What reaction do Mama and Big Ma have to the school bus’s “accident”? What does this show about them? How would their reaction have been different if they’d known what really happened?What does their relief that no one got hurt show about them?

Mama tells Big Ma that she heard Mr. Granger tell Ted Grimes, the bus driver, that they will have to wait until the rain stops to move the bus. She and Big Ma both admit that they are happy that it happened. The children are secretly proud of their revenge and cannot help laughing until Mama separates them to do their homework in different parts of the house.

If they'd known what really happened they would have been upset with the children because they'd put themselves in danger.