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$5.18
1. Raising Great Kids Workbook for
$24.99
2. Summer Programs for Kids &
3. Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids:
$18.42
4. Peterson's Summer Programs for
 
5. Weight and Strength Training for
$11.49
6. Rays of Calm: Relaxation for Teenagers
$8.00
7. By Kids, for Kids: A Collection
 
8. Inspire Quarterly #21 Kids and
 
9. Summer Opportunities for Kids
10. Summer Opps for Kids & Teenagers
$7.34
11. Yellowstone National Park for
$12.50
12. Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can
 
13. Summer Opportunities for Kids
 
$5.95
14. Teens & cancer: cancer strikes
15. Summer Opportunities for Kids
16. Halloween Party Ideas for Kids
 
17. Peterson's Summer Opportunities
$42.95
18. Peterson's Summer Programs for
 
$42.83
19. Summer Camps in Canada: A Complete
 
20. Monthly Money: Allowance &

1. Raising Great Kids Workbook for Parents of Teenagers
by Henry Cloud, John Townsend, Dr. Henry Cloud, Dr. John Townsend
Paperback: 192 Pages (2000-11-01)
list price: US$12.99 -- used & new: US$5.18
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 0310234379
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Editorial Review

Product Description
A workbook for parents of teenagers that accompanies the book Raising Great Kids. The goal of parenting, according to the authors, is to build biblical character into their children. ... Read more


2. Summer Programs for Kids & Teenagers - 2009: Have the Summer of a Lifetime
by Peterson's
Hardcover: 832 Pages (2008-10-20)
list price: US$39.95 -- used & new: US$24.99
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 0768925525
Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan
Editorial Review

Product Description
Safe, fun, and enriching summer programs are the backbone ofPeterson’s Summer Programs for Kids & Teenagers.The annually updated guide provides complete information on summer camps, arts programs, sports clinics, academic courses, travel tours, wilderness adventures, and volunteer opportunities throughout the U.S. and abroad. There are programs for every child’s interests and every family’s budget—from pre-college preparation courses held on private school or college campuses and traditional summer camps replete with lakes, to wilderness treks in the American West, community service projects in Costa Rica and bicycling, sailing, or train tours to hundreds of countries around the world. ... Read more


3. Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids: American Teenagers, Schools, and the Culture of Consumption
by Murray Milner
Kindle Edition: 320 Pages (2007-03-16)
list price: US$19.95
Asin: B000OT89M8
Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars
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Editorial Review

Product Description

Welcome back to high school. Is it different?In some schools the pecking order hasn't changed, only the names; in others ranking is gone, but clique boundaries are even more rigid.From the lunchroom to the prom, students are obsessed with who sits together, who goes together, what people are wearing and driving.But in addition new kinds of relationships, anxieties, and conflicts have emerged.Both these old and the new features of teen culture shape our children in ways that are more fundamental than the content of the curriculum. Murray Milner revisits the most character-shaping status system we ever encounter, showing how it works and why-and how it is also shaping our entire consumer society.

Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids argues that the teenage behaviors that annoy adults do not arise from "hormones," bad parenting, poor teaching, or "the media," but from adolescents' lack of power over the central features of their lives: they must attend school; they have no control over the curriculum; they can't choose who their classmates are.What teenagers do have is the power to create status systems and symbols that not only exasperate adults, but also impede learning and maturing. Ironically, parents, educators, and businesses are inadvertently major contributors to these outcomes.

An absorbing journey that stirs up a mixture of nostalgia and dismay, Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kidsshows how high school distills the worst features of American consumer society and shapes how we relate to our neighbors, partners, and coworkers.It also makes new proposals about how our schools and the lives of teenagers might be transformed.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

5-0 out of 5 stars Excellent Service
The book was in very good condition. It was like new. Fast and speedy delivery.

4-0 out of 5 stars childhood revisited
Everything is traced back to a struggle for power and I like having that as a root throughout the book.I am only 25 and a lot of the elements of childhood reflected in the book are relatively fresh in my memory.I frequently found myself saying "ohhh" and wondering how I missed a lot of this.It drove me nuts, though, as I realized how difficult it would be to emerge from these behaviors and has kept me up a few nights.The previous reviewer must have been somewhere different than I because the book hit many nails on their respective heads (haha).

1-0 out of 5 stars We're all in high school
Dr. Milner is correct that adolescents "lack...power over
the central features of their lives." One power I wish teens
had is to prevent portrayals such as this.

