The next day, Miss Canfield is at a loss trying to understand such a severe response to her request that Beaver play Smokey the Bear in a school pageant.

The following day, Beaver leaves for school carrying his most precious object for Miss Canfield — a rubber shrunken head.

Jeri Weil and Stanley Fafara play Beaver's classmates, Judy Hensler and "Whitey" Whitney respectively while Burt Mustin and Ralph Sanford play Beaver's adult friends in the neighborhood, Gus, the fireman, and "Fats" Flannaghan, a junkyard operator.

The episode was written by the show's creators, Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, and directed by Norman Tokar.

"Beaver Gets Spelled", initially filmed third in the production sequence following "Captain Jack" (901A) and "The Black Eye" (902A), was later designated as the premiere episode.