paul andersen ... carla bordeaux ... greta bowie ... calvin clark ... cissy clark ... '' as she called their names , mrs douglas 's fifth-grade class came forward one by one ( except for the clark twins , who came together as always , hand in hand , indistinguishable except for the length of their white-blonde hair and the fact that she wore a dress while he wore jeans ) , took their buff-colored report cards with the american flag and the pledge of allegiance on the front and the lord 's prayer on the back , walked sedately out of the classroom ... and then pounded down the hall to where the big front doors had been chocked open .