The Weirdest Fifth Grade Class Ever (Stylized as The Weirdest 5th Grade Class Ever sometimes) is a children's novel written by American author Isaiah Kempt and published in 1981. It is followed by The Weirdest Fifth Grade Class Ever: New Kid (1993).
The story focuses on a ten-year-old boy named Jake Clayson in a 5th grade class taught by a teacher named Barbra Zwieback, who is known for her unusual ways of demonstrating lessons to the class. The story takes place at Sherman Elementary in the fictional city of Whalesburg, in an unnamed East Coast state (although the second book confirms the state is Delaware).
Plot[]
Jake Clayson is contemplating entering the 5th grade and all its privileges. He thinks deeply about new challenges and old traditions being taken away. While deep in thought, his friend Anthony Shakers attempts to get his attention, and resorts to throwing a soccer ball at his face.
At the school, Jake gets a slip of paper that determines where his class will be. He is placed in Barbra Zwieback's 5th grade class. Upon settling down, Barbra introduces herself to the class, and then proceed to play an icebreaker game. The game is to see if one can juggle at least one object. Barbra amazes the class by juggling a stapler, tape dispenser, and an apple.
A student named Wilma Bershire has the earliest birthday of the class, and so Barbra decides to hold a day where the class must wear the same clothes she wore the day before her birthday.
During late November, Barbra pulls out a diorama of the first Thanksgiving made from marshmallows, complete with marshmallow Native Americans and marshmallow pilgrims. The table where the food is placed is instead a small table of candy, and the class gets to eat the candy and the marshmallows.
On the final day of the school before winter break, Barbra decides to hold a Christmas party, and places an artificial tree in the corner of the room. Towards the end of the day, she hands out presents for the students, which were disguised as a large worksheet for the students to do, but really contained a candy cane.
In late January, Barbra announces to the class that the class will get a class pet. The next day, she shows the pet to the class: a large German Mountain Shepard named Berkley. The class' reactions vary from positive to negative, but soon the class gets adjusted.
During Valentine's Day, Barbra holds a challenge to see if the class could break apart a Hershey's bar and stack the smaller pieces on top of one another. Jake almost completes the challenge, but the structure topples before the final piece could be put on.
For St. Patrick's Day, Barbra decides to paint herself in an emerald color. The class thinks it is funny, but soon turns into an actual problem when Barbra's paint does not come off until March 30th.
Because April Fools' Day was on a Monday in the book, (4/1/81 was actually a Wednesday) as a prank, Barbra decides to switch around the class' furniture, to which arguments about whose desk is whose erupt. The day ends with the students switching around the desks into their normal spots.
On the final day of school, Barbra holds a race to see who can run down from the 5th grade floor (top floor) to the Kindergarten floor (bottom floor). While doing so, they bump into the principal, Warren Fletcher, who surprisingly takes the whole thing lightly.
Throughout some days, Barbra dresses as an icon for whatever the class will be learning about for that day.
Chapters[]
Chapter 1: Before We Begin
- Jake heavily thinks over going into the 5th grade on the last day of summer.
Chapter 2: First Day Jitters
- Jake and the other students meet Mrs. Zwieback and sees her unusual methods of teaching.
Chapter 3: The Birthday Party
- Barbra mandates that the class must wear the same clothes as Wilma, a student whose birthday was on that day.
Chapter 4: The First Sweetsgiving
- Barbra creates a diorama of the first Thanksgiving with candy.
Chapter 5: Good Tidings We Bring
- Barbra gives out present to the students for Christmas.
Chapter 6: The Class Pet
- Barbra brings a dog into the class as their pet.
Chapter 7: The New Frank Lloyd Wright(s)
- As a Valentine's Day game, the class must break apart a Hershey's bar and build a tower from the pieces.
Chapter 8: Mrs. Zwieback Thinks Green
- Barbra paints herself green for St. Patrick's Day.
Chapter 9: The Backwards Class (pre-1995 printings intentionally print this chapter's title in reverse)
- As an April Fools' joke, Barbra switches the class furniture.
Chapter 10: Food for Thought
- Jake wonders if Barbra is too lax while at lunch.
Chapter 11: The Great Sherman Elementary Race
- Barbra holds a race to see who can run down the school the fastest.