Spring According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney

the tadpoles, but I was HAPPY-HAPPY-HAPPY when she let the students take time to watch the tadpoles.
    Not that they did much. But they didn’t look like specks any more, and that was interesting to everybody.
    I think it was especially interesting to Og.
    ‘BOING-BOING!’ he said. Then he jumped in the water to do some serious splashing.
    After that, he went back to his rock and looked over at the aquarium.
    ‘BOING-BOING-BOING-BOING!’ he exclaimed in a very loud voice.
    ‘I think Og likes them,’ Nicole said.
    I wasn’t so sure about that.
    Harry agreed. ‘Maybe he remembers being a tadpole, too!’
    ‘We should name them,’ Thomas suggested. ‘How about “Tad” and “Pole”?’
    Some of my friends groaned at that idea.
    Then Simon said, ‘We should call Og “Uncle”!’
    Everybody loved that idea (except maybe me).
    ‘Uncle Og! Uncle Og!’ they repeated.
    ‘BOING-BOING!’ Og joined in.
    I was unsqueakably relieved when it was time for lunch and my friends had to leave the classroom.
    I needed a break!
    Besides, I hadn’t had a chance to get a good look at the tadpoles myself.
    Once the room was quiet – which it hadn’t been all morning – I moved to the side of my cage closest to the aquarium and looked.
    The specks were bigger and, yes, they actually did have legs.
    They had round things that looked a little bit like heads, if you used your imagination.
    Luckily, I have a good imagination.
    Then I looked across the aquarium to see Og.
    Og had a huge head. He was green. He had strong legs.
    The tadpoles didn’t look anything like him.So why were my friends calling him ‘Uncle Og’? If he was the tadpoles’ uncle, was I their uncle, too?
    Just because he was a frog, did that mean they were in the same family?
    And where was my family, anyway?
    ‘So, what do you think, Og?’ I squeaked. ‘Do you like the tadpoles?’
    He was completely silent, so I kept talking. ‘I can’t believe how much they changed.’
    No answer.
    ‘Do you remember being a tadpole?’ I asked.
    ‘BOING!’ Og’s voice boomed.
    I’m not sure, but I think maybe he didn’t remember.
    ‘I don’t remember being a baby hamster, either,’ I said. ‘At least I don’t think I do.’
    After that, Og didn’t make any noise at all. I wondered if he’d dozed off. You can never tell with a frog.

    Later that afternoon, Mrs Brisbane told the class that she had an idea for Family Fun Night.
    ‘Since we have animals in our classroom,I thought we could have fun doing animal activities for the circus,’ she explained.
    Helpful-Holly waved her hand. ‘Oooh, I saw a lady in a pink dress standing on the back of a horse at the circus and they were going round and round the ring really fast!’
    ‘Well, I don’t think we’ll be doing that.’ Mrs Brisbane chuckled. ‘Mrs Wright would not approve of horses racing around the gym.’
    We all laughed at the thought of that.
    ‘I was thinking that we could have activities that have to do with hamsters and frogs,’ she said.
    Calm-Down-Cassie waved her hand. ‘We made a hamster maze in after-school club.’
    ‘We could set up a maze – like an obstacle course – and people could buy a ticket to run through it,’ Harry suggested. ‘We could time them. If they beat the clock, they get a prize.’
    Mrs Brisbane nodded. ‘I like that idea, Harry.’
    Kelsey’s hand shot up. ‘Oooh, we could have the parents and their kids do a leapfrog race.’
    The thought of my friends’ parents leaping around like frogs was unsqueakably funny to me.
    ‘BOING-BOING!’ I guess Og liked that idea.
    ‘And I thought we could have some of you take turns as ringmaster or ringmistress to draw people in,’ Mrs Brisbane said.
    ‘I want to do that,’ Rosie said.
    ‘Great! Let’s take a vote,’ Mrs Brisbane said. ‘Who would like Room Twenty-six to sign up to do animal acts?’
    Every single hand shot up. I raised my paw.
    Og said, ‘BOING!’ I don’t think he can actually raise one