In Chapter 19, we see a different side to Mrs. Starch, how does she behave differently than we might expect?

In Chapter 19, Mrs. Starch surprises Nick and Marta when she starts humming a lullaby to the baby panther. “The tune was surprisingly soothing and pretty. Marta and Nick were stunned; this was a side of their teacher that they’d never observed, or even imagined to be part of her buzz-saw personality” (243). The revelation of this side of Mrs. Starch’s personality shows the error everyone has made in judging Mrs. Starch. She has a peaceful, motherly side, and she is not as scary as everyone believes her to be.