As it turned out, the students had time for a second wonderful lesson. The afternoon sun was dipping on the horizon and Scarlett’s parents were yet to arrive. So Mr Bambuckle improvised under the watchful eye of Miss Frost, who had finished her paperwork and returned to the main camp site.

‘Dear children, now is a splendid time for a game of teamwork charades,’ said the teacher.

‘Is it the same as normal charades?’ asked Damon.

‘Indeed. Though you’ll be working with a partner.’

Miss Frost was taking notes. She was recording everything the teacher did and would be giving a full report to Mr Sternblast at the conclusion of camp.

Mr Bambuckle gestured for Ren and Vinnie to stand up. ‘I’d be delighted if you two would kick things off for us.’

The best friends had a secretive discussion before turning to face their classmates. Vinnie pressed her hands together and then unfolded them.

‘Book,’ said Albert.

Vinnie nodded.

Ren held up two fingers.

‘Two words,’ said Albert.

‘Give someone else a chance, brainiac,’ said Slugger.

‘Sorry,’ said Albert.

Vinnie held up a single finger.

‘Howzat!?’ cried Slugger.

‘She’s not a cricket umpire,’ said Albert. ‘She wants us to guess the first word.’

‘Oh.’

Vinnie grabbed a bunch of her hair and waved it around.

‘Hair?’

‘Brown?’

‘Curls?’

‘Hairy?’

Vinnie nodded.

‘Okay, hairy.’

Ren held up two fingers.

‘Peace,’ said Slugger.

Albert shook his head. ‘She’s not making the peace symbol, she’s telling us this is the second word.’

‘Ooh, gotcha.’

Ren acted out going to the toilet.

‘Bathroom?’

‘Loo?’

‘Thunder-box?’

‘Pottie?’

Ren nodded.

‘Hairy and pottie.’

‘Hairy Pottie?’

‘Oh, Harry Potter!’

Vinnie and Ren burst out laughing. ‘Yes!’

Damon and Evie were next to have a go. Evie rolled her arm forward, motioning an old-fashioned camera.

‘Movie!’

Damon held up one finger and pointed to Miss Frost.

‘Frozen!’ said Myra. ‘That was too easy.’

‘Very funny,’ whispered Miss Frost. She was clearly unimpressed with the proceedings. ‘I’m not sure what you think the benefits of this nonsensical game are,’ she added, directing a stare at Mr Bambuckle.

Mr Bambuckle chuckled. ‘It’s a most wonderful activity, Miss Frost. You’ll find outcomes CM13-C, TM4-A and PD5-B have been fully covered in just five minutes.’

Miss Frost flicked through her notes. ‘This is absurd. What sort of teacher ticks off outcomes with tomfoolery like this?’

‘Let me ask you this instead,’ said Mr Bambuckle. ‘What sort of adults do we want our students to become? You’ll find the outcomes covered include communication, teamwork and persistence … If you’re having trouble finding them, that is.’

Miss Frost tightened her lips. She knew the teacher was right. ‘Go on then,’ she said. ‘You may continue to play.’

Slugger and Carrot were up next, the latter indicating the pair would be acting out another film.

‘Two words.’

Carrot held up a single finger.

‘First word.’

The orange-haired boy pointed to the sky and wiggled his fingers delicately.

‘Stars?’

‘Star?’

Carrot nodded, satisfied with his well-executed mime.

Slugger held up two fingers.

‘Second word.’

The hulking food enthusiast pretended to attack. He raised his arms and grabbed hold of Carrot’s shoulders. Carrot retaliated by throwing a slow-motion punch, which Slugger ducked.

Victoria giggled.

Slugger then threw a slow-motion punch of his own. Carrot swayed backwards to the chuckles of his classmates. Slugger followed up with a clumsy roundhouse kick, which made him lose his balance. He toppled over and landed on Carrot, who had unfortunately mistimed his evasive roll.

‘Amazing fight sequence,’ squealed Myra. ‘Wars! It’s Star Wars!’

Carrot raised a thumb from somewhere underneath Slugger.

The class burst out laughing and the boys stood up, though not before a pair of particularly sharp scissors fell from one of Slugger’s pockets.

Miss Frost glanced between the scissors and Mr Bambuckle. ‘Those are clearly not school-regulated scissors,’ she said. ‘How interesting … A teacher permitting students to carry dangerous items at camp.’

Slugger gaped at the scissors on the ground. ‘You don’t understand, I –’

‘Quiet,’ said Miss Frost. She shot a fierce look towards Mr Bambuckle, clearly more concerned with the impact this could have on him.

The assistant principal scribbled in her folder. This incident, she knew, was the perfect ammunition for Mr Sternblast. She stood up abruptly. ‘I must report this at once. I’ll be in my car if anyone needs me.’

Slugger furrowed his brows and turned to Mr Bambuckle, ashamed the scissors had caused such a commotion. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen.’

Mr Bambuckle’s blue jacket twinkled in the evening light. ‘I believe you have some explaining to do,’ said the kindly teacher. ‘Now is the time to be honest.’