When Xiomara Batista, who pours all her frustrations and passion into poetry, is invited to join the school slam poetry club, she struggles with her mother's expectations and her need to be heard. Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours her frustration...

Complete instructions for learning American Sign Language--the fourth most used language in the United States--are provided, with tips on the the alphabet, the hand signals, and what to do in cases of miscommunication. Line drawings.

What kind of first impression do you make? A first impression is the most important impression you'll ever make and you get only one chance to make it. Business deals can be made or broken, first dates become second dates or not, friendships are created or fail to form; everything hinges on that all-important initial encounter. And yet most of us don't know how we're really seen by others. Many of us don't know how to make a good impression. This...

Not your typical how-to manual for new teachers, this jargon-free guide offers a wide variety of tools and tactics for getting through every school day with grace and sanity. Covered in glue, glitter, orange juice -- or worse? Make a quick change into the spare set of clothes you keep on hand for just this purpose. Butterflies in your stomach before your first-ever Meet the Teacher Night? Keep your cool by writing the agenda on your board --...

What does it mean when a fictional hero takes a journey? Shares a meal? Get drenched in a sudden rain shower? Often, there is much more going on in a novel or poem than is readily visible on the surface -- a symbol, maybe, that remains elusive, or an unexpected twist on a character - and there's that sneaking suspicion that the deeper meaning of a literary text keeps escaping you. In this practical and amusing guide to literature, Thomas C. Foster...

Describes "almost psychopaths," people who display many of the qualities of psychopaths, but with less intensity and consistency, pointing out how to recognize these individuals, how to make sense of interactions with them, how to deal with them in the present, and how to make informed decisions about future dealings with them.

You're no idiot, of course. You can hold your own in water cooler conversation, are the life of the party at get togethers, and have no problen firing a quick comeback at your smart-alecky friends. But when it comes to standing onstage in front of a group of people, you feel like you're the one in your underwear--not the audience. Don't hide behind the lectern just yet! The Complet Idiot's Guide to Public Speaking, Second Edition helps you feel confident...