Book 13: Middle of the School
August 27
Wow. Here I am, eleven years old, and I have a choice to make that might end up changing my life forever.
Tonight, during dinner, Mom brought up the topic of school. I like school—at least, I did last year, in sixth grade, once I got used to it. This year I’m going into seventh grade, and… well, I won’t get ahead of myself.
“Pete, Allisen and Harrisson, I have a question for all of you,” Mom said. “This is something Dad and I have already talked with Mirisen about, earlier today…”
“Are we getting another pet?” Harrisson asked excitedly.
Mom laughed. “No, I don’t think we’ll be getting another pet in a long time.” We already have a dog named Surprise, three cats named Sniffer, Leelee, and Tuxio, and two gerbils named Squeaky and Gretchen.
“Then what’s the surprise?” Harrisson asked.
“I didn’t say there was a surprise,” Mom reminded him. “I just wanted to talk to you guys about school this year.”
This is when I started to get nervous. “We’re not switching schools again, are we?” I asked. The one I went to for sixth grade, Learner’s Cove, was already the fifth school I’d attended, if you count homeschool when I was little.
“That depends,” said Mom. She exchanged a glance with Dad. “Dad and Mirisen and I have already decided that Mirisen won’t be going back to Learner’s Cove this year. She’s going to be homeschooled.”
“Because that way I can work at my own pace and not be held up by the other kids, and I won’t have to worry about being run over in the hallways by rampaging adolescents,” Mirisen put in. I don’t get why she can’t just talk like a normal person.
“Right,” said Mom, who looked like she was trying not to laugh. “Since you two girls are starting seventh grade this year, you’d technically be at Learner’s Academy, not Learner’s Cove. That means changing classes, and being responsible for getting to each of your classes on time, and so on and so on. The question for you, Allisen, is would you prefer to go to Learner’s Academy for seventh grade, experience middle school life… or be homeschooled with Mirisen?”
How am I supposed to choose? I didn’t answer her then. I’m still thinking about it. Pete won’t be going back to Learner’s Academy, which is a plus since he’s the most obnoxious, rebellious 18-year-old brother you could imagine. He said he didn’t want to do twelfth grade at all, and after a long discussion Mom and Dad agreed that he doesn’t have to as long as he gets a full-time job and works toward his GED. Harrisson chose to stay at Learner’s Cove so he could play with his friends and “do all the fun stuff.” He loved first grade last year.
As for me… I’m not sure. It makes sense for Mirisen to be homeschooled. I mean, she’s a nine-year-old seventh grader. And not only that, she’s super short for her age, not even four feet tall. She’d probably be trampled in the hallways with all those bigger kids. And since she’s two or three years younger than the rest of the kids in our grade, she didn’t have any good friends in our class last year anyway.
I didn’t have any really good friends last year (except my best friend, Emalie Maye, who moved away in November), but I had some friends. And I liked school for the most part. Especially since Learner’s Cove/ Academy is a “fun house” school, which means it has a bunch of after-school activity areas like pools and playgrounds and several gyms, and even some little stores and a snack bar and a restaurant run by the high school cooking students (and middle- and high-schoolers can are allowed to go to the restaurant for lunch!). I remember I also liked homeschooling when I was little, and it would be nice to get to sleep in every day, but… aaaaaagh, I just don’t know. I’m going to need a lot more time to think about this.
August 31
Okay, I made my decision. I’m going back to Learner’s Cove. Learner’s Academy, I should say. Learner’s Cove and Learner’s Academy are technically the same school, since they’re in the same building and run by the same principal and everything. They just have different names because, I don’t know, “cove” sounds younger and “academy” sounds older?
Anyway, I’m going back. If I didn’t, I know I’d miss my classmates and the school and everything. I’m just a little nervous about the whole middle school thing… it’ll be really different from elementary school. Even though I’ll be in the same building, the middle and high school classes are in an entirely separate wing from the elementary school classes, so nothing will be familiar. I mean, we’ll still use the same cafeteria and library, but other than that… it won’t even feel like the same place. Learner’s Academy even has its own separate entrance.
And while last year I had one teacher (aside from my art, gym, music, library, and computer teachers, each of whom I saw once a week) and the same kids in my class all the time, this year I’ll have four teachers each semester, and different kids in every class. It’ll be really weird. I guess I might have a better chance at making friends, though, since I’ll be with so many different kids… but then again, I won’t be with them all day, so maybe not. Aaagh, I don’t know. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what happens. I’m sure it’ll be just fine.
September 3
Mom took me on a back-to-school outing today after church. We bought a bunch of new clothes, and I got my hair cut. I got five inches taken off, so now my hair only goes down a tiny bit past my shoulders.
So in sixth grade I had long hair, no glasses, my old clothes, and no pierced ears. Now, starting seventh grade, I’ll have pierced ears, glasses, new clothes, and a new haircut. “The kids at school will hardly recognize me!” I groaned to Mom. She just laughed.
I am a little nervous about starting middle school, though. Three more days!
