_:n16fe99b908f04d7e9e7517469905f114xb9
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"In the book Stuck in Neutral, Shawn McDaniel is a fourteen-year-old\nliving with cerebral palsy and is physically incapable of caring for himself.\nHe also cannot speak, so his family members believe he's brain-dead—but he is\nnot. Shawn has a perfect memory and can recall everything that has ever been\nsaid in his presence; unfortunately, he has no way of letting his doctors or\nfamily know that he's \"alive\" inside.\nShawn lives in Seattle, Washington, with his mother, his sixteen-year-old\nbrother, Paul, and his seventeen-year-old sister, Cindy. Shawn's siblings\nattend Shoreline High School, which Shawn attends part-time. When Paul sees\nShawn there, he is sometimes embarrassed to admit that Shawn is his\nbrother.\nWhen Shawn is not attending Shoreline, he goes to a Special Education\nProgram for the Severely and Profoundly Handicapped. The class is quite small\nand numbers only seven students, including Shawn. Although no one knows, Shawn\nis probably the most intelligent student in the classroom. He describes the\natmosphere in the room as being similar to a zoo, with students slobbering and\nrocking back and forth like animals. Of course, he understands that he is one\nof these \"animals\" too. Shawn refers to the others, and himself, as \"retards.\"\nHe doesn't believe this is a slur; he just uses it to describe those who have\ninjured brains or can't move.\nShawn's teacher is named Mrs. Hare, and Shawn appreciates her efforts, even\nif it sometimes doesn't seem like she's making a difference. There are also two\nteaching interns in the classroom, whom Shawn likes very much: William and\nBecky. In fact, Shawn has a crush on Becky, but he reminds himself that this\nwill be impossible to pursue since he cannot speak. Shawn appreciates attending\nschool, even if this dream will never be realized."
<https://www.enotes.com/topics/stuck-neutral/questions/shawn-s-school-experience-in-stuck-in-neutral-3122899>