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Robert glanced at his backpack where he’d flung it earlier. “Ummm, not yet,” he said.

“Well, we’re leaving for your sister’s concert in about thirty minutes,” his dad said.

“Oh, man, I completely forgot about the concert,” groaned Robert. His sister Tasha played the drums in the high school band, and the family never missed a concert.

He rushed off to take a quick shower, and then the family headed to the concert. Although Robert usually enjoyed watching his sister’s concerts, this time it was almost unbearable. All he could think about was his homework. Across the crowded auditorium, Robert saw Scott and his family sitting in the bleachers watching Scott’s older brother play the saxophone. Scott was laughing at something his younger brother said. Scott was in the same math class at school, so Robert knew he had the same homework waiting for him. If he feels anything like

“Hey, Robert, want to shoot hoops?” called Antonio.

Robert sighed and turned around, shouldering his heavy backpack. School had just ended, and Robert was already feeling stress about his massive amount of math homework. Yet here came Antonio, Scott, and Connor with their carefree, smiling faces.

“I can’t,” he said with regret, watching the faces of all three friends fall.

“Awww, come on!” Scott wheedled. “You said you’d hang out with us today, and we need a fourth player.”

“Yeah, come on and play with us, Robert!” added Connor.

Robert thought about his waiting homework. Why shouldn’t I play some basketball? he mused. My homework isn’t that big a deal — it can wait.

Two hours later, a sweaty Robert was gulping down water in the kitchen when his dad walked in. “Looks like you’ve been playing some ball,” his dad said, adding, “Did you already do your homework?”

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Credits: left, right: © Lucia Makuc/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

Homework

Stress

In fact, his teacher had told Robert that he was a natural at geometry.

After class Mr. Sullivan called Robert up to his desk. “What happened here?” he asked Robert, pointing to his homework with a quizzical look.

When Robert explained what happened, Mr. Sullivan grimaced. “You know, it’s okay to stand up to your friends and say no,” he said, “especially if they want you to do something that won’t let you get your homework done.”

Robert thought about Scott’s attitude toward math and school in general. He knew that he never wanted to have that same attitude. After school, Robert heard some familiar voices calling to him as he walked home.

“Hey, Robert,” called Antonio, “are we meeting at your house?”

“Yeah, it’s hoop time,” added Scott.

Robert steeled himself and then turned around to face his friends.

“Guys, I can’t,” he said firmly, adding, “Mr. Sullivan gave me another chance to finish that homework, and I’m going to do it right now.” Robert realized it felt good to be strong and say no, despite his friends’ glum faces. “But,” he said with a grin, “I can play basketball after I finish my homework.”

I feel right now, Robert thought, he’d want to sprint out of this auditorium too.

After the concert, Robert grabbed his math homework as soon as he walked through the door. Thirty minutes later, Robert’s mom called out, “Robert, time for bed!” Robert looked up, shocked at how quickly the time had flown.

“Mom, I’ve got to finish this homework,” he begged.

“Why didn’t you do it after school?” she asked with a knowing look.

Robert knew the answer to that question. He’d decided to play basketball even though he knew it wasn’t the best decision, and he let his friends talk him into it. As he got ready for bed, Robert worried about tomorrow and the blank pages of homework that he would have to submit to his teacher.

The next day in class, Robert asked Scott, “Did you finish your homework?”

“No, I didn’t get to it,” Scott said, “but who needs math when we all have calculators anyway?”

Robert disagreed with that. He actually liked math.

DID YOUKNOW?

Physical activity such as playing basketball can actually help relieve stress, although it’s a good idea to make sure you have time for school responsibilities first.


Credits: right: © Lucia Makuc/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

that look, Ty realized, recalling his own first day at Hillcrest Middle School one year ago. Although he had hit his growth spurt this past year, when he first started at Hillcrest he was what other kids might call a shrimp. Ben was the one who teased him the most…until Ty started growing like a weed during the spring semester. Now, Ty practically towered over everyone.

Later, Ty was standing outside the cafeteria with his friends, Will and Juan, discussing the latest Undercover Ops video game. All of a sudden, Thomas came crashing out of the cafeteria door, his face bright red as laughter followed him.

“Looks like the shrimp’s getting eaten by the sharks in there,” said Will with a smirk. Juan let out a short laugh, but Ty didn’t feel like laughing at Thomas’s expense. He felt bad for the guy, but what could he do about it?

Ty knew immediately that this new kid was going to encounter some problems. There he stood in the doorway of Ty’s homeroom class, looking brave and yet apprehensive at the same time. His huge backpack was slung over his bony shoulder, looking like it was going to take him down to the floor any minute. Is this kid really in sixth grade? Ty wondered to himself, thinking he looked like he should be in fourth.

