Free Trouble According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney Page A

continued to watch Mrs. Brisbane and nibble at my toes. Og dove into the water for a long, splashy swim. He was probably worried about the tests, too.
    Just when I thought I’d have no toes left at all, Mrs. Brisbane stood up.
    “Class, I’ve finished grading the math papers and I’m pleased to say that all around, I’ve seen improvement. In fact, most of your grades have gone up.”
    She began to pass out the tests. One by one, I could tell what grades my friends had gotten from the expressions on their faces.
    Sayeh—100%, of course.
    Paul—100%, of course. Paul smiled, then glanced at Art, obviously worried about his friend.
    Seth broke into a broad grin and he made a V-for-victory sign with his fingers as he turned to Tabitha. She acted happy, too.
    For the most part, friends like A.J., Garth, Richie, Heidi and Gail looked relieved when they got their papers. I was holding my breath as Mrs. Brisbane handed Art his test.
    “Good work,” she said. “I knew you could do it.”
    How do I describe the look on Art’s face? Glowing? Gleaming? Beaming? As happy as he looked when he viewed his beautiful train layout? All I can say is he was HAPPY-HAPPY-HAPPY and when Paul saw him smile, he beamed, too.
    For once, Art had paid attention and his attention had paid off.
    The only person who was extremely unhappy was Mandy. She actually put her head down on her table.
    “Mandy, we can talk later,” said Mrs. Brisbane.
    When afternoon recess arrived, all my friends raced out of the door.
    Mandy stayed behind.
    Mrs. Brisbane sat down next to her. “I’m sorry, Mandy. Do you know what happened?”
    Mandy lifted her head. She looked as miserable as Miranda did the day she got in trouble. “I don’t know. I studied. But …”
    She flung her head back down on the table.
    Mrs. Brisbane looked sad, too. “Would you like to retake the test? I could give you another chance later in the week.”
    Slowly, Mandy raised her head. “If I do better, can I take Humphrey home this weekend?” she asked.
    “Yes, if you can get one of your parents to sign the form.”
    Mandy let out a huge sigh. “I’ll take the test again. And I’ll get that paper signed.”
    “Good. Now, is there something about these problems you don’t understand?”
    Mandy slowly shook her head. “I just had trouble concentrating.”
    Mrs. Brisbane dismissed her so she could go out to play.
    I hopped on my wheel to think things over, but no matter how fast I went, I had trouble concentrating. Just like Mandy.
    MATH TEST PROVES TO BE A BIG
CHALLENGE FOR HUMPHREYVILLE
    “With a few exceptions, most students did well,”
Mrs. Brisbane reports.
    The Humphreyville Herald

Double Trouble

    T rouble. Rhymes with Double. Believe me, I was thinking about Double Trouble that night.
    Art’s good grade on the math test was cause for celebration.
    Art becoming friends with Paul was cause for celebration.
    Seth sitting still (or at least not popping up out of his chair every few seconds) was cause for celebration.
    But I had not done one thing to help Miranda, whom I had gotten into trouble. And now Mandy clearly was having some kind of problem I didn’t understand.
    Lately I’d been spinning more to keep my mind off my friends’ troubles. I was spinning so much, I wasn’t eating all the food I had stored away in various places in my cage. (All hamsters know that it’s a good idea to have some food stashed away in case of emergency.)
    “Og, being a classroom pet may not be an important job, but it’s not an easy one either,” I squeaked to my neighbor. “Because we’ve got to try and keep all our friends out of trouble.”
    “BOING-BOING!” he twanged back at me.
    He’s a very wise frog.
    “I’m worried about Miranda,” I breathlessly told my neighbor, without stopping my wheel.
    “BOING!” Og did a giant leap.
    “And I’m worried about Mandy,” I said.
    “BOING-BOING!” Og jumped up and down twice. I knew he was worried about Mandy as