This is an inspiring story of one teacher who resisted the pressures of
teaching to the test
and created a curriculum based on his students’ needs, wants, and desires. When Brian Schultz challenged his fifth-grade students to name problems in their community, they unanimously focused on replacing their dilapidated school building. This book portrays the students’ attempts at solving this real-world problem through a year-long project that they developed together with their teacher. Throughout his narrative, Schultz shares the difficulties he encountered with the curriculum, the school system, the students, and himself, as well as the successes and discoveries made along the way.