It was another day to jump rope in gym class. Lynn and Mike turned the long rope in big slow circles. The whole class hurried to get in line to wait for their turn to jump. Millie stood at the back of the line and frowned.
Nick went first. He watched the rope and ran in at just the right time. Everyone counted, He made it all the way to 30 jumps. One after another, the kids watched the rope, ran in, and jumped. Then it was Millie's turn. She watched the rope go around and around, but she didn't move. She felt like everyone was looking at her.
Millie's friends cheered, "Go, Millie, go!"
Millie's face turned red. At last, she gave it a try, but she failed,
The truth was that Millie had been jumping rope at home every day. With a short rope, she could jump 100 times without missing. She just didn't know how to run in and start jumping with a long rope. Since she was the only kid on her street, there was no one to help turn the long rope.
Just then, Ms Miles, the gym teacher, brought out a bunch of short jump ropes.
"Let's see how long each one of you can jump without missing," she said as she gave each student a short rope. "Ready, set. Go!" Millie smiled for the first time ever in gym class. As she jumped, she sang rhymes quietly to herself.
After a while, Millie realised that everyone was cheering. "Go, Millie, go!"
She was the only one still jumping rope! The surprise almost made her miss a step, but she kept going. When at last she was too tired to go on, she stopped. The class cheered. Everyone was looking at her and smiling. Millie smiled back!
