In this article, the author discusses binary oppositions and the imperative of achieving a middle way with his sophomore "Critical Reading, Thinking, Writing" students in connection with chapters 3 and 5--"Entering Into the Serpent" and "How to Tame a Wild Tongue"--in Gloria Anzaldúa's "Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza", which advocates creating a new third thing that is greater than the sum of its parts. He and his students use the text as a laboratory to illustrate the play of binaries and their resolution into balanced dualities. This essay maps his pedagogical approach and provides an aid to instructors. After describing his "Critical Reading, Thinking, Writing" course and showing how Anzaldúa fits into it, he discusses how related thinkers helpfully illuminate her project, especially with regard to binaries and common ground. The essay then employs collapsing the binary to demystify some of the text's difficult background material. In addition to showing how binaries may transform into a new third thing, this section provides discussion questions for students and possible answers for instructors, including an interpretation of the Juan Diego story as a little allegory of balanced opposites. The conclusion examines common ground as a recurring theme in Anzaldúa's writings, and a brief Appendix sketches additional critical-thinking approaches to the two chapters.