Seven exciting new plays for young people written specifically in response to a world in the midst of a pandemic, accompanied by a handbook from Wonder Fools with guidance for staging the plays, and other creative responses, either online or live in the space. Commissioned as part of Wonder Fools' national participatory project Positive Stories for Negative Times: Season 2, these plays offer a variety of stories, styles and forms for ages between 6 and 25. Spyrates 2 (Spies vs Pirates): Journey to the Forbidden Island by Robbie Gordon & Jack Nuse Featuring spies, pirates, robots, talking animals and everything in between, 'Spyrates' is an interactive, playful and imaginative adventure story. Ages 6+ At First I Was Afraid... (I Was Petrified!) by Douglas Maxwell A feel-good comedy drama about a girl who keeps a diary of all her anxieties; but as she moves from Primary School to Secondary, from normal life to Lockdown, all of her worries appear to come true. Ages 11 + The Raven by Hannah Lavery A play full of adventure and an exploration of what shapes and what divides us, exploring issues of blended families, bullying, overeating, depression and isolation. Ages 11 + Thanks For Nothing by The PappyShow This not a play, but a process. It explores what it means to be thankful in this world we live in today. It's a mix of games, challenges and exercises for you to tell your own stories, in your own way. Ages 11 + Revolting by Bryony Kimmings A series of tasks and actions that make a narrative to be performed with props. We are agents of the revolution. How do we revolt? How do we not get into trouble? Where do we get power, and then how do we use it for good? Ages 13 + The Skirt by Ellen Bannerman An absurdist feminist fable for the next generation of feminists. Ages 16+ Write To Rave: Step Pon by Debris Stevenson A play about the political power of a rave. Who has the right to rave, to dance and move freely? What is it to feel truly free in your own skin? It tells the story a queer group of humans trying their best to rave whilst the world tries it's best to stop them. Ages 18 + The accompanying handbook includes an exploration of Wonder Fools' theatre-making process, step-by-step guidance in how to produce the plays either online or live in the space, and bespoke exercises and instructions in how to approach directing each play.

Six exciting new plays by some of the best artists working in the UK today written with and for young people. Created as part of Wonder Fools' international participatory project Positive Stories for Negative Times which has reached over 8000 young people from 16 different countries including UK, South Africa, India, USA, Canada, Italy and Sweden. Co-commissioned by Wonder Fools and the Traverse Theatre these six plays offer a variety of stories, styles and forms for ages 10 to 25. These original and innovative plays are: The Day the Stampers United by Sara Shaarawi Ages 12+ Ms Campbell's Class Fifth Period by Leyla Josephine Ages 14+ And The Name for That Is?... by Robert Softley Gale Ages 16+ Are You A Robot? by Tim Crouch Ages 10+ Revolting by Bryony Kimmings Ages 13+ Thanks for Nothing by The PappyShow with Lewis Hetherington Ages 11+ Positive Stories For Negative Times was initially created in response to the lack of physical spaces for young people to participate in creative activities due to the pandemic, and instead allowing them to come together and be inspired through making new work. The project has now grown into a programme of work that includes hundreds of participating groups across the world, a youth board who dramaturg all the commissioned plays from inception to final draft, a continuing professional development programme for group leaders and four regional Scottish youth theatre festivals taking place in summer 2023. Supported by Creative Scotland, the Gannochy Trust, Hugh Fraser Foundation, William Syson Foundation, Trades House of Glasgow Commonweal Fund and Gordon Fraser Foundation. www.positivestories.scot

Five exciting new plays for young people written specifically in response to a world in the midst of a pandemic, accompanied by a handbook from Wonder Fools theatre company with guidance for staging the plays either online or live in the space. Commissioned as part of Wonder Fools' national participatory project Positive Stories for Negative Times, these five plays offer a variety of stories, styles and forms for ages 8-25. These original and innovative plays are: Is This A Fairytale? by Bea Websater A new play that rips apart the traditional fairy tale canon and turns it on its head in a surprising, inventive and unconventional way. Ages 8+ Hold Out Your Hand by Chris Thorpe A dynamic text asking questions about place, where we are now and the moment we are living through. Ages 13+ The Pack by Stef Smith A playful and poetic exploration about getting lost in the loneliness of your living room and trying to find your way home. Ages 13+ Ozymandias by Robbie Gordon and Jack Nurse A contemporary story inspired by Percy Shelley's 19th century poem of the same name, exploring power, oppression and racism through the eyes of young people. Ages 16+ Bad Bored Women of the Rooms by Sabrina Mahfouz A storytelling adventure through the centuries of women and girls who have spent a lot of time stuck in a room. Ages 18+ The accompanying handbook includes step-by-step guidance on how to produce the plays either online or live in the space, and bespoke exercises and instructions on how to approach directing each play.

