Loving their gifted teacher, three boys are dismayed when she 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.

The fifth grade's annual camping trip in the woods tests Mark's survival skills and his ability to relate to a teacher who seems out to get him.

"The kids from Mr. Terupt's fifth- and sixth-grade classes are entering their first year of junior high school. There's a lot to be excited about, but there are new challenges, too. Everyone is missing Mr. Terupt. When a fight threatens to break up the group forever, they think their favorite teacher is the only one who can help them. But the kids soon find out that it's Mr. Terupt who needs saving"--