Full House: Dear Michelle #1: Help! There's a Ghost in My Room: (Help! There's a Ghost in My Room)

Chapter One

"Maybe we'll have recess the whole day!" I said. "Or pepperoni pizza and cotton candy for lunch!"

It was Monday morning. All the kids in my third-grade class were gathered by the blackboard. That's because our teacher, Mrs. Ramirez, had written the words Big Surprise Today in huge letters on it. I didn't have a clue what the big surprise was. But it was fun to guess!

"Or maybe we're getting a brand-new school bus!" I said to my best friends, Mandy Metz and Cassie Wilkins.

"Yeah!" Mandy cheered. "With built-in TV sets and bubblegum machines!"

"Or maybe-" I started to guess again.

Julia Rossi shoved between Cassie and me. "Quit guessing," she said. "Because I know what the surprise is."

"Here we go again," I said.

Julia "Bossy" Rossi thought she knew everything. But she didn't. Just last week she got the word pumpkin wrong on our spelling test.

"So what's the surprise?" I asked her.

"We're getting another class pet," Julia said.

"What kind?" Louie Rizzoli asked. "A guinea pig? A snake?"

"Wrong," Julia said. Then she looked at Cassie. She smiled one of her really mean smiles. "We're getting another gerbil!"

"No!" Cassie moaned. "Not another one!"

Cassie was afraid of our class gerbil, Swifty. I knew Julia said that just to scare her silly!

"Okay, boys and girls!" Mrs. Ramirez said. Her long, curly brown hair was held back with a silver clip. And she was always wearing fun earrings. Today she had on dangly ones shaped like pumpkins.

Mrs. Ramirez gave the class a friendly smile. "The quicker you get to your seats, the quicker you'll find out what the big surprise is!"

All eighteen of us raced to our desks. Mine is the third desk in the third row. It's close enough to the window to feel a breeze on a nice day. And close enough to the closet to smell the rubber boots when it rains!

"Class, are you ready to find out what the surprise is?" Mrs. Ramirez asked with a grin.

"Yes!" we all shouted.

"We're going to start a class newspaper," Mrs. Ramirez announced. "And we're going to put it out once a month."

The class hummed with excitement.

"Cool!" Louie cried. "I'll get to be a reporter, just like my dad!"

Wow! I thought. We have our own class table in the lunchroom. And a class candy jar for rewarding good behavior. Even a class pet. But a class newspaper is huge!

"Any questions?" Mrs. Ramirez asked.

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!" Gracie Chin called out. She never raised her hand without yelling Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!

"Yes, Gracie?" Mrs. Ramirez asked.

"What's the newspaper called?" Gracie gasped. She was always out of breath when she finally asked her question.

"That's where I need your help," Mrs. Ramirez told us. "Can anyone in the class come up with a name for our newspaper?"

Someone called out Third-Grade Scoop. But everyone thought that sounded like an ice-cream parlor Someone else yelled out The Class Report, but that made everyone think of report cards!

Come on, brain. I tapped my head. Think of something!

"Anybody else?" Mrs. Ramirez asked. She looked around the classroom. "I can hear you all buzzing about it."

Buzzing ... Buzz ... That's it!

I raised my hand. "How about the Third-Grade Buzz?" I asked.

"I like it!" Mandy cried.

"Me too!" Cassie said.

"Me three!" Jeff Farrington added.

Everyone laughed.

"The Third-Grade Buzz," Mrs. Ramirez repeated. "What a good title. Thank you, Michelle."

Julia turned around in the seat ...

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Full Houseby Katchke, Judy Excerpted by permission.
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