This book is an exercise in unreality. Adults are charged
with "inadvertently" exercising the wrong kinds of controls
over teenagers, which excuses adults from facing the fact
that our own values and behaviors--not what structures or
lectures we aim at adolescents--are the most critical
influences on the young.

"Why do American teenagers behave the way they do?" Dr.
Milner asks. The USA has 30 million teenagers, ranging from
Hmong migrant laborers to middle-class Latinos to Marin
upscalers (note: the last are the only ones culture critics
care about). No responsible social scientist uses a term
such as "behave the way they do" to describe such a large,
diverse group.

"Why are many teenagers obsessed with who sits with them at
lunch, the brand of clothes they wear, what parties they are
invited to, the privacy of their bedrooms, the intrigues of
school cliques, who is dating or breaking up with whom, what
is the latest popular music?" he asks. Because adults around
them are obsessed with the same kinds of status markers.
Hard to believe, but teens account for just 3% of consumer
spending in the US. Who accounts for the other 97%? That's
right--the parents, educators, and adults Dr. Milner depicts
as so disturbed and baffled at where teenagers could
possibly get the idea that what clothes you wear, what
styles you affect, who you associate with, what circles you
are included in, what other people's sex lives are like,
etc., are important. Dr. Milner treats adults simply as
controllers and arbiters, not as role models whose own
smoking, drinking, sexual behavior, fashion consciousness,
status seeking, and cliquishness crucially impact those of
the young. This is a fatally un-introspective book.

Dr. Milner asks: "Why have alcohol, drug use, and casual sex
become widespread?" They haven't. These behaviors have
declined sharply among teens in recent decades and, more
important, consequences of such behaviors (drunken driving,
drug overdose, pregnancy) have plummeted among today's
adolescents compared to previous generations. Today's
parents have far worse illegal-drug and alcohol abuse
problems than their teenage kids do. The question is: why
doesn't a noted social scientist such as Dr. Milner know
these things?

This book perfectly illustrates the hierarchical
arrangements of grownup society Dr. Milner is so troubled by
when reflected by adolescents. Where "cool kids" distance
themselves from "geeks," Milner distances adults (high
status) from adolescents (low status). Where popular high
schoolers view outcasts as being weird, different, messing
up the school, and requiring insults and thumpings from the
alphas to restore the proper order, Milner charges teens
with objectionable, unhealthy values that are messing up our
society and require superior adults to reassert our
corrective authority. When it comes to us versus them, power
versus reject, meaningful achievement versus superficial
status, painful introspection versus blaming scapegoats, and
every other flaw we see so clearly in teenagers but are
blind to in ourselves, Dr. Milner's book inadvertently
illustrates the degree to which high schoolers anticipate
grownups and grownups recapitulate high school.

Mike Males, Sociology Department, University of California,
Santa Cruz

5-0 out of 5 stars Big ideas with big implications
Professor Murray Milner, Jr. asks "Why do American teenagers behave the way they do?"His new book, Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids, examines a list of negative behaviors:

"Why are many teenagers obsessed with who sits with them at lunch, the brand of clothes they wear, what parties they are invited to, the privacy of their bedrooms, the intrigues of school cliques, who is dating or breaking up with whom, what is the latest popular music? Why have alcohol, drug use, and casual sex become widespread?"

Some people assume that teen troubles are just the result of hormones, psychological development, race, or class, but Dr. Milner rejects that notion. He zeroes in on the basic nature of compulsory, age-segregated education.

Milner argues that if we want to understand teens, we must "focus on the way adults have used schools to organize young people's daily activities, and the teenage status systems that result from this way of structuring their lives."Milner claims that students in high schools behave the way they do because they seek "status."In an effort to be popular with their peers, they divide themselves into groups like "preps" and "jocks" at one end of the social scale and "freaks" and "geeks" on the other.

Freaks, Geeks, and Cool Kids is serious sociological research, but remains quite readable. The book unravels the mysteries of food fights, varsity letter jackets, drinking parties, and all the other marks of "youth culture."The strength of Milner's work lies in his ability to connect all these disparate dots into a coherent pattern, and then show how the pattern of the public high school is driven by the overarching quest for status.

According to Milner, human beings tend to seek one or more basic kinds of power. The three main options are economic, political, or status power. Consider, for example, Bill Gates, President Bush, and Pope John Paul II. Each of these three exercises a vast amount of power, but in three different forms. For many people, status can be just as important as money or politics. When large numbers of people organize themselves around the pursuit of status (rather than money or political power), they form what Milner calls a "status system."Familiar status systems are the British aristocracy, the American South before 1860, and India's caste system.

