It is imperative that teachers build community in their classrooms and across their academic teams and grades in order to make school a safe and supportive place for adolescents. Teachers must help their students acknowledge that they belong to a group together, that they are part of a “we” or “us,” and that any differences—divergent talents, backgrounds, experiences, cultures, and skills—only make “us” stronger and better. No More “Us” and “Them” delineates what steps educators can take to create an atmosphere where adolescent students feel accepted, included, and valuable to themselves and to their peers. The goal of this book is to change adolescent attitudes to lead to not just acceptance and tolerance, but toward an expansion of “us” and respect for their classmates that will serve to spread an even wider net of respect. This book provides ideas for lessons and activities that can be integrated into existing curricula and that meet a variety of content area standards in language arts, social studies, science, mathematics, foreign languages, physical education, art, and music, while also proposing ideas for advisory or homeroom periods and class, team, and grade gatherings to build respect in our classrooms, our schools, and our communities.

No More "Us" and "Them" delineates what steps educators can take to create an atmosphere where adolescent students feel accepted, included, and valuable to themselves and to their peers. This book provides ideas for lessons and activities that can be integrated into existing c...

For a life to come together, sometimes it first has to fall completely apart. Isabel is a regular seventeen-year-old girl, still reeling from the pain of her boyfriend's tragic death exactly one year ago. Carlos is a regular seventeen-year-old guy, loves red licorice and his friends, and works at a fancy art museum for some extra cash. The two have no connection until they both meet Vanessa, an intriguing new transfer student with a mysterious past. While Vanessa is the link that brings these two very different lives together, will she be the one that can also tear them apart? In his stunningly beautiful second novel, David Hernandez gives his readers a poetic and profound story that tells of two completely different teenagers and how through everyday life and monumental tragedy lies endless possibility.

This book provides a theoretical framework for understanding polarised politics. Contrary to the common understanding that polarisation is associated with populism and illiberal democracies, this book demonstrates that polarisation is by no means the result of one anti-democratic side of the conflict. By proposing this analytical inquiry, this book advances a new theoretical framework to characterise politics as either polarised or not. This framework is a unique approach that integrates people’s agency and socio-historical constraints to explain polarisation in depth. Drawing on Foucault’s concept of discourse, subject, and governmentality, and Laclau’s concept of logics and hegemony, this framework focuses on how to distinguish polarised politics from another form of politics. As a technology of power, polarisation can be performed by a variety of actors and is governed by a broad, conscious end, that is organising society by reducing the possibilities of alternative ways of thinking, speaking and doing politics to two options. This study takes a deep dive into the political polarisation in Venezuela, a country with almost two decades of conflict between Chavismo and the Opposition disputing the meaning of democracy, and with the most critical crisis in the Americas as a result of polarisation. With close attention paid to the logics or rationalities of power to explain what lies behind definitions of democracy. This analysis allows us to observe the rationalities and dynamics beyond what is said, in particular, the book explores hegemonic logics (myths, fantasies of threats and promises) used by both political groups to create a political identity.

This groundbreaking and eloquently written book explains how and why people are wedded to the notion that they belong to differing human kinds--tribe-type categories like races, ethnic groups, nations, religions, casts, street gangs, sports fandom, and high school cliques.

On the deep problem of prejudice, tolerance will only get leaders so far. This book presents a fresh perspective and approach that builds positive interest, kinship, and engagement based on difference. It offers a much-needed path to build helpful, active relationships between different groups in business and society.

"This will be the only discipline book you'll ever need to raise good kids." -from the Foreword by Jack Canfield, coauthor, Chicken Soup for the Soul and Chicken Soup for the Parent's Soul "Michele Borba offers insightful, realistic, and straightforward advice that is sure to get immediate results." -Editor-in-Chief, Parents Magazine "A sensitive, thoughtful, eminently practical book that will help parents help their children change behaviors that will improve the child's, and the entire family's, well being and happiness. A wonderful contribution!" -Alvin Rosenfeld, M.D., child psychiatrist and coauthor, Over-Scheduled Child Anger, Anxiety, Biting, Bossy, Bullied, Bullying, Chore Wars, Cynical, Defiant, Doesn't Listen, Fighting, Gives Up Easily, Hitting, Homework Battles, Hooked on Rewards, Impulsivity, Intolerant, Lying and Cheating, Materialistic, Mean, Negative Peer Pressure, No Friends, Over-Perfectionism, Poor Sportsmanship, Put-Downs, Rude, Selfish, Sibling Battles, Short Attention Span, Shy, Stealing, Swearing, Talking Back, Tattling, Teased, Temper Tantrums, Whining, Yelling. Parenting expert Dr. Michele Borba tackles the most common bad behaviors that kids ages 3 to 12 repeat over and over behaviors that drive parents crazy. In this enormously useful, simple-to-use book she shows how to change these behaviors for good. For each negative behavior Dr. Borba offers a series of key tips and guidelines and outlines a step-by-step plan for a customized makeover that really works! Using the steps outlined in No More Misbehavin' will give you the help you need to raise kids with strong values and good character.