September 6
First day of seventh grade. Learner’s Academy does block scheduling, which means that we get four 90-minute classes each semester, rather than eight 45-minute classes all year. This semester I have English, art, math, and social studies. Next semester I’ll get music, science, gym, and Spanish.
I’m in my first-period class right now, which is English. My teacher has her name written on the board—Mrs. Lenardo—but she hasn’t really talked to anyone yet, she’s just sitting at her desk. I can’t really tell anything about her except that she seems very, very plain.
This class seems small—there are five kids here right now, aside from me. Two of them were in my class last year: Austin Kline and Joseph San Drana. Two were in the other sixth-grade class (I think their names are Sasha and Laura), and one I don’t recognize at all. It looks like there are ten desks total. Is that only how many kids are in the class?
September 6, later
What a day! There were only 10 kids in my class total. Aside from Austin, Joseph, Laura, Sasha, and the other kid (named Justin), there are also Ashellie and Logan (who were in the other 6th grade last year), Keegan (from my class last year) and Vivian, who told us to call her Vee (new to the school). And I was right about Mrs. Lenardo. She’s all right, but seems kind of boring.
My other classes—I LOVE my art class! My teacher, Ms. Kadoni, is so nice and enthusiastic about everything. I think art will be my favorite class. Math, I’m not so sure about. I was late to math class because I couldn’t find it, and my teacher said, “Be careful. If you’re late again, you get detention.” His name is Mr. Pepson, and he seems strict but pretty nice. He made a joke during class, so that means he’s probably okay.
But my social studies teacher is an entirely different story. Her name is Mrs. Engel, and she seems pretty mean. She yelled at Riley Felter for slouching in his chair, she said, “Hey, shut up back there” when kids in the back were talking (I was horrified to hear a teacher say that, especially to students!), and she spent pretty much the entire period lecturing us on a million ways to get detention: eating in class, not paying attention, talking out of turn, not turning in homework on time, getting lower than a C- on anything, forgetting to write our name, date, and class on a paper, and tons of other things, I don’t even remember them all. I don’t think I’m going to like social studies at all.
As for the kids, I have a lot of the same kids in all my classes. I also have my sort-of-friends Toby and Mariah from last year in my math class, and Melody and Natalia in art. I don’t have any classes with my friends Rebecca, Sara, James, Rob, Jack, or Liz.
September 7
AAAAAA! I have homework. On the second day of school! It’s for Mrs. Engel, and it looks really hard. Also, I don’t have anyone to sit with at lunch. Yesterday I sat with Melody and Natalia and some girls I remember from the other 6th grade class last year, but they were all talking about stuff they did together over the summer together and I felt kind of left out. Today I looked for my other friends. James and Rob were sitting with a bunch of boys, and I didn’t want to go sit with them because I’d feel weird being the only girl at the table. Jack was sitting with a different group of boys, including Stivre and Tomas, who were the most annoying boys in my class last year, so I definitely didn’t want to go sit with them. I saw Sara and Liz leave the cafeteria, probably to go to the school restaurant, but I couldn’t follow them because I hadn’t brought any money. And Rebecca was nowhere in sight. So today I sat by myself in a little corner. It was very lonely and boring.
I’m not sure I made the right choice about coming back this year.
September 9
Finally, a Saturday! I got a 73% on my first social studies assignment (a sheet of homework questions), because I didn’t understand most of the questions. Some people may think that’s a fine grade, but I’ve been an A student all my life! Mrs. Engel is so mean. I’m so glad it’s the weekend.
September 11
Wow, it’s the second week of school and already I feel like I’m overloaded with assignments. This sure is different from elementary school!
Today social studies was actually okay, aside from Mrs. Engel yelling at some people. We just talked about the terrorist attack 5 years ago. It’s weird that it’s been five years. I mean, I was only six (almost seven), but I still remember Dad having the TV on that night and my parents talking about it. It doesn’t really seem like that long ago.
September 16
Finally, I have a chance to write! I’ve had so much schoolwork to do that I haven’t had time to keep up with my journal! So here’s an update on my classes:
English is okay. It’s not very interesting, but, then again, neither is Mrs. Lenardo. She gives a lot of work, though. She said on Friday that we’re going to start having to write an essay a week! I don’t think I can do that.
Art is awesome! We do really cool projects. We’ve already done tracing and still lifes, and we’re going to do some sculpting next. I can’t wait! And I was right, Ms. Kadoni is an excellent teacher.
Math is all right. It’s definitely a quieter class than English or art, because Mr. Pepson is strict. But he’s nice, he has a sense of humor, and he’s helpful. I can understand all his lessons perfectly!
Social studies… well, I think you already know how I feel about social studies! It hasn’t gotten any better.
And then there’s the whole friend thing—that hasn’t gotten better either. I still have no one to sit with at lunch. I found out that Rebecca doesn’t go here anymore. Melody and Natalia have their own group now, the boys still sit with the boys, and Sara and Liz are most often not even in the cafeteria. I did eat with them once, but just like with Melody and Natalia, it was kind of like they’d moved on without me. Like they were becoming this little best friendship that I’m not part of.
Art is the one bright point of my school day. If it weren’t for art, I think I’d be begging Mom to pull me out of school and homeschool me with Mirisen.