Much of Milner's life work was done in India and Bangladesh, where he studied the sociology of native Hindu cultures. Traditional Indian society is rigidly divided into different castes, with those at the highest level (Brahmins) rigidly separated from the lower tiers of society, all of which, in turn, look down on the "untouchables" at the bottom of the social structure. In his previous work (Status and Sacredness: A General Theory of Status Relations and an Analysis of Indian Culture) Milner challenged the assumption that India's caste system is the product of unique cultural circumstances. He tried to explain the factors that would lead people to develop such a system, and developed a "general theory of status relationships" to explain what he observed. This general theory explains more than Hindu caste systems, however: it also makes sense of high school cafeterias.

Arguing that American high schools are status systems, too, Milner says the system has developed because students have so little power over other aspects of their lives. During their four years of compelled attendance at a public high school, young people have little opportunity to invest their time or energy into their own life goals. They are forced to go to school because other people make them.

Despite the lack of economic or political power, high school students have near-complete power over status, and Milner shows how effectively they use this power. Inside the high school, it is the students, not parents or school administrators, who decide who is "cool." Once the group decides it is "uncool" to associate with adults, students tend to do whatever it takes to prove they have rejected their parents' and teachers' norms. While most people would call such teenage behavior "anti-social," Milner insists that it is the predictable result of social pressures.

Milner examines high school behaviors one by one, and time after time, he shows how these behaviors directly serve to raise or lower status. Much of what he describes is dysfunctional, involving deviant or destructive acts like drug use or hazing. His theory explains why objectively bad choices can raise the status of the child who makes them. The boy who smokes seems "cool" to his crowd, and the girl who dresses provocatively attracts the more popular boys. Cruel putdowns reduce the status of others, and thus raise one's own. Good choices, by contrast (like obedience and hard work), often earn the contempt of one's peers.

Milner claims that these dysfunctional behaviors can all be traced back to our educational system which isolates students in an artificial society allowing them to pursue other interests. He makes a compelling case, leaving the reader wondering how such schools can possibly survive. Milner provides the answer to that mystery, too: the secret is that almost everybody likes the current system.

Young people like the high schools, Milner says, because they escape the authority of their parents. Parents like the schools because it gives them more free time. Organized labor supports compelled attendance because it eliminates competition for unskilled jobs. Corporations like the system because they can count on a ready supply of part time workers (without health care or other expensive benefits) while insuring a constant stream of eager young consumers, compelled to buy the latest fashions in order to keep up with their status-conscious peers. Both public school teachers and the politicians who employ them gain power and influence when the scope of the school system is increased.

Milner has not researched homeschooling, but his theory helps explain why homeschoolers seem so different from their peers in traditional schools. There is little that public school students can change in their environment except for their status; but homeschoolers experience the opposite. Homeschoolers can change just about everything in their environment except for status. A first-born son is a first-born son, no matter how he scores on standardized tests.

If homeschoolers cannot change their status, Milner's theory would suggest that they might try to gain economic or political power, instead. The facts bear this out: homeschool kids have started a surprising number of small businesses, and homeschoolers have developed a well-deserved reputation for being "the most effective lobbyists in America."The average homeschooled student respects his parents, work hard at his studies, and spend his time, energy, and money on things he is interested in, not on whatever it takes to look "cool" to others. The result, according to the latest research, is that homeschool graduates are succeeding in life: 58% of homeschool graduates are "very happy," 73% find life "exciting," 92% are satisfied with their finances, and 96% are satisfied with the work they do (Dr. Brian Ray, "Homeschooling Grows Up," 2003).

Professor Milner spends a significant amount of time examining the relationship between American consumer culture and our current educational system. In the early twentieth century, activists like John Dewey tried to shape the schools to churn out millions of laborers who would be willing to spend their lives at the mindless tasks of the modern assembly line. They insisted that our economy depended on such producers. Today, Milner says, our economy depends on consumers to keep it going-and age-segregated schools do a marvelous job of raising status-conscious shoppers who will reliably throw out their old products and buy new ones as soon as the fashions change.

If "socialization" means being shaped into a peer-dependent, status-conscious consumer, then parents and policy-makers need to take a serious look at the youth culture of our modern schools. If Milner is correct, then high school students are continuously tempted to do whatever it takes to "be cool" in the eyes of others. Far too many young people waste their time, energy, and money in the quest for status, while the few who refuse to join the high school rat race wind up labeled "geeks" or "dorks."

