Spud!

Spud!

Ethan hurried into the gym. “ Guess what! ” Bobby said. “ We’re going outside today. ” “ It’s sunny and warm, ” Izzie said. “ That stinks, ” Ethan mumbled. “ Huh?” Jason said. Everybody was surprised. Ethan was from California, and he loved warm weather.

Ethan sighed. “ I’m still saving up to buy a snowboard. But all the snow has melted. ” “ Winter’s not over yet, ” Izzie said. “ Maybe it will snow again. ” “ Time to go outside, ” Miss Shelly called. The kids followed the teacher out to the blacktop. She was holding a soft ball. “ What are we playing?” Jason asked.

“ Spud, ” Miss Shelly said. “ What’s that?” Nina asked. “ It’s a fun game, ” Bobby said. “ First, everyone needs a number, ” Miss Shelly said. “ Let’s count off. ” “ One! ” “ Two! ” “ Three! ”

“ Four! ” “ Five! ” Miss Shelly gave the ball to Ethan. “ You’ll throw the ball up in the air. As you do that, call out someone’s number. ” She looked at the others. “ If you hear your number, run to catch the ball. Catch it and yell ‘spud. ‘”

“ What does everyone else do?” Izzie asked. “ You have to freeze when you hear ‘spud, ’” Bobby said. Izzie nodded. “ Let’s play! ” Everyone started running around Ethan. He threw the ball into the air. “ Five! ” “ That’s me! ” Jason cried. He caught the ball and yelled, “ Spud. ” Everyone froze.