Teach Secondary 13.5

Off the Shelves Brilliant titles for you and your students to explore Adventures inMaps (DebbieHall,Bodleian,£25) This beautifully illustrated volume has relevance to several different curriculum areas, containing as it does accounts of intrepid historical journeys that range from 16th century seafaring voyages toArctic crossings and even the surveys undertaken to facilitate themoon landings.There’s certainly some richmaterial here formaths, geography, English, science and history practitioners alike. Rather than being merely descriptive, the text goes into considerable detail regarding the challenges involved in drawing upmaps and how closely those processes are tied to developments in new forms of travel.The book’s ambitious scopemakes for a delightful read, and a fascinating journey through the history ofmodernmarvels like the national rail network, detailed road maps and robust air and sea travel. Consider it highly recommended. ReviewedbyTerry Freedman (see bit.ly/Eclecticismformoredetails ) Listen–OnMusic,SoundandUs (Michel Faber,Canongate,£20) Part memoir, part love letter tomusic, Listen covers a wide range of areas.My initial impressions of the bookwere that it was a somewhat random jumble of personal observations with little rhyme or reason, but it soon became apparent just how encyclopaedic Faber’s knowledge of themusic industry really is. Beyond his frequent mentions of artists and songs lying far outside themainstream, he also examines the effects ofmusic on physiology and health, as well as the industry’s less appealing sides – particularly its historical treatment of women. It might not directly address obvious aspects of the music curriculum, but it can certainly give teachers access to a rich seamof facts and anecdotes with which to embellish their lessons. Faber is nothing if not opinionated, but he does a good job of justifying his arguments.An interesting, and strangely compelling read. ReviewedbyTerry Freedman TheCollaborationBook– 41 Ideas forWorkingBetter (Mikael KrogerusandRomanTschäppeler, Profile,£10.99) Most people would agree that collaboration is a good thing – so how can we collaboratemore effectively in school settings? This slimvolumemanages to pack in a huge amount of ideas and information, organised in threemain sections – ‘Solving problems’, ‘Achieving your goals’ and ‘Creating trust’. I especially liked its discussion of the ‘two pizza rule’, which states that any teamshould be small enough to be viably fed by two pizzas; any larger, and the team’s decision-making power will almost certainly be compromised.The book’s chief appeal stems fromhow it presents each core concept or idea in just a few pages, sometimes with helpfully simplified illustrations,when it could easily have taken the formof a huge academic tome. Amust for every team leader. ReviewedbyTerry Freedman 48 teachwire.net/secondary