In this reviewer's opinion, Milner's thesis is sound--but not likely to be popular.Homeschoolers can take advantage of this analytic framework, but the rest of America will have trouble responding.No matter how incontrovertible Milner's claims may be, it is safe to predict a deafening silence from the teachers' colleges and other academic institutions that prop up today's educational system.

4-0 out of 5 stars Reads like a Ph.D thesis
Although a very interesting sociological study, this book reads more like someone's doctoral thesis or a sociology textbook.It's full of tiny print on shiny paper, interview and study results, footnotes -- very dry and detailed.The precis is well-documented and explained that adolescent consumerism is fostered by the "in" teens themselves, not the other way around.But the book makes it seem as if no teen can be more than a jerk if he/she attempts to avoid or scorn the dominant culture.That's a sad commentary on the need to conform in an age of diversity and, we hope, increased tolerance.This is a pretty heavy read, definitely not entertainment. ... Read more


4. Peterson's Summer Programs for Kids & Teenagers 2008
by Peterson's
Hardcover: 240 Pages (2007-11-01)
list price: US$39.95 -- used & new: US$18.42
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: B001PIHUHW
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Editorial Review

Product Description
No other reference guide gives familes such a variety of fun, exciting, and enriching programs, including summer camps, sports clinics, mini travel tours, community service projects, volunteer work, and college-prep courses. ... Read more


5. Weight and Strength Training for Kids and Teenagers: A Responsible Guide for Parents, Teachers, Coaches, and Young Athletes
by Ken Sprague
 Paperback: 142 Pages (1991-07-01)
list price: US$12.95
Isbn: 0874776430
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6. Rays of Calm: Relaxation for Teenagers (Calm for Kids)
by Christiane Kerr
Audio CD: Pages (2007-12-01)
list price: US$17.95 -- used & new: US$11.49
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 1901923924
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars
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Editorial Review

Product Description
This is the fourth CD in the Calm For Kids range by Christiane Kerr. Created for teenagers this high quality CD has ten tracks ranging in length from three to eight minutes. Christiane s soothing voice leads you through various relaxation techniques and visualisations designed to promote a sense of calm and wellbeing and to help teenagers deal with stress. Each track is accompanied by beautiful music and calming sound effects composed and created by Pete M Wyer.Christiane is a children s yoga teacher, specialising in relaxation and stress relief. She has worked extensively both with younger children and teenagers and this CD has been tried and tested with great success on her students in this age group. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

5-0 out of 5 stars Helpful CD for school-aged child with headaches
I purchased this CD for my 10 year-old child, whose pediatrician recommended a relaxation tape to help with "situational headaches." I was concerned, in reading the description of the CD, that it would somehow be inappropriate for a 10 year-old. I knew that I didn't want anything too fantastic (i.e. princessy) or babyish for my child, however, who is pretty bright and sophisticated (and doesn't need to be talked down to) so the products marketed for younger children didn't seem quite right, either. We've all been extremely satisfied with this purchase. The recording is perfectly appropriate for a child, a teenager, or an adult. My 7 year-old child enjoys it, too. One reason my kids really like it is because it's very nature-focused and they love hiking, camping, etc. The imagery really works for them. Some of the plants mentioned by the speaker must be British plants. I'm not sure they grow in the U.S. But that's not a big deal. The speaker does talk about autumn leaves and that kind of thing so if you live in a hot climate and your child has never been exposed to changing seasons, this might not be the best recording for them. I find that the recording is very helpful for general relaxation at any time of day. It also opened my kids up to the idea of guided imagery in general and now we use that before sports games, etc. The recording also puts my child to sleep quickly, which is really a tall order. We don't use it regularly for that purpose but when I've let my kid listen to the recording using headphones in bed, it knocks her out really quickly, really deeply. I can take the headphones off her head and she doesn't notice. Normally she is a lighter sleeper and has some difficulty falling asleep. ... Read more


7. By Kids, for Kids: A Collection of Original Monologues for Kids and Teenagers 6 to 18 Years Old
Paperback: 60 Pages (1994-01)
list price: US$7.95 -- used & new: US$8.00
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 0962722685
Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars
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Customer Reviews (2)

1-0 out of 5 stars By Kids for Kids
As a 5th grade teacher who uses monlogues every week in my classroom, I found this book to be inappropriate for young adults.The book uses profanity, belittles women, and depicts situations which are not appropriate for classrooms.

