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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: DISGUISE (08/12/21)
The alarm clock blared.

"Rise and shine, Sis. I smell chocolate chip pancakes already cooking for the first day of school."

Elaine pulled the covers over her head.

"C'mon, you got the teacher I wish I'd had for sixth grade. All the kids loved her, except the worst of the troublemakers, and even some of those weren't troublemakers by the end of the year."

"I don't care how nice the teacher is. It's the review-stuff-I've-known-for-two-years for weeks at the beginning of the year that drives me crazy."

"I think you may be surprised."

"Breakfast, girls."

***

Elaine trudged toward room thirty. The woman at the door smiled. "Good morning! I'm Mrs. Funderburk. Please choose a desk and start putting your school supplies away."

Hmmm, that's different. I never got to choose my desk before. Maybe all the sixth grade teachers do that. We will be in junior high next year, after all.

When the tardy bell rang, Mrs. Funderburk closed the door and called roll. There were several students from Elaine's fifth grade class, some she was glad to see, others not. Her friend Sheila was their, but Yvette had waved to her as she entered the classroom across the hall. Hopefully we'll have recess together.

After issuing their English and reading books, Mrs. Funderburk placed a stapled packet on each desk. "This will be your first grade for English. It is a contract. You may contract to do twenty of the activities for an A, fifteen for a B, or ten for a C. There are thirty activities from which to choose. Please read through the list and let me know if you have any questions."

Wow! I get to choose how to earn my A. Let's see... Cut a picture out of a magazine and write a paragraph about it. Memorize a poem and recite it for the class. Do the exercise on page five of your English book. Write a limerick. Some of these look like fun.

Elaine listed the numbers on the contract of the twenty activities she chose, signed it, then started thumbing through the reading book for a poem to memorize. She smiled at the end of "The Flattered Flying Fish" by E.V. Rieu and copied the page number on to her packet. Next, she read the sample limericks and got out a blank sheet of paper.

I woke up one Saturday morn
In my nightgown all tattered and torn.
I got out of bed
With a droopy head
And wished I'd never been born.

Mrs. Funderburk stopped next to her and looked down at her work. "I see you have already tackled the limerick. Nice job!"

"Well it's not really true, just silly nonsense, but it is my first ever attempt at writing any kind of poem..."

"I'd say you hit a home run. Good job."

Elaine smiled as Mrs. Funderburk moved on to look at other students' work. She turned to page five in her English book. It was a boring review, which she finished in less than five minutes and marked off on her contract.

After lunch, Mrs. Funderburk picked up a thick hardcover book. "We will take a few minutes after lunch most days to relax with a book. We will start the year off with Watership Down by Richard Adams."

Before long, Elaine and her classmates were enthralled by the rabbits' adventures and Mrs. Funderburk's expressive reading. There was a collective groan when she inserted an embroidered bookmark, closed the book, and distributed math books and workbooks.

Shortly before the dismissal bell Mrs. Funderburk told the class, "I will not assign any homework today, but you may want to work toward your English contract, and I have a contest for you. The winner will get a roll of Life Savers. You probably remember that homonyms are words that sound alike, but have different spellings, such as to, too, and two. Whoever brings in the list with the most sets of homonyms will get the Life Savers. Anyone who has twenty-five sets or more will get to choose a piece of candy from the jar on my desk."

When the bell rang, Elaine dashed to her mom's car. "Mom, do you have a magazine you are finished with that I can cut a picture out of for an English assignment?"

"You sound considerably more excited than you did this morning."

"That's because Mrs. Funderburk disguises learning as fun!"

*****

In loving memory of Billie Funderburk, sixth grade teacher extraordinaire. April 11, 1929 - August 15, 2021.
The story is fictionalized, and barely begins to capture the essence of the incredible teacher, mentor, and loving lifelong friend she was.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Laurie Kiel 
08/24/21
What a wonderful tribute to Mrs. Funderbunk! What a blessing she was to her classroom. One small thing in one paragraph you used "their" when you should have used "there." I loved the closing sentence "That's because Mrs. Funderburk disguises learning as fun!" Isn't that a great description of a master teacher.
Shann Hall-LochmannVanBennekom 
08/29/21
I love this story. You did a great job of bringing it to life and show how teachers can have a lifelong impact on us. My daughter begged me to change her 5th grade teacher because she was the meanest teacher ever. I told her she had to give her a good month. She learned more from that teacher and turned out to be one of her best years. Congratulations on your EC! Happy Dance!