September 18
Mondaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy. You’ll never believe what happened today. I, Allisen Zepetto, straight-A student (mostly), good kid who almost never has to be reminded to have good behavior, got detention. DETENTION. And all because of my stinking homework!
Mrs. Engel had assigned us homework over the weekend. I did do it (and it took up about three hours of my Saturday, which I would’ve much preferred to spend reading the mystery I got from the library or playing with Mirisen and Harrisson). But I got distracted after I finished it, and I never remembered to put it in my backpack. It was sitting on my desk at home.
When it came time to pass in our homework, I searched all over for it. In my backpack, in my social studies folder, even in my folders for other classes in case I’d accidentally put it there. The girl next to me, Ariel, was sympathetic. “Maybe check your locker,” she suggested. Well, I would if I had ever managed to get in my locker in the first place, but I knew my homework wouldn’t be there because I don’t even know how to open the thing! Nobody ever taught me how to open a combination lock, and I don’t even have any friends who I can ask for help.
I got a sinking feeling as soon as I remembered where my homework was. “Do you think it’ll be okay if I tell her I left it at home and I’ll bring it in tomorrow? I really did do it!” I whispered to Ariel. Ariel gave me a doubtful shrug.
“Miss Zepetto!” Mrs. Engel’s obnoxious voice rang out at me from across the room. “Since I see that you prefer to spend your time talking to your classmates rather than waiting quietly for my instruction, I will come to you first. Where is your homework?”
I gulped. “I left it at home,” I said quietly. “I really did do it, it took like three hours and I worked really hard on it, but I just forgot—”
“Silence,” said Mrs. Engel. She went back up to the front of the room and spoke to the entire class. “Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Zepetto here is telling me that she did her homework over the weekend and then forgot to bring it in. Let me tell you what I think of that excuse. I think it is just that—an excuse. Don’t come to me claiming you forgot your homework, because how am I supposed to know whether you are telling the truth or not? You could be just saying you forgot to bring it because you really chose to be lazy and not do it! And even if she is telling the truth, I must add that you students are in seventh grade now. That’s just two years away from high school, and before you know it you’ll be adults and on your own. You need to learn to be responsible. For that reason, Miss Zepetto, you will be joining me after school tomorrow for a two-hour detention.”
I think kids around me were gasping and looking at her in horror, but I’m not too sure because suddenly I was trying as hard as I could not to cry. I couldn’t believe how mean this lady was. Not only did she give me detention for a silly mistake I made, but she had to go and single me out in front of the entire class? Make an example of me? Embarrass me? And detention? For two hours? I’d never gotten a detention before in my life. I hate Mrs. Engel so much.
I bolted as soon as class was over and cried in the bathroom a little bit. Then I went outside to wait for Mom, and pretended nothing had ever happened. I’m not telling my family about my detention. I’ll pretend I want to stay after school tomorrow for the pool or store or just to hang out. Mom and Dad would be too disappointed in me if I told them. Harrisson would think I was bad, and Mirisen would probably say something like, “Well, you really should have been more responsible in remembering your homework.” I couldn’t handle it.
September 19
Well, I had my detention today. It was as awful as I expected. I had to scrub down all the desks in the classroom, which would have been bad ordinarily, but was about ten thousand times worse with Mrs. Engel breathing down my neck. And she kept saying stuff like, “You know, I really don’t want to be here right now, there are so many other things I could be doing with my time, you’re wasting my time” blah blah blah. I wanted so badly to say to her, “Well, if this is a waste of your time, why did you give me detention in the first place?” But that probably would have just given me another detention.
When Mom picked me up from school and asked me what I did, I said vaguely, “stuff,” then changed the subject and asked what was for dinner. She looked at me suspiciously but didn’t say anything. I think she knows something’s up.
September 22
My birthday is in six days. In six days I will be twelve!
The really bummer thing is that this year, my birthday falls on a Thursday. A school day! Mom asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday and I gave her a speech I’d rehearsed the night before.
“Well,” I said, in my most Mirisen-like voice. “I will be turning twelve, you know. And twelve is a very important year. It’s the last age of being just a kid and not a teenager. So I think that, since twelve is such an important year, I should be allowed to skip school on my birthday. Maybe we could all do something fun as a family that day instead.”
Mom looked shocked. “Skip school? Absolutely not! What’s wrong, Allisen? I thought you liked school. You made the choice to go back.”
I am so regretting that choice right now. I considered telling Mom about meanie Mrs. Engel and about the detention. I considered telling her about how I have no real friends anymore and how I don’t even know how to open my locker and all that stuff. But I thought about what she said, and she was right. It really had been my choice to go to Learner’s Academy. So for that reason, I kept quiet.
September 24
Mrs. Engel is driving everyone crazy. She passed back the quizzes we took on Friday, and the highest grade in the class was a 62%. I got a 47%. She yelled at us like it was all our fault we did so horribly, when in reality it was that nobody even understands the way she teaches and half the stuff on the quiz wasn’t even stuff she’d taught us anyway. But of course, when Joseph brought that up, in a calm, diplomatic way, Mrs. Engel gave him detention. Just like that. And Joseph is like me—he’s the kind of kid who never misbehaves or gets in trouble.