4-0 out of 5 stars Good at times
This book was pretty good to read if you're planning on doing monologues for auditions or little sketch shows. I enjoyed it because of its variety and how they kept the monologues interesting and not too drawn out! ... Read more


8. Inspire Quarterly #21 Kids and Teenagers
by Intra America Beauty
 Hardcover: Pages (1997)

Asin: B001BLQ24A
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9. Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers 1988
by Greg Muirhead
 Paperback: Pages (1987-10)
list price: US$26.95
Isbn: 0878665587
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10. Summer Opps for Kids & Teenagers 2005 (Peterson's Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers)
by Peterson's
Paperback: 1608 Pages (2004-11-24)
list price: US$29.95
Isbn: 0768915473
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars
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Editorial Review

Product Description
Safe, fun, and enriching summer programs are the backbone of Peterson’s Summer Opportunities for Kids & Teenagers. The annually updated guide provides complete information on more than 3,000 summer camps, arts programs, sports clinics, academic courses, travel tours, wilderness adventures, and volunteer opportunities throughout the U.S. and abroad. There are programs for every child’s interests and every family’s budget—from pre-college preparation courses held on private school or college campuses and traditional summer camps replete with lakes, to wilderness treks in the American West, community service projects in Costa Rica and bicycling, sailing, or train tours to hundreds of countries around the world. Peterson’s Summer Opportunities for Kids & Teenagers also includes detailed two-page descriptions written by camp personnel for nearly 300 summer camps and programs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

5-0 out of 5 stars Good for General Opportunities
If you're looking for a big, generalized guide for viewing an assortment of summer opportunities for your child, this is the best guide available. However, I found "Early College Programs" to be a far superior guide for reviewing summer opportunities for my college-bound teen. ... Read more


11. Yellowstone National Park for Kids, Preteens, and Teenagers: A Grande Guides Series Book for Children
by Stephanie F Del Grande
Paperback: 72 Pages (2008-02-11)
list price: US$10.95 -- used & new: US$7.34
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 0595479731
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
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Editorial Review

Product Description

Are you interested in Yellowstone or planning a trip to the park? If so, you’ll love Yellowstone National Park for Kids, Preteens, and Teenagers. Inside this detailed travel guide geared toward children, you’ll learn all you need to know about America’s first national park. For example, did you know that:

  • Yellowstone was discovered by John Colter in the early 1800s but for over fifty years, most Americans did not believe the reports of steaming hot springs and bubbling mudpots?


  • Yellowstone is one of the world’s biggest active volcanoes? The hot underground magma is what causes the geysers to erupt and when you visit Yellowstone you actually go inside the volcanic caldera.


  • Both black bears and grizzly bears can be found in Yellowstone and they are omnivorous which means they eat both plants and animals?


  • Old Faithful erupts about every ninety minutes to heights of over one hundred feet?


  • Early visitors to Yellowstone used to catch fish in Yellowstone Lake then dip them into Fishing Cone Geyser to cook them?
Yellowstone National Park for Kids, Preteens, and Teenagers includes easy-to-read descriptions, photographs, and diagrams of the park’s wildlife, history, and geology and it highlights some of the best hikes and attractions for children visiting Yellowstone. It also includes several Yellowstone themed word games and puzzles, an animal checklist, and a packing list geared toward children, preteens, and teenagers. Even parents and other adults will benefit from this entertaining and educational book.

Please visit us on the web at www.grandeguides.com.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

5-0 out of 5 stars Great resourse
We had several books about Yellowstone but this was the most helpful resource and easiest to useEverything was laid out well making it easy to find what we wanted and had great information to share.

2-0 out of 5 stars 13-year-old Didn't Like It
My 13-year-old grandson glanced through the book and tossed it back with a bored look.He commented, "It's just a tourist brochure."I have to agree the book isn't visually interesting with only a few illustrations and no interesting typography.The content is adequate but nothing more than you'd get from free tourist information.

5-0 out of 5 stars Yellowstone National Park
This was an informative book about Yellowstone explained in a way children could understand.We read this before going to Yellowstone and it helped us be informed about what we were seeing!

5-0 out of 5 stars Interesting to kids
I browsed the book and found some interesting background, appropriately pitched to kids and pre-teens.Perhaps even moreindicative of its quality is that our first grader picked it up and became engrossed.Afterwards, she engaged her brother in a game of exploring "geezers" (geysers).Provides good information in preparation for a trip to Yellowstone and for day trips while there.