Your child's mindset matters, more than they realize. Help them understand the power of a growth mindset. Told in an engaging way that brings clarity to the subject of mindset, 'Your Thoughts Matter' gives concrete examples of what different mindsets sound like in our heads. 'This is too hard, I'll never learn it.' vs 'It's meant to be hard, we grow by challenging ourselves.' What a difference! Romy has two voices in her head; one that causes her to doubt herself, and one that encourages her to keep trying. At times it's confusing and hard to know which voice to listen to. With the help of her mother, she is able to understand that she has a choice, and that the choice she makes matters a great deal to her happiness. Which voice will Romy listen to? Which voice does your child listen to? GET IT NOW and show your child that there is no 'can't', there is only 'can't YET'!

The media have become principal actors on the American political scene. Politicians and their press secretaries release news items with one eye on the event and the other on the millions of voters who depend on the White House press corps to keep them informed about the workings of their government. Portraying the President explores the inner workings of the relationship between the White House and the press. Rather than emphasize the well-publicized sparring between inquisitive reporters and evasive administrative spokesmen intent on enhancing the President's public image, the authors stress the vast amount of cooperation between journalists and their sources. They point out the similarities of the White House-media relationship in recent administrations and suggest what shape it is likely to take in the future. The authors also address the key issues of information management and manipulation by both the administration and the press. Grossman and Kumar demonstrate that, whether a lower level staff member leaks a news item to elevate his own status or an official spokesman mentions a new policy proposal in order to gather support, the release of information to the White House press corps involves complicated strategies among a number of administrative personnel. Washington reporters, aware of some of these tactics, compensate by cultivating personal sources and trading information with officials. Nevertheless, the routine nature of White House reporting and the competitiveness of modern news organizations often trap the reporter into what has been called "pack journalism." Interviews with current and former White House reporters, including Bob Schieffer, Tom Brokaw, James Naughton, James Reston, and John Osborne, give Portraying the President an authentic, firsthand sound and feel. Comments from Ron Nessen, Gerald Rafshoon, Jody Powell, and other presidential spokesmen and advisors, give insight into White House operations during the Nixon, Ford, and Carter administrations. Portraying the President provides information vital to an appreciation of the modern American political system. Its thought-provoking conclusions will be of interest political scientists, media specialists, and anyone interested in current affairs.

Winner of the 2003 Trillium Book Award "Stories are wondrous things," award-winning author and scholar Thomas King declares in his 2003 CBC Massey Lectures. "And they are dangerous." Beginning with a traditional Native oral story, King weaves his way through literature and history, religion and politics, popular culture and social protest, gracefully elucidating North America's relationship with its Native peoples. Native culture has deep ties to storytelling, and yet no other North American culture has been the subject of more erroneous stories. The Indian of fact, as King says, bears little resemblance to the literary Indian, the dying Indian, the construct so powerfully and often destructively projected by White North America. With keen perception and wit, King illustrates that stories are the key to, and only hope for, human understanding. He compels us to listen well.

Foreword by Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson From a top mental conditioning coach—"the world’s best brain trainer” (Sports Illustrated)—who has transformed the lives and careers of elite athletes, business leaders, and military personnel, battle-tested strategies that will give you tools to manage and overcome negativity and achieve any goal. He knows how to win. More, he knows the many ways-subtle, brutal, often self-inflicted-we lose. As the most trusted mental coach in the world of sports, Trevor Moawad has worked with many of the most dominant athletes and the savviest coaches. From Nick Saban and Kirby Smart to Russell Wilson, they all look to Moawad for help finding or keeping or regaining their competitive edge. (As do countless business leaders and members of special forces.) Now, at last, Moawad shares his unique philosophy with the general public. He lays out lessons he's derived from his greatest career successes as well as personal setbacks, the game-changing wisdom he's earned as the go-to whisperer for elite performers on fields of play and among men and women headed to the battlefield. Moawad's motivational approach is elegant but refreshingly simple: He replaces hardwired negativity, the kind of defeatist mindset that's nearly everybody's default, with what he calls "neutral thinking." His own special innovation, it's a nonjudgmental, nonreactive way of coolly assessing problems and analyzing crises, a mode of attack that offers luminous clarity and supreme calm in the critical moments before taking decisive action. Not only can neutral thinking raise your performance level-it can transform your overall life. And it all starts, Moawad says, with letting go. Past failures, past losses-let them go. "The past isn't predictive. If you can absorb and embrace that belief, everything changes. You'll instantly feel more calm. And the athlete-or employee or parent or spouse-who's more calm is also more aware, and more times than not ... will win."