I think by now everyone in Mrs. Engel’s class has had detention at least once. They weren’t all broadcasted to the whole class like mine and Joseph’s were, but I’ve heard other kids talking. It’s at least a little comforting that I’m not the only one who can’t stand that teacher. Or is it?
September 25
Not okay! Mrs. Engel said that since everybody got under a C- on that quiz, everyone has to have a detention! Not only does that make no sense, but it wastes her time too, and now she has to think of stuff for nine different kids to do at nine different times, because of course she doesn’t want everyone to have detention together. My detention is scheduled for Friday, the day after my birthday. Everyone in my class is outraged.
“This is completely unjust,” said Joseph, as all nine of us walked out of class together. “We should do something about her. She obviously doesn’t even care if we learn anything; she just wants to feel like she has some control over us. It’s a power struggle, that’s what it is. She’s not a teacher.”
“Well, what can we do?” asked Keegan. “Tell the principal?”
“That’s not a bad idea,” said Joseph. “I could write up a petition or something, type up everything Mrs. Engel’s done that’s unjust or unfair, and we could all sign it and bring it to his attention. And I think we should all have our parents call the school as well. So they can tell them about this—” he shook his 62% quiz angrily—“and all the detentions and everything else she’s been doing. Maybe if they get enough complaints about her, they’ll have to do something about her.”
I think Joseph’s right. Maybe if all our parents call, people will really listen. But I’m scared to death about talking to my parents about this, because that would mean bringing up the detentions. But I think I’m still going to do it… maybe in a couple hours.
September 25, later
So I talked to Mom tonight after dinner. I told her the truth about school, about how awful Mrs. Engel was and even about getting detention. And she wasn’t mad at me, although she was pretty mad—at Mrs. Engel! She said she would definitely call the school and complain, because she agreed that Mrs. Engel was totally unfair.
Guess what else—Mom also taught me the trick to opening combination locks! So now I can start using my locker!
September 26
Nothing has happened so far in regard to social studies class and Mrs. Engel. Boo. But, on the positive side, I have GREAT news about something else!
I have a friend! Well, I think I do. Vee from my English class asked me if I wanted to sit with her and her friends during lunch today! I was so happy and surprised and excited! OF COURSE I wanted to sit with them at lunch!
So I did. Vee told me she’d been putting together a sort of club of all the coolest girls she can find. I can’t believe I’m one of the coolest girls she can find! I don’t know any of the others very well. Three of them were in the other sixth-grade class here last year: Amalia Barker, who has really short hair and wears lots of makeup, and Suzanne and Suzette Quincy. Suzanne and Suzette (identical twins) are cheerleaders for a lot of the school’s sports teams, and people call them the Suzy Q’s.
The other two girls in the club are Cristil and Brynne. Brynne has long dark hair and red painted nails, and Cristil (she told me how to spell her name) is the glitter queen and wears five earrings in each ear. None of the girls in the club seem like the kind of people I’d usually hang around with, but they all seem really nice, and I’m so glad to finally have someone to eat lunch with!
September 28
YES! Best birthday ever!!!!!!!! So, when I went into English class this morning, people were talking about Mrs. Engel. I caught little snippets of conversation, and then I heard Ashellie say, “Who else is in that class? Oh, Allisen! Allisen, guess what?” She came over to me, grinning.
“What?” I asked, completely unprepared for what she was about to say.
“You know Mrs. Engel? And you know Joseph’s brilliant idea about having all our parents call and everything? Well, it worked! Mrs. Engel got fired!”
“What?!?!?!” I exclaimed, hardly daring to believe it.
“I know! Isn’t that awesome? Now maybe we’ll actually have a good teacher for social studies. And no more detentions!”
As it turned out, she didn’t get fired exactly, but when the principal told her he wanted to observe her teaching, she just quit. I guess even she knew she was a bad teacher. But hey, I don’t really care, all I care about is that she’s gone and YAY!
We had a sub today in social studies, but the school’s going to try to get a permanent teacher to start as soon as possible. I sure hope she/he is nicer than Mrs. Engel—not like that will be hard or anything!
For my birthday today, I brought twelve cupcakes to school. I gave one each to Vee, Brynne, Cristil, Amalia, Suzanne, Suzette, Mr. Pepson, Ms. Kadoni, Mrs. Lenardo, and the social studies sub (I was originally going to give two to Ms. Kadoni, since I wasn’t planning on sharing with Mrs. Engel, but when I found out it would be a sub I decided to save one for her). Then I ate the other two myself. After school, my family went out to Cactus Jack for dinner. We came home and ate a delicious cake Mom and Mirisen had made, that was chocolate with vanilla frosting and had little plastic dogs on it that I got to keep! And as for presents, I got a book from Mirisen, a card from Harrisson, and some clothes, books, games, and stuffed animals from my parents. It was an AWESOME day! And you know what? Now that I have friends, no more nasty teachers, and a way to get into my locker, I’m finally starting to think that middle school is pretty awesome too.