5-0 out of 5 stars good for kids
A very useful guide to Yellowstone and surrounding area. Unique in that it is written for use by kids (maybe ages 8-12 mostly). However, it is complete enough to really be useful for adults in planning a trip with your kids to the park.

Sections on the types of geothermal features, the major animals - then an area by area guide to the major features.Many useful tips. Nice photos from the national park service.

Great to buy before you go to get your family psyched for the trip.

Includes a few word search games for use in the car.
... Read more


12. Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery
by Kathleen Cushman, The students of What Kids Can Do
Hardcover: 208 Pages (2010-06-01)
list price: US$24.95 -- used & new: US$12.50
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 0470646039
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars
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Editorial Review

Product Description
Teens talk to adults about how they develop motivation and mastery

Through the voices of students themselves, Fires in the Mind brings a game-changing question to teachers of adolescents: What does it take to get really good at something? Starting with what they already know and do well, teenagers from widely diverse backgrounds join a cutting-edge dialogue with adults about the development of mastery in and out of school. Their insights frame motivation, practice, and academic challenge in a new light that galvanizes more powerful learning for all. To put these students' ideas into practice, the book also includes practical tips for educators.

  • Breaks new ground by bringing youth voices to a timely topic-motivation and mastery
  • Includes worksheets, tips, and discussion guides that help put the book's ideas into practice
  • Author has 18 previous books on adolescent learning and has written for the New York Times Magazine, Educational Leadership, and American Educator

From the author of Fires in the Bathroom, this is the next-step book that pushes the conversation to next level, as teenagers tackle the pressing challenges of motivation and mastery.Amazon.com Review
Through the voices of students themselves, Fires in the Mind brings a game-changing question to teachers of adolescents: What does it take to get really good at something? Starting with what they already know and do well, teenagers from widely diverse backgrounds join a cutting-edge dialogue with adults about the development of mastery in and out of school. Their insights frame motivation, practice, and academic challenge in a new light that galvanizes more powerful learning for all. To put these students' ideas into practice, the book also includes practical tips for educators.

  • Breaks new ground by bringing youth voices to a timely topic-motivation and mastery
  • Includes worksheets, tips, and discussion guides that help put the book's ideas into practice
  • Author has 18 previous books on adolescent learning and has written for the New York Times Magazine, Educational Leadership, and American Educator

From the author of Fires in the Bathroom, this is the next-step book that pushes the conversation to next level, as teenagers tackle the pressing challenges of motivation and mastery.

Amazon Exclusive: Q&A with Author Kathleen Cushman

Why ask teenagers about what it takes to get really good at something?
Adolescents already know far more than we give them credit for! They’re learning all the time — from each other, from the media, from the activities that most absorb them, and from their different roles in the family and close-in social networks. We adults tend to think of ourselves as the teachers, but then we look for a kid to help set up our smart-phone! So thinking together about “how to get good” made sense to me — especially in schools. It changes that feeling of “us and them” that can polarize students and teachers. Instead, our Practice Project put us all on the same journey of learning from each other.

What did kids gain from thinking about their own learning in this way?
It turned a light on in their minds about what they were doing in school. Suddenly they had new and effective ways to give feedback to teachers about what helped them learn. Instead of taking a passive or resentful stance, like “this is boring” or “this is too hard,” they could critique actual practices that didn’t work — such as giving the same homework to all students regardless of what individual kids needed to work on. At the same time, kids also saw how certain classroom strategies (such as researching different perspectives, or collaborative learning) matched the process that real experts used. Kids told me they felt a growing sense of mutual respect for their teachers, especially if the teacher joined their inquiry into “getting good.”

What tips can you give parents and teachers to help motivate students?
It’s important to help kids stick with practice even when they get frustrated. Three key tips for adults to remember:

  1. Kids want to try things that give them an emotional boost. Maybe a challenge looks like fun because they can do it with other people they care about – their friends, or an older person that they admire. Or maybe the boost comes from the task itself: a puzzle to solve, a learning game. Either way, something in their mind lights up at the pleasure and satisfaction they anticipate ahead.
  2. Kids won’t do something if they expect to be humiliated. That means we need to set tasks at just the right challenge level—not too easy, not too hard. And it also means warm encouragement — honoring mistakes as a key part of learning, and recognizing every small step done well.
  3. Kids rise to excellence when they see it. It’s really important for young people to witness people doing things well in the real world. Take them to watch and ask questions of community experts in all kinds of fields, and arrange meaningful ways (like internships or job shadowing) that they can learn in the company of adults.
How do you find the students you work with?
I have access to a far-reaching network of students and teachers through What Kids Can Do, Inc., the nonprofit that sponsored the Practice Project with support from MetLife Foundation. I looked for very diverse groups of young people with a supportive adult who was willing to bring them together for our sustained conversations. All in all, I interviewed more than 160 kids, in 17 schools in nine cities or towns around the United States:

