Uniquely Us - Tales from a Resource Room: The Test

by Deborah M. Menenberg

What else could go wrong for Mrs. Wright? An enthusiastic Resource Room teacher, she had developed unique ideas to motivate and teach elementary Special Needs students. But these approaches start to fall apart when she and her fourth graders confront the absurdity of a new statewide standardized test, with its rigid test-taking mandated procedures.From the Old West–themed classroom to a wild thunderstorm, soaked students, a power outage, and the ever-present threat of principal interference, each laugh-out-loud page presents Special Education as you’ve never witnessed before. Taken from real events and actual student comments, these amusing surprises depict one day in the life of a not quite idyllic Resource Room.Will it truly take all eternity to finish reading the directions? Will Annie’s family have to change their name to Oakley? Can the students discover the volume of the locked closet? The children’s distinct personalities and individual quirks throw a monkey wrench into the entire process, yet Mrs. Wright strives to get it right in the end.

145 pages, Paperback

Published April 7, 2024

About the author

I am an author, educator, and mother focusing on shedding light on cultural issues around people with disabilities and their families.

Reviews

[Mary L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uniquely Us is a humorous, energetic, and fun read!!! If you've ever wondered what day-to-day life is like in a Resource Room, look no further. Mrs. Menenberg expertly describes hilarious, touching, and REAL moments from her Special Education classroom in this story, which focuses on one chaotic day of standardized testing. I highly reccomend this book to anyone who loves tales full of lovable characters and warm moments.

[Linda Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartwarming, Humor-Filled, and Relatable

In Uniquely Us, Ms. Menenberg transforms dozens of moments and episodes in the life of an experienced and innovative Resource Room teacher into a charming and universal story of a teacher, her assistant, and a group of Special Ed kids and "outsiders," all of whom are in her classroom for the first day of a new statewide standardized test.