“Why, hello there,” Mrs. Jumper beamed at the boy, adding, “you must be Thomas.”

“Tiny Tom is more like it,” snickered Ben under his breath, right next to Ty. Ty rolled his eyes in exasperation. Ben was always the first to start a fight and yet the first to suddenly disappear when things got too hot to handle.

Thomas nodded at Mrs. Jumper and headed to the empty desk on the other side of Ty. Oh great, thought Ty with a grimace, I get the new guy next to me. But as Thomas sat down, Ty glanced up at him and saw the pained look in the boy’s eyes. I know


Credits: right: © Jok/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

right before his brain did. Ty stood up and walked purposefully over toward Ben, looking him straight in the eye.

“You will stop bullying Thomas right now,” Ty stated calmly, but with an edge of steel, adding, “or I will show everyone what happens to bullies around here.”

A shocked Ben stared back, his mouth gaping open and a half-eaten roll in his hand. The cafeteria was suddenly silent as everyone turned to watch. Then, from a back table, someone began to clap. Soon everyone was clapping and cheering for Ty. Ben’s face turned red and he nodded slightly. Then he picked up his tray with shaking hands and slipped out of the cafeteria.

After that, Thomas started to talk to other kids, especially Ty. The two became good friends, earning the nicknames “Big T” and “Little T.” Yet, Thomas didn’t seem to mind. Ben never bullied another student at Hillcrest Middle School again.

Over the next few days the new guy’s circumstances seemed to get even worse, Ty noticed. After the cafeteria incident, Thomas refused to talk to anyone. Ben and his friends were sneaky enough to save their insults and jabs for those times when no teachers or adults were around. Other students just looked the other way when this happened.

One day at lunch, Ben and his cronies started flicking food crumbs at Thomas, laughing as the bits stuck onto his back. Thomas just hunched over his tray and tried to ignore them. But as Ty sat there eating his own lunch and watching the events unfold, he made a decision. I’ve never done this before in my life, he thought with a sliver of fear for what might

happen. Ty usually avoided confronting people when he had a problem with them; he hated the drama that always seemed to follow. Yet, it was as if his legs knew what was

DID YOUKNOW?

There are three different types of bullying, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Verbal bullying is saying or writing mean things, such as name-calling and taunting. Social bullying is hurting someone’s reputation or relationships, such as leaving someone out or spreading rumors. Physical bullying is hurting a person’s body or belongings, such as hitting, tripping, or breaking someone’s things.


Credits: left: © Jok/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

Cyber Problems

“Who’s that?” asked Rashawn as she read the comment.

“Oh, that’s the new girl, Hallie,” said Maddie. “She asked to be my friend today, and I said yes.”

“I met her, too,” said Eva. “She was wearing goofy-looking clothes. I think she’s weird.”

“Well, it looks like this new girl wants in on our fun,” said Katelynn, looking annoyed.

“All she said was that it looked like we were having a blast,” said Maddie.

Eva began typing. “Watch this,” she said, giggling, as she typed in her comment:

Only cool people are allowed to comment on our pics.

Maddie gasped, “I can’t believe you just did that!”

The other girls rolled on the floor laughing while Maddie’s face turned bright red. Maddie didn’t feel like laughing. These are my best friends, she thought

Maddie squealed as she saw Eva carrying her overnight bag up the stairs. Soon, Rashawn and Katelynn would be here, too. All three girls were spending the night, and Maddie was thrilled.

“Did you bring your cell phone?” she asked Eva.

“Of course,” Eva laughed.

Maddie smiled. “Good. We’re going to need our cell phones tonight because I can’t wait to take pictures of us!”

The girls heard two more squeals from downstairs as Rashawn and Katelynn came bounding in with their own bags. Later, the four girls were sitting in Maddie’s room, listening to music. Katelynn pulled out her cell phone and said, “Let’s take a picture.” Seconds later, she was uploading the photo to a social media site and tagging everyone in it. As usual, the other three girls checked their phones for the photo. Suddenly, all four girls’ phones dinged. Someone had already commented on the photo!


Credits: left, right: © Sole Otero/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

phones lying in their hands. Finally, Rashawn spoke, “I guess I didn’t think about how I would feel if I were in Hallie’s place.”

“Last year,” Eva said quietly, “an older girl did something like this to me, and it did hurt a lot. I don’t know why I thought doing the same thing would be funny.”

“Can we delete our comments?” asked Katelynn. “I feel awful now.”

After some discussion, the girls decided they would delete the photo and their comments and then apologize to Hallie. Then, they agreed, they would invite Hallie over tomorrow.

Later, as the girls watched a movie, Maddie breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn’t realized how stressed the situation had made her. I’m glad I spoke up, she thought. She wondered what she would have done if they hadn’t listened to her, or decided to leave. Then Maddie realized something about herself. She was strong enough to handle that, too.

with dismay. I can’t say anything or they might leave and never talk to me again.

