Mr Morales carried out Og’s tank.
‘Sue, you are a wonder,’ he said. ‘Caring for all of these animals takes a lot of work, but the children get so much out of having them in the classroom.’
I guess it does take a lot of work to care for animals. But as a classroom pet, let me say that it takes a lot of work to care for humans, too.
In the end, all the work pays off, because I help my friends and they help me.
I like Mrs Brisbane’s house. It’s painted a cheery shade of yellow – almost the colour of a Golden Hamster like me – and has white shutters.
Inside, she always has fresh flowers on the table – even when it’s not spring.
‘Bert, our houseguests are here!’ she announced as she carried my cage through thefront door.
Mr Brisbane rolled his wheelchair to the door and she put my cage in his lap.
‘Welcome back, Humphrey,’ he said. ‘You’re just what we need for the Easter break.’
‘Thanks!’ I squeaked.
After he put my cage on the large table in the living room, Mrs Brisbane said, ‘Let’s get Og out of the car.’
Mr Brisbane rolled his chair outside, and when he came back, he had Og’s tank on his lap. He and Mrs Brisbane set it on the table next to me.
‘They’re used to being together all the time,’ she said.
Mr Brisbane nodded. ‘It’s hard to understand, but somehow, this hamster and this frog are truly friends.’
Mr Brisbane is a very wise man. But recently, I was having trouble connecting with my friend Og.
Maybe a week at the Brisbanes’ house would help.
‘What are your plans for the week?’ Bert asked his wife.
‘Oh, I hope to sleep late every day,’ she said.
Really? I couldn’t imagine Mrs Brisbane sleeping late.
‘I’ll have lunch with my friends and
Cassie did a lot of deep breathing as she took the test later in the day.
I breathed along with her, just to help her feel better.
I felt better, too.
‘I hope it wasn’t as bad as you’d expected,’ Mrs Brisbane said when Cassie handed in her test.
‘It wasn’t,’ Cassie said.
And then she smiled. Whew!
8 The Big Break
You’d think, by now, my job as a classroom hamster would have taught me what to expect in the classroom. But still, I was often caught off guard by humans and their behaviour.
Especially that Friday.
Friday is always the day of the week when I go home with one of my classmates for the weekend. I have FUN-FUN-FUN, and I get to learn even more about my human friends.
But instead of revealing who would take me home for the weekend, Mrs Brisbane made a surprising announcement.
‘Class, I’m going to be taking Humphrey and Og home for the Easter break. Joey istaking the tadpoles to his house for the week,’ she said.
‘The week ?’ I squeaked. ‘Don’t you mean the weekend ?’
‘I’m not giving you any homework over Easter,’ she continued. ‘But I want you to bring in more signs of spring. I think you’ll find a lot of them. And when we get back, we’ll make a plan for Family Fun Night and start a great new project.’
‘I still like the tightrope idea,’ Tell-the-Truth-Thomas said. ‘I might even try it over the holidays.’
Some of my friends laughed, but not me.
They all seemed extra excited for the bell to ring at the end of the day, but I was extra confused.
Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE-LOVE-LOVE going home with Mrs Brisbane and spending time with her and her husband, Bert. And it’s NICE-NICE-NICE that Og would get to come with me. I thought he needed a break from the specks – I mean tadpoles. But I wondered what my friends would do over the holidays.
Even more, I wondered what would happenwith Joey’s tadpoles. Would they grow legs and arms and heads?
Up to now, I hadn’t seen much progress.
It didn’t matter what I wondered, because at the end of the day, Mrs Brisbane brought my cage out to her car. Mr Morales carried out Og’s tank.
‘Sue, you are a wonder,’ he said. ‘Caring for all of these animals takes a lot of work, but the children get so much out of having them in the classroom.’
I guess it does take a lot of work to care for animals. But as a classroom pet, let me say that it takes a lot of work to care for humans, too.
In the end, all the work pays off, because I help my friends and they help me.
I like Mrs Brisbane’s house. It’s painted a cheery shade of yellow – almost the colour of a Golden Hamster like me – and has white shutters.
Inside, she always has fresh flowers on the table – even when it’s not spring.
‘Bert, our houseguests are here!’ she announced as she carried my cage through thefront door.
Mr Brisbane rolled his wheelchair to the door and she put my cage in his lap.
‘Welcome back, Humphrey,’ he said. ‘You’re just what we need for the Easter break.’
‘Thanks!’ I squeaked.
After he put my cage on the large table in the living room, Mrs Brisbane said, ‘Let’s get Og out of the car.’
Mr Brisbane rolled his chair outside, and when he came back, he had Og’s tank on his lap. He and Mrs Brisbane set it on the table next to me.
‘They’re used to being together all the time,’ she said.
Mr Brisbane nodded. ‘It’s hard to understand, but somehow, this hamster and this frog are truly friends.’
Mr Brisbane is a very wise man. But recently, I was having trouble connecting with my friend Og.
Maybe a week at the Brisbanes’ house would help.
‘What are your plans for the week?’ Bert asked his wife.
‘Oh, I hope to sleep late every day,’ she said.
Really? I couldn’t imagine Mrs Brisbane sleeping late.
‘I’ll have lunch with my friends and
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