Four children are joined together by Mrs. Olinski to form a team, "The Souls," to compete in the academic bowl. We meet them as we hear the questions they are given in the finals, and discover their relationship to each other. Two of them have grandparents who have married, one has learned to understand her father after helping him save some turtles, one is a new boy in town facing teasing and prejudice, and one of the others cannot let him face this alone. As the four stories proceed, the teacher begins to understand why these four were selected and how they support each other and earn the respect of the other students.