After lunch and recess, the children begin their first classes during the contest. Mrs. Marlow asks why they are quiet and gets no answers. She notices hidden smiles and confirms that the kids have a secret. Mrs. Marlow tries her first experiment, asking various students if they did their homework, and getting three-word replies like “Yes, I did” or “It was hard” (56). Then she asks Ellen, a top science student, how she solved one of the problems. Ellen answers in three-word sentences prodded from her, one at a time, by Mrs. Marlow: “I…made estimates,” “I used…math,” etc. (58-59). Mrs. Marlow then asks Dave for his process, urging him on as with Ellen until she finds Dave got the answer wrong. The girls giggle, and Mrs. Marlow loses her temper. She assigns a new chapter and directs their attention to the homework questions on the board.

The quiet is blissful, but Mrs. Marlow still hasn’t figured out the mystery. Lynsey passes a note to Dave that says he used four words in his last answer, including “Um.” She calls him a loser. Mrs. Marlow catches the note-passing and demands the note. Dave walks it up to her just as the bell rings.