In language arts class, Nick makes a big show of forgetting his “frindle.” His friend John supports the charade by digging one out of his backpack and tossing it to Nick, who intentionally misses the catch. Mrs. Granger quickly steers the class back on track, but she asks to speak to Nick after class. She warns him against disrupting her class again, with eyes that “were lit up, but it was mostly light, not much heat” (40). Nick responds by bravely—with feigned innocence—asserting, “But I really didn’t have a frindle with me” (40). Mrs. Granger disapproves of his game, but she dismisses him.

Nick and the fifth-grade class anger the teachers—especially Mrs. Granger—when they ruin their class picture by smiling at the camera and saying “frindle” instead of “cheese.” Mrs. Granger implements a new punishment: Anyone heard saying the word frindle must write lines after school that say, “I am writing this punishment with a pen” (43). When students continue using the word nevertheless, Mrs. Granger pulls Nick aside. Nick feels a thrill, like his teacher summons him to “a conference during a war” (43). When Nick still refuses to renounce his word, she has him sign the back of an envelope containing a letter addressed to him.