Four students, with their own individual stories, develop a special bond and attract the attention of their teacher, a paraplegic, who choses them to represent their sixth-grade class in the Academic Bowl competition.

Thirteen-year-old Hadley begins to better understand her teacher and herself when she has to spend a day in her teacher's body.

We all remember our favorite teacher. Where would we be without them -- those special people who inspire us, support us, and encourage us? Whether they're an educator, a coach, or a mentor, this book is for them. To celebrate the worlds they open up for us and to thank them for the difference they make.-- Publisher.

Kaley Bluster has her own view of the world history she reads for her 4th grade essay writing assignments. Her teacher, Mr. Serrano, tries to get her to write essays, but they always turn out to be creative commentaries on Kaley's life and her own interpretations of history in light of her modern world.

Several students relate their experiences helping Mr. Terupt move the old classroom to the sixth grade annex during the summer vacation.

Loving their gifted teacher, three boys are dismayed when the teacher falls ill and leaves for the rest of the school year, a situation that compels them to share their stories while cutting class and journeying across town together on a fateful day.

Helen fears that lack of improvement in her reading may leave her stuck in the sixth grade forever, until a good teacher recognizes her reading problem.

Adjusting to middle school becomes easier for twelve-year-old Maggie when she finds that her biology teacher, who is blind, can learn a few things from her about working with his guide dog.

Told in alternating voices, the teacher and students in room 117 find their lives changed over the course of a school year.