Rafe cannot wait to start his first day at Hills Village Middle School, but it does not go as he hopes when he finds out that Principal Dwight and Vice-Principal Ida Stricker, are very cruel and much worse than the bullies. After Dwight destroys Rafe's sketchbook by throwing it into a bucket full of acid, Rafe and his imaginary friend Leo (his late younger brother who died from cancer) come up with an idea to start a massive "insurrection" to go up against Principal Dwight and Stricker, breaking every rule in the rule book. They unleash several pranks on Principal Dwight, Stricker, and the school staff, including putting sticky notes all over the school, filling the teacher’s lounge with plastic balls, dyeing Principal Dwight's hair pink, and turning the school's trophy case into a fish tank.