What an exciting Chapter 4!

Chapter 4 was a terrific treat for the holidays! Kelsey and the third grade did a great job of building on the dramatic cliffhanger ending you were given by Tye and the seventh grade. And I was especially pleased to see how you heightened the tension by using sensory details like the scent of wet dog and the slimy gooey mud that half-hid the battery - and what a surprise that the battery came from Dexter’s Palm Pilot! That definitely helps Dexter hold onto his belief in Phil’s innocence in the face of the circumstantial evidence that seems to condemn him in everyone else’s eyes.

I also really like the way Phil is so pro-active in trying to solve the mystery. First he sneaks off with Dexter to follow the trail in the night (more good use of sensory detail to build tension with the slight breeze rustling the leaves in the dark), then he wakes up connecting the keys they found with the set of keys sticking out of the bus lockbox when he’d hit his ankle, and tiptoes out to check the bus. How eerie that was! And you made great use of details like the musty air inside the bus and the cold metal lid - and the grating sound that makes him hurry back to his tent.

You’ve also done a terrific job of introducing lots of great twists to set things up for the next chapter - that box of money was very suspicious, and what made that grating sound? Most important, where did the money come from? And what happened to Leslie’s Palm Pilot? There are so many great clues here! But most troubling is the question of why the whole camp turns on Phil as soon as Leslie announces her Palm Pilot is gone? It seems very unfair that they all suspect him without any real evidence.

Then you’ve ended on a terrific cliffhanger - I have pockets with embarrassing holes, and I’m sure everyone reading this mystery will identify with Phil’s realization that the keys are sliding through the hole in his pocket and down to the ground. But that certainly makes Phil look more suspicious than ever. I loved the way Mr. Callantine’s eyes bulged and his face looked as hot as the sun - I could really see that. And I can’t wait to see what happens in Chapter 5.

Does Phil even try to explain how he found the keys? Or does he suspect it would be useless to say anything? Does Dexter or Molli try to stand up for their friend, or do they decide to keep quiet? And what is Phil going to find at Old Faithful? Will more clues erupt with the geyser, or will he simply find himself frozen out by his classmates? Third grade has done such a great job that I can’t wait to find out what sixth grade is going to do next!