Book 14: Freaky Friendships
August 27
Wow. Here I am, eleven years old, and I have a choice to make that might end up changing my life forever.
Tonight, during dinner, Mom brought up the topic of school. I like school—at least, I did last year, in sixth grade, once I got used to it. This year I’m going into seventh grade, and… well, I won’t get ahead of myself.
“Pete, Allisen and Harrisson, I have a question for all of you,” Mom said. “This is something Dad and I have already talked with Mirisen about, earlier today…”
“Are we getting another pet?” Harrisson asked excitedly.
Mom laughed. “No, I don’t think we’ll be getting another pet in a long time.” We already have a dog named Surprise, three cats named Sniffer, Leelee, and Tuxio, and two gerbils named Squeaky and Gretchen.
“Then what’s the surprise?” Harrisson asked.
“I didn’t say there was a surprise,” Mom reminded him. “I just wanted to talk to you guys about school this year.”
This is when I started to get nervous. “We’re not switching schools again, are we?” I asked. The one I went to for sixth grade, Learner’s Cove, was already the fifth school I’d attended, if you count homeschool when I was little.
“That depends,” said Mom. She exchanged a glance with Dad. “Dad and Mirisen and I have already decided that Mirisen won’t be going back to Learner’s Cove this year. She’s going to be homeschooled.”
“Because that way I can work at my own pace and not be held up by the other kids, and I won’t have to worry about being run over in the hallways by rampaging adolescents,” Mirisen put in. I don’t get why she can’t just talk like a normal person.
“Right,” said Mom, who looked like she was trying not to laugh. “Since you two girls are starting seventh grade this year, you’d technically be at Learner’s Academy, not Learner’s Cove. That means changing classes, and being responsible for getting to each of your classes on time, and so on and so on. The question for you, Allisen, is would you prefer to go to Learner’s Academy for seventh grade, experience middle school life… or be homeschooled with Mirisen?”
How am I supposed to choose? I didn’t answer her then. I’m still thinking about it. Pete won’t be going back to Learner’s Academy, which is a plus since he’s the most obnoxious, rebellious 18-year-old brother you could imagine. He said he didn’t want to do twelfth grade at all, and after a long discussion Mom and Dad agreed that he doesn’t have to as long as he gets a full-time job and works toward his GED. Harrisson chose to stay at Learner’s Cove so he could play with his friends and “do all the fun stuff.” He loved first grade last year.
As for me… I’m not sure. It makes sense for Mirisen to be homeschooled. I mean, she’s a nine-year-old seventh grader. And not only that, she’s super short for her age, not even four feet tall. She’d probably be trampled in the hallways with all those bigger kids. And since she’s two or three years younger than the rest of the kids in our grade, she didn’t have any good friends in our class last year anyway.
I didn’t have any really good friends last year (except my best friend, Emalie Maye, who moved away in November), but I had some friends. And I liked school for the most part. Especially since Learner’s Cove/ Academy is a “fun house” school, which means it has a bunch of after-school activity areas like pools and playgrounds and several gyms, and even some little stores and a snack bar and a restaurant run by the high school cooking students (and middle- and high-schoolers can are allowed to go to the restaurant for lunch!). I remember I also liked homeschooling when I was little, and it would be nice to get to sleep in every day, but… aaaaaagh, I just don’t know. I’m going to need a lot more time to think about this.
August 31
Okay, I made my decision. I’m going back to Learner’s Cove. Learner’s Academy, I should say. Learner’s Cove and Learner’s Academy are technically the same school, since they’re in the same building and run by the same principal and everything. They just have different names because, I don’t know, “cove” sounds younger and “academy” sounds older?
Anyway, I’m going back. If I didn’t, I know I’d miss my classmates and the school and everything. I’m just a little nervous about the whole middle school thing… it’ll be really different from elementary school. Even though I’ll be in the same building, the middle and high school classes are in an entirely separate wing from the elementary school classes, so nothing will be familiar. I mean, we’ll still use the same cafeteria and library, but other than that… it won’t even feel like the same place. Learner’s Academy even has its own separate entrance.
And while last year I had one teacher (aside from my art, gym, music, library, and computer teachers, each of whom I saw once a week) and the same kids in my class all the time, this year I’ll have four teachers each semester, and different kids in every class. It’ll be really weird. I guess I might have a better chance at making friends, though, since I’ll be with so many different kids… but then again, I won’t be with them all day, so maybe not. Aaagh, I don’t know. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what happens. I’m sure it’ll be just fine.
September 3
Mom took me on a back-to-school outing today after church. We bought a bunch of new clothes, and I got my hair cut. I got five inches taken off, so now my hair only goes down a tiny bit past my shoulders.
So in sixth grade I had long hair, no glasses, my old clothes, and no pierced ears. Now, starting seventh grade, I’ll have pierced ears, glasses, new clothes, and a new haircut. “The kids at school will hardly recognize me!” I groaned to Mom. She just laughed.
I am a little nervous about starting middle school, though. Three more days!
September 6
First day of seventh grade. Learner’s Academy does block scheduling, which means that we get four 90-minute classes each semester, rather than eight 45-minute classes all year. This semester I have English, art, math, and social studies. Next semester I’ll get music, science, gym, and Spanish.