  • Chicago, Illinois, where I worked with eleventh graders at the Academy of Communications and Technology Charter School, students at Westside Alternative High School, and a ninth grade reading and writing class at Prosser Career Academy High School.
  • Long Beach, California, where I worked at Woodrow Wilson High School with 40 members of a leadership club for young male students of color.
  • Rural Maine, where students integrated our inquiry into their senior projects at Poland Regional High School.
  • New York City (my home town), where I worked with students at Young Women’s Leadership School of East Harlem, the Queens High School of Teaching, the Isaac Newton Middle School for Math and Science, the Clinton School for Artists and Writers, East Side Community School, and Citizen Schools.
  • Providence, Rhode Island, where I interviewed youth who played in a string quartet at Community MusicWorks, a neighborhood organization.
  • San Antonio, Texas, where students from the internship program at the International School of the Americas joined our project.
  • San Diego, Oakland, and Mill Valley, California, where I interviewed students from (respectively) High Tech High, Youth Radio, and the Conservatory Theatre Ensemble at Tamalpais High School.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

5-0 out of 5 stars The hottest (and coolest) Fire yet
As a teacher educator, I often struggle to find just the right books for my courses--aspirational but realistic, narrative and down-to-earth but organized and rigorous, practical without seeming like a cookbook.Fires in the Mind, even more than its predecessors, is exactly this kind of book, and I can't wait to use it in my course on methods in secondary education.

5-0 out of 5 stars Students tell us "what it takes"
In Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery, Kathleen Cushman reveals that kids have lots to tell us about motivation and mastery. She skillfully draws on the collective wisdom of 160 young people, weaving together their words and insights into a vivid exploration of "what it takes to get really good at something." It's impossible to choose just a few highlights from this book because it's filled with over 200 quotes from the students who participated in the Practice Project, each one contributing a valuable perspective on the journey towards expertise.

As one of the teachers who participated in the Practice Project, I was captivated by Kathleen's approach to this collaborative meaning-making process. She spent two intensive days and two follow-up days with 20 twelfth-graders and me at The International School of the Americas in San Antonio, Texas. She interviewed the students, had them interview each other, coached them in interviewing the adult experts they knew, and facilitated rich, thought-provoking discussions about the essential questions that inspired Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery.

Listening intently and gently prompting students to "tell me more," Kathleen drew them deeper and deeper into the examination of their own experiences, as well as their observations of adult experts and teachers. Through these conversations about the development of expertise, Kathleen guided the students to uncover rich insights into the process of learning and shed new light on what teachers can do to facilitate that process.

Kathleen's gift to us in Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery is her thoughtful analysis of what these 160 students' comments, taken together, tell us about motivation, practice, learning, and achievement.Throughout the book, she offers reflection questions, checklists, and activities for teachers and students to connect their own experiences to the ideas being discussed. This book brings student's voices into an important conversation about motivation and mastery, and invites educators to join the conversation by asking themselves and their students "what does it take?"

5-0 out of 5 stars Igniting fires in this teacher's mind!
As a high school teacher, I have grown to treasure those moments when students are "in the zone" - working hard to master new skills, enjoying the process of challenge and success.Reading Fires in the Mind, I saw kids' own explanations of those moments.The clarity and directness with which they explained how they achieve that state of flow - and what classroom conditions enable it - were enlightening and useful.The student collaborators gave lots of great ideas about how to replicate these sometimes-elusive moments!

This book got me excited to have some of these same conversations with my own students, and to re-work my curriculum with the concept of "deliberate practice" foremost in my mind!

5-0 out of 5 stars Thank you Kathleen
Thank you for the book Fires in the Mind- I went through it last night (not every word) but I love it- I love the way it links the understanding of learning with the actual teaching practice...the writing is so clear and accessible that teachers of every level will get something from it.