Rashawn held up her phone and said, “I added another comment—you guys add your own, too.” Maddie sighed and looked at her friends as they busily typed on their phones, adding more comments to exclude the new girl.

“Come on, Maddie, add a comment,” urged Katelynn.

Maddie knew she couldn’t go along with this bullying. Their school counselor had talked about cyberbullying just last week to all the sixth graders. She had explained that this type of bullying was too easy for some people to do because they couldn’t see the pain it caused. Maddie stood up and took a deep breath.

“You guys are my best friends, but I can’t go along with this. What if you were a new girl at a

school, and someone did this to you? It’s bullying, and it hurts people. If you want to be that kind of person, then you don’t need me around.”

The three girls stared at Maddie, shocked, their

DID YOUKNOW?

Cyberbullying is defined as tormenting, threatening, harassing, or embarrassing another person using the Internet or other technologies, like cell phones.


Credits: right: © Sole Otero/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

with the principal’s wife, had mentioned that they would be getting a new teacher.

The girls watched as Mrs. Goldsmith directed a group of Hispanic students to a separate table in the cafeteria.

“Now, why is she doing that?” Rosalind asked. “Since she’s new, maybe she doesn’t know that students can sit anywhere they want. Maybe she’s assuming these students are all friends since they all speak Spanish. But some of those students are friends with us and usually eat lunch with us.”

“That’s strange,” Abby agreed, adding, “She looks annoyed, too.”

“Yes, she does,” Rosalind agreed.

The next day, the three girls were walking down the hall when they saw Mrs. Goldsmith again. The teacher was trying to tell a Spanish-speaking student where the gym was, but the student couldn’t understand her. She’s talking way too fast for him,

Emma sat in the cafeteria chatting with her two best friends when she noticed a new person. A tall blonde woman was directing students through the lunch line.

“Hey Roz, who’s that?” Emma whispered, nudging Rosalind next to her and pointing to the woman. Abby turned to look as well, but Emma knew Rosalind would know first. Rosalind always found out everything before anyone else did. Rosalind’s mom called her nosy, but she preferred the word inquisitive. In fact, Rosalind talked about how she hoped to become an investigative reporter someday, exposing injustice everywhere.

“Her name is Mrs. Goldsmith, and she’s the new fifth-grade teacher,” Rosalind answered, repeating a conversation she had overheard in the school office that morning. The secretary said that Mrs. Goldsmith came from a school somewhere far away.

“She came recommended by the principal’s wife, who went to college with her,” Rosalind said.

“Oh yeah,” said Emma. She recalled that her mom, who happened to be good friends


The New Teacher

Credits: right: © Carlos Aon/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

“Yes, I saw her,” Emma said, looking up at the principal. “It didn’t seem right. But maybe she’s just nervous because she’s new. Also, I don’t want to say anything because she’s a teacher.”

The principal nodded, saying, “You’re right. We don’t want to jump to conclusions too fast. However, I will definitely speak with Mrs. Goldsmith. I will look into these incidents to find out if she behaved inappropriately.

“I want you to know that you did the right thing by coming to me and sharing your concerns.

“Regardless of the outcome, I want you to know that it’s okay to come to me if you ever see something happening that doesn’t seem right.”

As the girls went back to class, Rosalind squeezed Emma’s hand. “I know that was difficult for you,” she said. “I’m glad you decided to speak up even though you were afraid of getting a teacher in trouble. You did the right thing.”

Rosalind realized. Abby noted that Mrs. Goldsmith seemed very frustrated, too.

“We should do something,” Rosalind said, turning to Abby and Emma. “It seems like she has a bad attitude toward some students.”

“What can we possibly do?” asked Emma, shrugging, “She’s a teacher!”

“Just because she’s a teacher doesn’t mean it’s okay for her to be short-tempered with Hispanic students,” Abby said quietly.

Emma agreed, but she didn’t know if they should do anything about it. Maybe we’re being too quick to judge the new teacher. Also, won’t we get in trouble for taking on a teacher? she wondered.

Yet just a few minutes later Emma found herself in front of the principal along with Rosalind and Abby. The principal listened as Rosalind recounted their observations. Abby nodded along and added her own details. When the two girls were done, the principal turned to Emma and looked at her gravely.

“Emma,” the principal asked, “Did you see the teacher do these things as well?”

Emma knew the principal was asking her because he knew her well. Even though she knew her friends wanted to do the right thing, Emma didn’t want the principal to think she was trying to cause trouble for the new teacher.


DID YOUKNOW?

This story is realistic fiction. While the story is made up, the actions of the characters in this story could happen in real life.