I’m in my first-period class right now, which is English. My teacher has her name written on the board—Mrs. Lenardo—but she hasn’t really talked to anyone yet, she’s just sitting at her desk. I can’t really tell anything about her except that she seems very, very plain.
This class seems small—there are five kids here right now, aside from me. Two of them were in my class last year: Austin Kline and Joseph San Drana. Two were in the other sixth-grade class (I think their names are Sasha and Laura), and one I don’t recognize at all. It looks like there are ten desks total. Is that only how many kids are in the class?
September 6, later
What a day! There were only 10 kids in my class total. Aside from Austin, Joseph, Laura, Sasha, and the other kid (named Justin), there are also Ashellie and Logan (who were in the other 6th grade last year), Keegan (from my class last year) and Vivian, who told us to call her Vee (new to the school). And I was right about Mrs. Lenardo. She’s all right, but seems kind of boring.
My other classes—I LOVE my art class! My teacher, Ms. Kadoni, is so nice and enthusiastic about everything. I think art will be my favorite class. Math, I’m not so sure about. I was late to math class because I couldn’t find it, and my teacher said, “Be careful. If you’re late again, you get detention.” His name is Mr. Pepson, and he seems strict but pretty nice. He made a joke during class, so that means he’s probably okay.
But my social studies teacher is an entirely different story. Her name is Mrs. Engel, and she seems pretty mean. She yelled at Riley Felter for slouching in his chair, she said, “Hey, shut up back there” when kids in the back were talking (I was horrified to hear a teacher say that, especially to students!), and she spent pretty much the entire period lecturing us on a million ways to get detention: eating in class, not paying attention, talking out of turn, not turning in homework on time, getting lower than a C- on anything, forgetting to write our name, date, and class on a paper, and tons of other things, I don’t even remember them all. I don’t think I’m going to like social studies at all.
As for the kids, I have a lot of the same kids in all my classes. I also have my sort-of-friends Toby and Mariah from last year in my math class, and Melody and Natalia in art. I don’t have any classes with my friends Rebecca, Sara, James, Rob, Jack, or Liz.
September 7
AAAAAA! I have homework. On the second day of school! It’s for Mrs. Engel, and it looks really hard. Also, I don’t have anyone to sit with at lunch. Yesterday I sat with Melody and Natalia and some girls I remember from the other 6th grade class last year, but they were all talking about stuff they did together over the summer together and I felt kind of left out. Today I looked for my other friends. James and Rob were sitting with a bunch of boys, and I didn’t want to go sit with them because I’d feel weird being the only girl at the table. Jack was sitting with a different group of boys, including Stivre and Tomas, who were the most annoying boys in my class last year, so I definitely didn’t want to go sit with them. I saw Sara and Liz leave the cafeteria, probably to go to the school restaurant, but I couldn’t follow them because I hadn’t brought any money. And Rebecca was nowhere in sight. So today I sat by myself in a little corner. It was very lonely and boring.
I’m not sure I made the right choice about coming back this year.
September 9
Finally, a Saturday! I got a 73% on my first social studies assignment (a sheet of homework questions), because I didn’t understand most of the questions. Some people may think that’s a fine grade, but I’ve been an A student all my life! Mrs. Engel is so mean. I’m so glad it’s the weekend.
September 11
Wow, it’s the second week of school and already I feel like I’m overloaded with assignments. This sure is different from elementary school!
Today social studies was actually okay, aside from Mrs. Engel yelling at some people. We just talked about the terrorist attack 5 years ago. It’s weird that it’s been five years. I mean, I was only six (almost seven), but I still remember Dad having the TV on that night and my parents talking about it. It doesn’t really seem like that long ago.
September 16
Finally, I have a chance to write! I’ve had so much schoolwork to do that I haven’t had time to keep up with my journal! So here’s an update on my classes:
English is okay. It’s not very interesting, but, then again, neither is Mrs. Lenardo. She gives a lot of work, though. She said on Friday that we’re going to start having to write an essay a week! I don’t think I can do that.
Art is awesome! We do really cool projects. We’ve already done tracing and still lifes, and we’re going to do some sculpting next. I can’t wait! And I was right, Ms. Kadoni is an excellent teacher.
Math is all right. It’s definitely a quieter class than English or art, because Mr. Pepson is strict. But he’s nice, he has a sense of humor, and he’s helpful. I can understand all his lessons perfectly!
Social studies… well, I think you already know how I feel about social studies! It hasn’t gotten any better.
And then there’s the whole friend thing—that hasn’t gotten better either. I still have no one to sit with at lunch. I found out that Rebecca doesn’t go here anymore. Melody and Natalia have their own group now, the boys still sit with the boys, and Sara and Liz are most often not even in the cafeteria. I did eat with them once, but just like with Melody and Natalia, it was kind of like they’d moved on without me. Like they were becoming this little best friendship that I’m not part of.
Art is the one bright point of my school day. If it weren’t for art, I think I’d be begging Mom to pull me out of school and homeschool me with Mirisen.
