Under The Microscope

STUDIES IN THE MATERIAL WORLD, by David Layzell and Alison Diprose; Longman Paul, 1995; $19.95

Reviewed by Rosalie Johnson

This is a colourful book aimed at the Level 5 "Making Sense of the Material World" strand of the New Zealand Science Curriculum. Each of the 17 sections provides relevant, up-to-date material for the teacher and student, as well as a large variety of activities.

Each section starts with a "what you will know, understand or do by the end of the unit". This gives guidance to the teacher for planning purposes but also means that students can see where the unit leads them. The exercises throughout can be done individually or in groups and are easy to understand. Many strategies are used in the activities.

Each section contains an interesting reading, including history, profiles of scientists and examples that pupils will recognise like making sherbet, shampoos, glue and candles. Also, Maori and Pacific Island examples are used making the units relevant to all students.

The experiments include a mix of recipes and investigations that cover planning and carrying out the task. All students are catered for with different learning styles used.

The text is also exceptional in its focus for students with so many useful examples taken from New Zealand industry, and this will prove a handy addition to the text collections of all New Zealand secondary school teachers. A teachers' guide is also available which contains additional resources and photocopy masters of the sentence building activities for completion at home. Guidelines for assessment of some practicals are also included.

Rosalie Johnson is HoD Science at Avonside Girls' High School.