A vast collection of fantasy and humanistic poems and short stories.

A collection of fantasy and human related short stories and poems.

A vast collection of fantasy and humanistic short stories and poems.

A vast collection of humanistic and fantasy related poems and short stories. Contains over 130 short stories and poems.

"The Benson brothers have put together not only a fine book of poems well worth keeping close but also a strong testament of faith in those subtleties of blood that can elevate the ordinary into song." -Gary Gildner, winner of the Iowa Poetry Prize, Pushcart Prize, etc.; author of two novels, a collection of short stories, two memoirs, and nine books of poetry, including Cleaning a Rainbow, his most recent. "This is what poetry was meant to be, neither overly-sentimental nor veiled in obscure imagery. The poems read like music you have discovered as you search across the radio dial. Once found you stay tuned, turning the pages for more. This is adult poetry with risky passion, psychological pain, sensual thirst and the ache of longing. There are no forced inventions or over-clever literary devices. In fact, you are rarely aware of the writer, only the emotional landscape that unfolds with each line. The writing has a quality found in Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past - an old picket fence, the ruts in a lane. The sun doesn't merely shine on a meadow, but rather is "This July-fireball afternoon in a pasture . . ." When an alcoholic, frail father irritatedly boots an empty paint can towards his sons it becomes the tumbling, end-over-end kick-off of an imagined football game, the boys waiting underneath it to return the shiny offering. I find the value of any poem is increased or diminished in the sharing. The sharing of these poems, I can attest, stokes the delight and interest of another. "SCHOOLED LIVES: Poems by Two Brothers is a gift Barry and Steve Benson have placed in our hands." -John Gaps III, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, author of God Left Us Alone Here: A Book of War (poems and combat photographs). "Who says a book of poems need be the domain of a singular poet and aesthetic? With Schooled Lives by accomplished poets and brothers Steve and Barry Benson, you get double the perspectives, imagery and deft language about life in the unruly, rural Midwest and other climes. Here too, are lively pairings of poems that dialogue with each other. For instance, Steve's "Candy for the Fat Lady" begins, "She bulged in the bed of a parked pickup truck / where it cost two quarters to gawk at her thousand pounds..." counters Barry's "Wild Man of Borneo" - ." . .not far from fields / where we boys baled hay in country dust and sun and sweat, / patrons stare at the geek in rags and a promise..." Though both poets are natural storytellers, Steve -- a visual artist - leans toward a leaner, impressionistic verse compared to Barry's love of narrative. This weaving together of writers is a welcomed addition to the genre. As Steve claims, "The Best Writers are spiders; they connect everything / with fine homespun lines /. . . (and) live in the trembling / nets of their own designs." -Barbara Lau, author of The Long Surprise (winner of the X. J. Kennedy Poetry Prize) & the award-winning drama, Raising Medusa. No relation to me, but brothers in the guts of deep, dark, old, weird America, the viscera of heartland their shared family legends, firsthand feedback stirring one another's grief and energy along, resilient as cubs, memories crystals hard and sharp, these two linked different men are wrenchingly attentive to a restless, emphatic, and receptive, sensuous life in contact with and imagining the world they've known. Their poems' honest power braces against labor's compromises and intuition's leaps, tradition and discovery, to bring us into real places some of us have never been and others may not have left. -Maine language poet (eight books published) and practicing psychologist(not related to Barry or Steve Benson).

The Secondary Lenses on Learning professional development materials were designed to support the efforts of site-based mathematics improvement teams of mathematics leaders to advance middle and high school students' mathematics achievement. Participants in the Secondary Lenses on Learning program will expand their understanding of the mathematical knowledge and dispositions that students need to be mathematically literate in today's world and the learning opportunities that need to be created to make significant mathematics accessible to all students. The Secondary Lenses on Learning Participant Book features detailed notes for each of the six sessions, corresponding readings, handouts, and assignments. Over the course of the Secondary Lenses on Learning sessions, participants will: - Explore concepts in middle and high school algebra - Discuss readings that illuminate the issues in each session - Reflect on filmed material and written cases - Examine various leadership tasks and responsibilities that contribute to an effective mathematics program Multiple copies of the participant books are available separately to accommodate your group's specific needs. For the facilitator, the Secondary Lenses on Learning comprehensive package includes one participant book, one facilitator's guide, and an accompanying DVD with segments that correlate to individual sessions.

Ways to Think About Mathematics will fill the gap between what the math teachers learned in college and what they are required to teach in today's classrooms. The book will be divided into five modules that focus on algebraic, geometric, and statistical ideas. The book uses immersion in content to help secondary mathematics teachers improve their knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts. Ways to Think About Mathematics gives teachers the opportunity to learn and understand the same math concepts and math problems that they will be teaching. This book can be used by individual teacher; whether preservice, novice teachers, or experienced teachers. This book can also be used in staff development workshops or faculty teams. It is also appropriate for teacher education courses in secondary mathematics.

Ways to Think About Mathematics will fill the gap between what the math teachers learned in college and what they are required to teach in today's classrooms. The book will be divided into five modules that focus on algebraic, geometric, and statistical ideas. The book uses immersion in content to help secondary mathematics teachers improve their knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts. Ways to Think About Mathematics gives teachers the opportunity to learn and understand the same math concepts and math problems that they will be teaching. This book can be used by individual teacher; whether preservice, novice teachers, or experienced teachers. This book can also be used in staff development workshops or faculty teams. It is also appropriate for teacher education courses in secondary mathematics.