The new and experienced teachers I work with will really appreciate this as they struggle so with the issue of helping young people become learners (they may say "care about their work").The whole piece on homework is so valuable as a way into the staff struggle as to the meaning and usefulness of assigning homework, like when they went to school. I also like the tools where teachers can reflect on the processes themselves.

Thanks!

4-0 out of 5 stars How do you create mastery?
"Fires in the Mind" is a beautiful summary, both "big picture" and "zoomed-in-&-up-close" of what happens to create a master, an expert, in something. "Fires in the Mind" discusses the relationship between and importance of resiliency, habit formation, engagement and attention, practice, mentors along the way.Parents and teachers are given insight about their role in a child's success toward becoming good at something. Students will, I suspect, relate to the rich descriptions and anecdotes from the students from What Kids Can Do, and gain encouragement from them. For a child who wants to be really good at something but doesn't want to develop a habit of deliberate practice, this book may be eye opening, and it gives words to students who want to articulate how they can be better supported by parents and teachers in their lives.The information in this book is important for parents, teachers, and students, homeschoolers, school-building schoolers alike. ... Read more


13. Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers 1990 (Peterson's Summer Opportunities for Kids & Teenagers)
by Peterson's
 Paperback: Pages (1989-11)
list price: US$16.95
Isbn: 0878668411
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14. Teens & cancer: cancer strikes more than 12,000 kids and teenagers a year. Discover how young people afflicted with this deadly disease are coping and, ... An article from: Scholastic Choices
by Sean McCollum
 Digital: 7 Pages (2003-02-01)
list price: US$5.95 -- used & new: US$5.95
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: B0008G10BO
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Editorial Review

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Scholastic Choices, published by Scholastic, Inc. on February 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1941 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Teens & cancer: cancer strikes more than 12,000 kids and teenagers a year. Discover how young people afflicted with this deadly disease are coping and, in many cases, thriving. (Health).
Author: Sean McCollum
Publication: Scholastic Choices (Magazine/Journal)
Date: February 1, 2003
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Volume: 18Issue: 5Page: 6(6)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more


15. Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers 1999 (16th Edition)
by Peterson's Guides
Paperback: 1248 Pages (1998-11)
list price: US$29.95
Isbn: 1560799978
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars
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Customer Reviews (1)

5-0 out of 5 stars Provides ample information on wide diversity of choices.
A sure-fire way to get your teen excited about summer as an opportunity totry something new.This guide stretches your teen to think beyond theneighborhood and look at programs (general and specialized) all over the USand abroad.The book is well-organized georgraphically and by interest area(e.g., residential computer camps; sailing/scuba programs;dance/theater/music/arts camps; instructional golf/tennis or othersport-specific camps - like skateboarding, bike adventure trips, etc.; orjust a list of general multi-activitiy camps). Tip: jump-start your teen'ssummer by ordering a copy as soon as it's off the press - some of thesewonderful programs featured can fill up early! ... Read more


16. Halloween Party Ideas for Kids and Teenagers
by Gerald Murphy
Kindle Edition: Pages (2010-10-23)
list price: US$2.99
Asin: B0048WPBXC
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Product Description
Halloween party ideas, including autopsy room, potions cellar, glow in the dark, Dracula's tomb, giant spiders, pumpkin carving contest, spooky stories, truth or dare, body parts, and other great suggestions for fun and games! ... Read more


17. Peterson's Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers 1997 (14th ed)
by Peterson's Guides
 Paperback: 1200 Pages (1996-10)
list price: US$26.95
Isbn: 1560795875
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Editorial Review

Product Description
More than five million kids and teens attend summer programs--and with Peterson's Summer Opportunities for Kids and Teenagers 1997 parents can find just the right enrichment program that will make an unforgettable summer. Private schools, colleges, camps, religious organizations, and travel and sports groups are explored. ... Read more


18. Peterson's Summer Programs for Kids & Teenagers [PETG SUMMER PROGRAMS FOR KI-09]
Hardcover: Pages (2008-12-31)
-- used & new: US$42.95
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: B0029PQB5W
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19. Summer Camps in Canada: A Complete Guide to the Best Summer Camps for Kids and Teenagers
by Ann, Ph.D. West
 Paperback: 310 Pages (1995-01)
list price: US$15.95 -- used & new: US$42.83
(price subject to change: see help)
Asin: 1896095054
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20. Monthly Money: Allowance & Responsibility System for Kids & Teenagers
by Craig Rhyne
 Hardcover: 44 Pages (1991-11)
list price: US$39.95
Isbn: 1882189000
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