September 18
Mondaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy. You’ll never believe what happened today. I, Allisen Zepetto, straight-A student (mostly), good kid who almost never has to be reminded to have good behavior, got detention. DETENTION. And all because of my stinking homework!
Mrs. Engel had assigned us homework over the weekend. I did do it (and it took up about three hours of my Saturday, which I would’ve much preferred to spend reading the mystery I got from the library or playing with Mirisen and Harrisson). But I got distracted after I finished it, and I never remembered to put it in my backpack. It was sitting on my desk at home.
When it came time to pass in our homework, I searched all over for it. In my backpack, in my social studies folder, even in my folders for other classes in case I’d accidentally put it there. The girl next to me, Ariel, was sympathetic. “Maybe check your locker,” she suggested. Well, I would if I had ever managed to get in my locker in the first place, but I knew my homework wouldn’t be there because I don’t even know how to open the thing! Nobody ever taught me how to open a combination lock, and I don’t even have any friends who I can ask for help.
I got a sinking feeling as soon as I remembered where my homework was. “Do you think it’ll be okay if I tell her I left it at home and I’ll bring it in tomorrow? I really did do it!” I whispered to Ariel. Ariel gave me a doubtful shrug.
“Miss Zepetto!” Mrs. Engel’s obnoxious voice rang out at me from across the room. “Since I see that you prefer to spend your time talking to your classmates rather than waiting quietly for my instruction, I will come to you first. Where is your homework?”
I gulped. “I left it at home,” I said quietly. “I really did do it, it took like three hours and I worked really hard on it, but I just forgot—”
“Silence,” said Mrs. Engel. She went back up to the front of the room and spoke to the entire class. “Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Zepetto here is telling me that she did her homework over the weekend and then forgot to bring it in. Let me tell you what I think of that excuse. I think it is just that—an excuse. Don’t come to me claiming you forgot your homework, because how am I supposed to know whether you are telling the truth or not? You could be just saying you forgot to bring it because you really chose to be lazy and not do it! And even if she is telling the truth, I must add that you students are in seventh grade now. That’s just two years away from high school, and before you know it you’ll be adults and on your own. You need to learn to be responsible. For that reason, Miss Zepetto, you will be joining me after school tomorrow for a two-hour detention.”
I think kids around me were gasping and looking at her in horror, but I’m not too sure because suddenly I was trying as hard as I could not to cry. I couldn’t believe how mean this lady was. Not only did she give me detention for a silly mistake I made, but she had to go and single me out in front of the entire class? Make an example of me? Embarrass me? And detention? For two hours? I’d never gotten a detention before in my life. I hate Mrs. Engel so much.
I bolted as soon as class was over and cried in the bathroom a little bit. Then I went outside to wait for Mom, and pretended nothing had ever happened. I’m not telling my family about my detention. I’ll pretend I want to stay after school tomorrow for the pool or store or just to hang out. Mom and Dad would be too disappointed in me if I told them. Harrisson would think I was bad, and Mirisen would probably say something like, “Well, you really should have been more responsible in remembering your homework.” I couldn’t handle it.
September 19
Well, I had my detention today. It was as awful as I expected. I had to scrub down all the desks in the classroom, which would have been bad ordinarily, but was about ten thousand times worse with Mrs. Engel breathing down my neck. And she kept saying stuff like, “You know, I really don’t want to be here right now, there are so many other things I could be doing with my time, you’re wasting my time” blah blah blah. I wanted so badly to say to her, “Well, if this is a waste of your time, why did you give me detention in the first place?” But that probably would have just given me another detention.
When Mom picked me up from school and asked me what I did, I said vaguely, “stuff,” then changed the subject and asked what was for dinner. She looked at me suspiciously but didn’t say anything. I think she knows something’s up.
September 22
My birthday is in six days. In six days I will be twelve!
The really bummer thing is that this year, my birthday falls on a Thursday. A school day! Mom asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday and I gave her a speech I’d rehearsed the night before.
“Well,” I said, in my most Mirisen-like voice. “I will be turning twelve, you know. And twelve is a very important year. It’s the last age of being just a kid and not a teenager. So I think that, since twelve is such an important year, I should be allowed to skip school on my birthday. Maybe we could all do something fun as a family that day instead.”
Mom looked shocked. “Skip school? Absolutely not! What’s wrong, Allisen? I thought you liked school. You made the choice to go back.”
I am so regretting that choice right now. I considered telling Mom about meanie Mrs. Engel and about the detention. I considered telling her about how I have no real friends anymore and how I don’t even know how to open my locker and all that stuff. But I thought about what she said, and she was right. It really had been my choice to go to Learner’s Academy. So for that reason, I kept quiet.
September 24
Mrs. Engel is driving everyone crazy. She passed back the quizzes we took on Friday, and the highest grade in the class was a 62%. I got a 47%. She yelled at us like it was all our fault we did so horribly, when in reality it was that nobody even understands the way she teaches and half the stuff on the quiz wasn’t even stuff she’d taught us anyway. But of course, when Joseph brought that up, in a calm, diplomatic way, Mrs. Engel gave him detention. Just like that. And Joseph is like me—he’s the kind of kid who never misbehaves or gets in trouble.
