Looking Back 1) Standing at the foot of the stairs, watching the crowd of chaotic "little people" as his English teacher regularly referred to them, Steven didn't even realize he was staring. Sixth graders darted and dashed back and forth from lockers and water fountains as they began making their way past Steven toward the cafeteria. Some stared at Steven in awe. They saw an eighth grader, wearing not only a team jacket, but also a front office badge, and while they may not have known his name, they knew Steven was an important guy on campus, and they should probably stay out of his way.



2) It had been an awful day. First, his mom had insisted on walking him into the building, afraid he would get lost among the hordes of students and worse that he'd forget how to open his locker. Never mind that he had been telling her the whole weekend leading up to that Monday that he could do it all himself. He wasn't sure he would ever recover from the embarrassment of having his mom baby him on the first day of sixth grade.

3) Then there was lunch. He'd forgotten to deposit his books in his locker beforehand because he was in a rush to get there. They had been warned that lunch lines in middle school were extremely long, so they shouldn't waste any time getting to the cafeteria. Too bad the vice-principal sent him back to his locker. "No books in the cafeteria," he announced to Steven and a few others. By the time he made it back, the line snaked around the walls.

4) Finally, when the day seemed over and he'd begun to relax a little, knowing the bell would soon ring, Steven stacked his books on his desk and looked around the room. He knew this classroom was primarily used for eighth grade American history, but his history teacher didn't have a classroom; she floated to several rooms throughout the day. While he was reading the posters of famous Americans and quotes along the ceiling, Steven didn't realize the teacher had dismissed his class early to avoid the crowds. His classmates were already out the door when the blaring bell startled him. He jumped in his seat, noticed his teacher smiling at him, got embarrassed, and quickly ran out of the room with his books. She called after him, "Slow down!"

5) He should have listened. Right outside that eighth grade classroom were eighth grade lockers, and of course, a crowd of eighth graders. OOMPH. Steven plowed into the legs of a kid who must have been six feet tall.

6) "Hey shrimp! Watch where you're going!"

7) Not taking the time to look the giant guy in the face, Steven scooped up his books, which had fallen across the floor, and ran off through the crowd. He tried to ignore the echoing laughter in his ears. He was sure he'd ruined his chance of being normal, much less popular. There was no doubt in his mind that he would be laughed at every day as he left history class, and the rest of middle school for that matter. Yes indeed, sixth grade and middle school was going to be miserable.


8) Coming back to reality he heard a mumbled, "Uh, sorry. Really, I am. Sorry." The tiny kid, who probably weighed just over fifty pounds looked up and away as he darted off, like a Chihuahua with its tail between its legs.

9) "Hey!" Steven called out as he took two long strides to catch up to the small boy. The little guy, not sure what to expect, turned his head up, cowering in fear from the dreaded eighth grader, "Hey, man. It's all right. Happens to everybody," Steven explained with a smile. Patting the kid on the back and moving ahead of him through the mass of "little people," Steven smiled at the thought of the little guy in two years and how sixth graders would look up to him.

5.
By first sharing Steven's experience as a sixth grader, the author helps the reader better understand —

how annoyed Steven is with the immature sixth graders

how miserable Steven has been during middle school

why Steven treats the small boy nicely

why Steven enjoys being in eighth grade