Credits: right: © Carlos Aon/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

club was presenting a popular musical and was looking for singers. Tryouts for the musical were Friday afternoon. Jermaine groaned. Football practice is Friday, he thought.

All day, Jermaine thought about the musical. After school, he decided he would run the idea past his best friend, Sam. As they walked to the football field, Jermaine said, “Hey, I saw where the drama club is putting on that musical.”

“Yeah, so?” Sam asked, adding, “We’ve got to work on our defense today or we’ll get creamed by South Hill this weekend.”

“Okay,” Jermaine said. “Well, I’m thinking about trying out for that musical. I think I’d be pretty good at it.”

Sam stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at Jermaine. “What?” he asked with a shocked look on his face. “You want to be in a musical? Can you even sing?”

Jermaine wearily pried his football helmet off of his sweaty head, grateful that practice was finally over. Suddenly, he felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder pad. He looked up to see Coach Timms’s stern face.

“Jermaine,” the coach said, “I want you to bring a lot more enthusiasm to the next practice.”

“Yes, sir,” Jermaine replied, secretly wishing the coach would just kick him off the team. The truth was that Jermaine didn’t like football. He was okay at the game, but he certainly wasn’t the star player. However, all of his friends were on the team, and he knew they would give him a hard time if he quit.

As Jermaine headed toward the locker room, he thought about what he really wanted to do. He wanted to sing. Jermaine sighed as he thought about how his friends would react to the news that he wanted to be up on a stage. He could hear them now: You want to what?

The next morning, Jermaine was walking to class when a flyer on the auditorium door caught his eye. “Can you sing?” the flyer asked in bold letters. Jermaine stopped to read it. The school’s drama


Connecting Passage Credits: left, right: © Seitu Hayden/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

All About Football

The next day, Jermaine told Coach Timms he was quitting football. “You’re right. I’m not enthusiastic about it because I just don’t enjoy it,” he explained. He added that he planned to try out for the musical, and even if he didn’t get a part, he was going to start singing lessons to help him get a part the next time. Jermaine was surprised to learn that Coach Timms understood. In fact, the coach sang in his church choir.

Friday after school, Jermaine watched his friends head toward the football field. Jermaine hadn’t talked to Trent and Juan since Wednesday’s football practice, but he had told Sam about Coach Timms’s reaction. Just then, Sam turned around and gave Jermaine a thumbs-up. “Hey, Jermaine,” he called out with a wide grin, “Good luck!”

Jermaine laughed and waved back, “You, too!” He turned and headed toward the auditorium.

“Well, yeah, I can sing,” said Jermaine.

Sam rolled his eyes and said, “That’s just crazy. What about football? You’d miss a ton of practices.”

“Well, that’s the thing,” Jermaine said carefully, “I would have to quit football.”

“No way,” Sam said, shaking his head. “We need you!”

After practice, Jermaine found himself surrounded by his friends, asking him if what they heard was true. Apparently, Sam had talked everyone into trying to convince Jermaine to stick with football and forget about singing.

“Singing and dancing? Come on,” scoffed Trent, adding, “You really don’t like that stuff, do you?”At first, Jermaine just laughed along with his friends. But

later, he thought about how his friends pressured him to give up his true talent. They shouldn’t have done that, he realized, because real friends would have respected my decision.


Connecting Passage

DID YOUKNOW?

There are two different kinds of peer pressure: positive and negative. Positive peer pressure is also called peer support. This happens when your friends support you by: making good choices; working hard in school; accepting each other’s differences; being involved in positive activities such as sports or music groups; and by not gossiping about or bullying others.

Credits: right: © Seitu Hayden/Wilkinson Studios, Inc.

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Name

Student ReSponSe Sheet IndIvIdual ReadIng

How does peer pressure influence people’s actions?

Character’s Problem:

Story Events:

Character’s Actions:

Key Question


On Your Own

1. Read the Key Question. Then read the story. Look for details that help you answer the Key Question. Circle these words and sentences in the story.

2. Now look back at the story. Write the details you circled or underlined in the chart below.

3. Think about the Key Question. Write your answer to the Key Question using the information you found in the story you read.

My First Answer

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Name

Student ReSponSe Sheet Team Discussion


Character’s Problem:

Story Events:

Character’s Actions:

Key Question


Share Your Ideas

Meet with your team. Talk about each story your team read.

1. Tell the team what happens in the story you read. Show the chart you made.

2. Look at all the charts your team made and compare the details in each of your stories.

•Howdoesthecharacterexperiencepeerpressure?

•Howdoesthecharacterrespondtothepeerpressure?

Next, write the ideas that answer the Key Question in the chart below. Write only the ideas that are in every story your team read.

Answer the Key Question

Review the ideas on your team’s chart. As a team, write an answer to the Key Question. Use the information from the stories to support your answer.


Our Team’s Answer

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