This guide, designed for use in a ninth grade BRIDGE class, is a comprehensive source of learning activities intended to help motivate youth to stay in school and acquire the skills required to succeed both in school and at work. BRIDGE, a program conceived by Public/Private Ventures in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania), is for high-risk students in Portland (Oregon) who face multiple barriers to academic success and employment. The course comprises the following units: (1) Self-Esteem; (2) Self-Responsibility; (3) Decision-Making; (4) Managing Your Time Without Losing It; (5) Conflict Resolution; (6) Communication; (7) Peer Relationships; (8) Career Awareness; (9) Leadership; (10) Career Goals and Expectations; (11) Multi-Cultural/Multi-Ethnic Awareness; (12) "Me, Myself, and I (a self-examination through autobiography); (13) Traditional and Nontraditional Roles; (14) Substance Abuse; (15) Self-Preservation; (16) Community Resources; (17) Planning for the Summer; and (18) Using Leisure Time. Each unit contains the following components: (1) Overview; (2) Thoughts to Ponder (a collection of related quotations and sayings); (3) Vocabulary; (4) Activities; (5) Journals (integrating the unit with a student journal); and (6) Closure (suggested wrap-up activities). The appendices include the following: (1) a chart illustrating how basic skills can be integrated with unit activities over a two-week period; (2) eight assessment, student record, and parent contact forms; (3) three forms to accompany sustained silent reading activities; and (4) a bibliography comprised of 47 resources for students, 28 resources for teachers, 13 films, and three filmstrips. (FMW)