The Unteachables

Mr. Kermit decides that the Unteachables are some of the best students he’s ever taught. None of them belongs in a special education class—the school district only shoved them aside because no one wanted to deal with them. Mr. Kermit worries about what will happen after he’s gone, fearing “the progress of the past weeks being rolled back” (237).

On the day of the science fair, Ms. Fountain and Jake Terranova tell Mr. Kermit the whole story. Mr. Kermit is furious that everyone kept this a secret, but he attends the fair out of a sense of responsibility to his class. When he sees the project, his hope fades. It’s entitled “The Internal Combustion Engine,” and compared to the others, it looks like nothing and has the chance of “an ice cube in molten lava against the other projects” (248).

The judges come to the display and manage to look interested. One reads the small booklet, which directs the judges to go outside. Mr. Kermit, Emma, Jake, and the judges follow the kids to the parking lot, where Parker revs the engine of Mr. Kermit’s completely rebuilt car. Rather than a pile of junk, the car gleams with new parts and paint, all completed by the kids without help. The judges are amazed, and Mr. Kermit can’t believe it’s his old car brought back to life.

Kiana gives the signal, and Parker floors the gas. He zooms across the parking lot, engine roaring. A banner demanding Mr. Kermit not be fired unfurls from the car’s antenna—part of the project that the kids didn’t tell anyone about. As the car picks up speed, the banner catches on fire. Parker finishes his drive, nearly running over Dr. Thaddeus, who launches into a tirade. Parker’s grandmother interrupts Dr. Thaddeus, shouting that he has no business yelling at Parker and actually using Parker’s name. Though the project went up in literal smoke, this is one of the best days of Parker’s life “because Grams remembered my name” (258).