Mr. B’s Busy-Bea (Buzzz Off)
Began edit 01 today for this book. Here are a few paragraphs as a taster:
(1) “Right then…” The signature words Mr. B. always used to get his class of seven and eight year-old students to quieten and settle down into their chairs at Alley-Wood Primary School, worked precisely – as usual. It was an important time of the day. Both he and the children knew that morning assembly started in about five minutes time. Mr. B. needed the register done and uploaded to the school electronic system before then. The classroom went silent.
(2) The buzz in the classroom created by Elin Heath’s imaginary adventure with Busy-Bea – the story she’d called Queen Cloud Bee more than three weeks earlier, was intense shortly afterwards, but over the month had gradually lessened to almost nothing. Now, however, it was approaching November and the class knew that Mr. B. was close to reaching a decision of who would win the promise to take Busy-Bea (short for Beatrice – his fluffy magic toy bee), home for the weekend. Mr. B. would add up all the merits he’d given out during the month for good work and include all good comments from staff and other students, before he decided to award Busy-Bea to one lucky student or some lucky students at the end of each month.
(3) The only thing Mr. B. ever levelled out in the classroom was a student’s ability in school. He set work each student could achieve and that was what they earned merits for. It was difficult for a student to get a merit from Mr. B. – his rules were very strict indeed. He only ever acknowledged a merit by putting a mark in their workbooks using invisible ink in the shape of a bee next to the piece of work. Mr. B. sometimes called this a sticker. The sticker only became visible shortly after he’d put their workbooks below Busy-Bea and whispered a magic word in her ear.
(4) The class followed Mr. B. back from the assembly hall in a straight line and entered the classroom full of chatter. “Right then…” He said for the second time that day, using his authoritative and rather loud voice. The chatter soon stopped and he continued. “Today is the day I decide who will take Busy-Bea home – so, work hard all day and be very good.” The closest Friday to the end of each month was an exciting one for year three students at Alley-Wood Primary School. Mr. B. always chose that day to award Busy-Bea. Every child worked hard trying to gain an additional merit award to win Busy-Bea and soon, the end of the day arrived.
(5) “Bring your workbooks and line up nicely next to Busy-Bea.” Mr. B. said. As each student passed underneath Busy-Bea, Mr. B. whispered the secret word for that month – uncredible, in Busy-Bea’s ear so quietly no-one could hear. It wasn’t until the child sat down that the Busy-Bea shaped sticker appeared in their book. “Who has five stickers?” Mr. B. asked. His dark brown eyes widened and flickered in his sockets as if they were giggling. The class went silent, no-one dared even to look up. Never, since Mr. B. had worked at Alley-Wood school, or anywhere else, had anyone ever achieved that many merits from him in one month – and he knew it. He grinned a wicked sense of satisfaction telling his class that no matter how good they were, they could always improve. Half of the class smiled with him and the other half frowned. “Four?” The clown-like grin remained on his face. There was no response from the class. “Three then!” He said, replacing the grin with flat tight lips and expectantly lowering his eyebrows. Hands from four different children stretched excitedly, but silently into the air.
(6) Mr. B. waited, just in case one of the students in his class had miscounted, or if one of the students who had raised their hand had forgotten his rules and decided to shout out. Whichever student did that would be disqualified there and then, they all knew this. Nobody shouted out. “Okay then,” Mr. B. said, “Casey, Hallie, George and Sydney. Please come up to the front of the classroom.” Busy-Bea turned magically in Mr. B’s right hand taking a long look at each of the students in turn as they walked to the front of the class. He leaned to his left to pick up the list of good comments the children had earned from other people around the school.