In this story, his parents bring him to Third Street Elementary School. Gus is a wild child and thinks that the other students he meets will be just like him, but to his surprise everyone is acting well behaved in class, and Ms. Finster reads them a story. When recess begins all the children are quiet and nobody acts like they do in the future. Gus notices Gretchen just reads and never gives anyone ideas, Vince just runs around quietly, the digger twins just play in a sandbox, the Swinger Girl does not swing roughly or hang upside down and Spinelli is a timid little girl with a doll. Gus then meets one little boy with a red cap whose name is Theodore Jasper Detweiler. Gus befriends him and gives him his nickname: T.J..Ms. Finster is very shocked with Gus's behaviour.