Junie B. longs to feel a sense of autonomy and to be in control of her experiences and her choices. She spends most of her first day of school following an unfamiliar routine and dealing with other children’s unpredictable behavior. First, she must ride the “stupid smelly” bus and has several uncomfortable interactions. Then, someone steps on her skirt, soiling it before the school day even begins. Mrs. doesn’t take Junie B.’s feelings very seriously, simply telling the girl, “Don’t worry […] It’ll come off” (20). Next, Jim steps on her new shoe and scratches it, but when she yells at him for his carelessness, Mrs. only admonishes her to be quiet. Then, although Junie B. chose a red chair last week, Lucille gets to the chair first and claims it for herself, compelling Junie B. to sit “in a stupid yellow chair. The same stupid color as the stupid yellow bus” (23). When she messes up her nametag, failing to leave enough room for her “B.,” she yells out how much she “HATE[S] THIS STUPID DUMB CIRCLE” in which she’s supposed to write (24). Adults like Mrs. and the librarian repeatedly shush Junie B., and when she tries to get a drink of water, other children rush her and say that she’s taking too long. In short, her experiences and resultant frustrations demonstrate the theme of the Human Desire for Independence and Control. She wants what she wants, and she is frustrated by the expectation that she compromise. The song that the custodian sings—”Somewhere Over the Rainbow”—alludes to the movie The Wizard of Oz and represents Junie B.’s desire. In the song, Dorothy Gale sings about her longing for a make-believe place where nothing upsetting happens. There, all the “Skies are blue / And the dreams that you dare to dream / Really do come true” (“Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Genius). She sings about how, one day, she’ll “wake up where the clouds are far behind [her],” and all her “troubles [will] melt like lemon drops” (“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”). Junie B. would likely wish for a similar place where she could be free of all the frustrations associated with being a child.

This is especially probable because of Children’s Highly Developed Sense of Fairness, another theme that Junie B.’s experiences highlight. Although Jim steps on her shoe, Mrs. addresses and corrects only Junie B. Although Jim tells Junie B. and Lucille that they smell bad, he never gets in trouble. Although Junie B. claimed the red chair first—last week, in fact—Lucille gets to sit in it. To make matters worse, Lucille is allowed to wear a bright nail polish called “Very Very Berry,” while Junie B. is only permitted to wear clear nail polish, which she doesn’t like because “Clear is the color of spit” (32). She is also forced to ride the bus despite her repeated objections. Not much about the day feels fair to her, and this makes her anxious and causes her to rebel, choosing to hide rather than get back on the bus.

Further, Junie B.’s response to Lucille’s claims about what happens when children ride the bus home from school further highlights The Anxiety Created by New Rules and Experiences. Rather than risk having chocolate milk poured on her head, as Lucille’s big brother has reported, Junie B. hides. She doesn’t do this to rebel or defy others; instead, she simply wants to avoid a new and frightening experience. After all, it was bad enough having to ride the bus in the morning without dealing with the threat of chocolate milk: Other kids were rude to her, the ride took forever, and the bus stunk; then—to top it all off—she got pushed to the ground, and someone stepped on her skirt. Junie B. is simply trying to avoid the anxiety created by not understanding that getting chocolate milk poured onto her head cannot possibly be the standard for afternoon bus rides.