The Learning Curve Read Online Free PDF

close second (‘who knew what synchronised meant?’), hard work of course was third, and good timekeeping wasfourth. Tenth was no fussing and the ones in-between were lost for evermore in a fog of boredom. Basically, he expected a lot, and by the time assembly came, his kids were in no doubt of this. Ned’s kids, at the tender age of seven or eight, knew in just one hour that they were made of tougher stuff than he. He blushed, stammered and laughed inappropriately from nerves at the situation he was in. If it wasn’t for the fact that most of them were also blushing, stammering and laughing inappropriately from nerves at the situation they were in, he’d be doomed. But Martha, new girl herself, was having the toughest first hour of all the teachers. Her kids were the only ones who had spent the last year in the bosom of their families, and whose worst nightmare was that school, unlike wizards and monsters, did actually exist. They were even more horrified by their new reality than she was. As soon as one stopped crying, another one started. There were two accidents, one case of vomiting, and little Josephine O’Marney got her feet caught in her chair and thought she was stuck there for ever. She cried till she had an accident and vomited simultaneously. It was a baptism of fire but, by assembly, Martha felt confident in her new job. In the staffroom she was the new girl. In the classroom, she was the Bionic Woman.
    An hour later, as the entire school made its way to assembly, Nicky felt a sharp jab on her shoulder. At first she thought it was Rob. But it was Miss James, prodding her with a blunt pencil. ‘Pop in and see me after school, would you, Nicola dear?’ she whispered. ‘Four o’clock sharp.’
    Miss James walked abruptly away, and Nicky glanced back. Rob was watching her, while keeping a practised eye on his silent kids, and he raised his eyebrows questioningly ather. She entered the main hall and saw a sea of eager little faces stretching back to the gym apparatus against the far wall. She crossed her arms at the sudden drop in temperature and felt a little squiggle of excitement, like a gold star being drawn in her belly.
    Oscar sat cross-legged and watched Miss Hobbs, his new teacher, walk round the assembly hall and towards the back, arms crossed, heels click-clicking, stern eyes observing everyone from behind her glasses. He sat up, so his back no longer leant against the climbing apparatus. She sat down on the chair at the end of his row, picked up her hymn book, crossed one leg over the other, and scrutinised her new Year 6.
    He liked his new position of sitting at the back of the school. He was sitting next to his best friend Matthew. Matthew was funny and nice. Daisy was in the row in front and he poked her in the back, managing to whisk his hand away before she hit him. Matthew snorted. Miss Hobbs looked at them, just too late. He saw her look over the top of her glasses to focus on them.
    ‘Year 6,’ she said, her voice harder than it had been in class, ‘less talk, please.’ It was weird being called Year 6.
    Daisy didn’t mind Oscar poking her in the back. She was having too much fun with her best friend Sophie. They were watching Miss James, sitting at the front of the room facing everyone. She’d got her glasses chain caught in her necklace. Daisy and Sophie giggled but stopped when Miss Hobbs looked up from her book. They had always been far more scared of Miss Hobbs than Miss James, although they liked her much more after spending the morning with her.
    The piano music stopped and Miss James walked up tothe central podium at the front of the hall, glasses in her hand, necklace firmly attached, causing her to bend her neck to one side. She reached the podium, looked at her pupils as if they were all fluffy kittens and gave a big smile.
    ‘Hello, everyone,’ she said in a warm voice. ‘I’m having a little problem with my glasses! What a start to the new year!’
    Everyone laughed.