After breakfast, Mother went upstairs to put on her hat. She was going to walk to school with Betsy every morning until Betsy knew the way.

Betsy sat on the bottom step of the stairs to wait for Mother. Her schoolbag was over her shoulder. There were two bread and jelly sandwiches tucked away in the pocket on the outside of the bag. Betsy felt very little and very scared, but she wouldn't tell Mother, because she did not want Mother to think that she was a baby. Only that morning Mother had called her "Mother's great big girl."

Suddenly Betsy thought of Koala Bear. Koala was the little toy bear that Uncle Jim had brought all the way from Australia. She would take Koala to school with her. It would not seem so strange or so lonely with Koala. Betsy ran upstairs and into her bedroom. She looked in the bed, but Koala was not there. Betsy was sure she had taken him to bed with her the night before. She pulled up the covers at the foot of the bed, for although Koala always went to bed with his nose sticking out at the top, it was nearly always