Ollie’s Wobbly Wheel

Ollie built a moon rover from a cereal box, four lids, and enough silver tape to shine across the kitchen. At show-and-tell, he gave it a grand push. The rover curved left, bumped a chair, and dropped its paper antenna. Ollie wished the carpet would open and hide him.

“The wheel is wrong,” he muttered. His teacher asked a different question: “What is the wheel telling you?” Ollie watched closely. One lid tilted each time it turned. The hole was not in the middle. His mistake was not laughing at him; it was leaving a clue.

Ollie marked the center of a new lid with a ruler. His classmate Priya held the axle still while he attached it. They tested, adjusted, and tested once more. This time the rover crossed the rug in a straight silver line.

During show-and-tell, Ollie displayed both wheels—the crooked one and the corrected one. “This wheel taught me where the center is,” he explained. The class applauded the rover, but Ollie felt proudest of the mistake he had learned to read.