articlesforchristians

In the barn the children looked for pumpkins which had no stems left on them. Some of them were so large that they made good seats.

“We will put four small seats in the front row,” said Polly. “Those are for the four dolls. Then we will have four in the next row. Those are for you two boys and Wag-wag and Collie.

“My chair is out here in front. I shall be the teacher. I shall always be the teacher.”

“We do not care,” said Peter. “If you are the teacher all the time, we shall be naughty boys some of the time.”

“No, you will not,” said Polly. “Now, boys, take your seats.”

“If you say, ‘Take your seats,’ I shall not do it,” said Tim. “You must say, ‘Take your pumpkins.'”

“If you say, ‘Take your pumpkins,'” said Peter, “I shall really take mine and go away.”

“Oh, dear!” said Polly. “What shall I do with two naughty boys? I know. You get the dogs and make them sit on their pumpkins.”

The two biggest pumpkins had been put in the row for the two dogs. Tim showed Collie what he was to do.

Collie is a very smart dog. He knew what Tim meant. He was willing to play school. So he tried to sit upon the pumpkin. He was so big that one of his legs kept slipping off.

When Wag-wag saw Collie on his scat, he jumped up on the next one. He was small, so it was easy for him to sit there. “Now, Collie,” said the teacher, “how many are two and three?”

Just then Collie slipped off his pumpkin. Polly played that he meant to stand.

“That is right,” said the teacher. “You must always stand, when you answer a question. Now, can you tell me I Then come down here and I will help you.”

Collie walked out to the teacher.

“You mind very well,” said she. “I will show you about two and three. Speak, Collie!”

Collie barked. His master had taught him to do that.

“Speak again!”

Collie barked again.

“That is right, little boy. That is two. Now do it three times more. Speak! Speak! Speak! “

Collie barked three times more.

“Very good,” said the teacher. “You have barked five times. That is what two and three make. Do you understand about it?”

Just then she heard a noise. It was Tim and Peter. They were rolling their seats over the barn floor.

“Children, children, stop, stop!” cried the teacher. “What are you doing? Take your seats!”

“We have taken them,” shouted Peter. “We have taken them away. It is recess. We are playing it is winter. We are rolling snowballs. See how big they are.”

“I will have a bigger one,” said Polly. And she ran to get Collie’s seat.

Out of the barn and down the driveway rolled the pumpkins. And that was the end of playing school for that day.