I think by now everyone in Mrs. Engel’s class has had detention at least once. They weren’t all broadcasted to the whole class like mine and Joseph’s were, but I’ve heard other kids talking. It’s at least a little comforting that I’m not the only one who can’t stand that teacher. Or is it?
September 25
Not okay! Mrs. Engel said that since everybody got under a C- on that quiz, everyone has to have a detention! Not only does that make no sense, but it wastes her time too, and now she has to think of stuff for nine different kids to do at nine different times, because of course she doesn’t want everyone to have detention together. My detention is scheduled for Friday, the day after my birthday. Everyone in my class is outraged.
“This is completely unjust,” said Joseph, as all nine of us walked out of class together. “We should do something about her. She obviously doesn’t even care if we learn anything; she just wants to feel like she has some control over us. It’s a power struggle, that’s what it is. She’s not a teacher.”
“Well, what can we do?” asked Keegan. “Tell the principal?”
“That’s not a bad idea,” said Joseph. “I could write up a petition or something, type up everything Mrs. Engel’s done that’s unjust or unfair, and we could all sign it and bring it to his attention. And I think we should all have our parents call the school as well. So they can tell them about this—” he shook his 62% quiz angrily—“and all the detentions and everything else she’s been doing. Maybe if they get enough complaints about her, they’ll have to do something about her.”
I think Joseph’s right. Maybe if all our parents call, people will really listen. But I’m scared to death about talking to my parents about this, because that would mean bringing up the detentions. But I think I’m still going to do it… maybe in a couple hours.
September 25, later
So I talked to Mom tonight after dinner. I told her the truth about school, about how awful Mrs. Engel was and even about getting detention. And she wasn’t mad at me, although she was pretty mad—at Mrs. Engel! She said she would definitely call the school and complain, because she agreed that Mrs. Engel was totally unfair.
Guess what else—Mom also taught me the trick to opening combination locks! So now I can start using my locker!
September 26
Nothing has happened so far in regard to social studies class and Mrs. Engel. Boo. But, on the positive side, I have GREAT news about something else!
I have a friend! Well, I think I do. Vee from my English class asked me if I wanted to sit with her and her friends during lunch today! I was so happy and surprised and excited! OF COURSE I wanted to sit with them at lunch!
So I did. Vee told me she’d been putting together a sort of club of all the coolest girls she can find. I can’t believe I’m one of the coolest girls she can find! I don’t know any of the others very well. Three of them were in the other sixth-grade class here last year: Amalia Barker, who has really short hair and wears lots of makeup, and Suzanne and Suzette Quincy. Suzanne and Suzette (identical twins) are cheerleaders for a lot of the school’s sports teams, and people call them the Suzy Q’s.
The other two girls in the club are Cristil and Brynne. Brynne has long dark hair and red painted nails, and Cristil (she told me how to spell her name) is the glitter queen and wears five earrings in each ear. None of the girls in the club seem like the kind of people I’d usually hang around with, but they all seem really nice, and I’m so glad to finally have someone to eat lunch with!
September 28
YES! Best birthday ever!!!!!!!! So, when I went into English class this morning, people were talking about Mrs. Engel. I caught little snippets of conversation, and then I heard Ashellie say, “Who else is in that class? Oh, Allisen! Allisen, guess what?” She came over to me, grinning.
“What?” I asked, completely unprepared for what she was about to say.
“You know Mrs. Engel? And you know Joseph’s brilliant idea about having all our parents call and everything? Well, it worked! Mrs. Engel got fired!”
“What?!?!?!” I exclaimed, hardly daring to believe it.
“I know! Isn’t that awesome? Now maybe we’ll actually have a good teacher for social studies. And no more detentions!”
As it turned out, she didn’t get fired exactly, but when the principal told her he wanted to observe her teaching, she just quit. I guess even she knew she was a bad teacher. But hey, I don’t really care, all I care about is that she’s gone and YAY!
We had a sub today in social studies, but the school’s going to try to get a permanent teacher to start as soon as possible. I sure hope she/he is nicer than Mrs. Engel—not like that will be hard or anything!
For my birthday today, I brought twelve cupcakes to school. I gave one each to Vee, Brynne, Cristil, Amalia, Suzanne, Suzette, Mr. Pepson, Ms. Kadoni, Mrs. Lenardo, and the social studies sub (I was originally going to give two to Ms. Kadoni, since I wasn’t planning on sharing with Mrs. Engel, but when I found out it would be a sub I decided to save one for her). Then I ate the other two myself. After school, my family went out to Cactus Jack for dinner. We came home and ate a delicious cake Mom and Mirisen had made, that was chocolate with vanilla frosting and had little plastic dogs on it that I got to keep! And as for presents, I got a book from Mirisen, a card from Harrisson, and some clothes, books, games, and stuffed animals from my parents. It was an AWESOME day! And you know what? Now that I have friends, no more nasty teachers, and a way to get into my locker, I’m finally starting to think that middle school is pretty awesome too.
Book 14: Freaky Friendships
