Balance in Life Pounds 2.99. 0582 24708 X Healthy Lifestyles Pounds 3. 50. 0582 24709 8 Elements, Mixtures and Compounds Pounds 2.99 0582 24728 4. Chemical Reactions Pounds 3.50 0582 24726 8. Communication Pounds 2.99 0582 24707 1. Energy at Work Pounds 2.99 0582 24716 0. Teacher’s Guide 2 Pounds 9.99 0582 24720 9A. Copymasters 2 Pounds 25+ VAT 0582 24787 XA Longman Age range 14 - 16

Christine Harrison reviews a series showing principles in practice Science at Work was one of the first publications in the 1980s to set science in an everyday context and provide a stimulating and useful science course at GCSE level. Now this provision has been extended to key stage 3, and while its content and scope are somewhat hampered by the restrictions of the national curriculum, the flavour of the original course is still evident.

This series is modular, so it provides either a comprehensive and interesting key stage 3 course or a set of resources for specific science topics.

As with the Year 7 materials published earlier this year, the Year 8 materials are separated into six student booklets, Balance of Life, Healthy Lifestyles, Elements, Mixtures and Compounds, Changing Materials, Communications, and Energy at Work, supported by a Teacher’s Guide and photocopiable worksheets. The student booklets are attractive and provide a balance of information and practicals.

Appropriately-aged children are included in the drawings and photographs. Encouraging instructions and checklist summaries on the inside covers of the student booklets provide the beginnings of a self-assessment scheme.

Single-page spreads present different aspects of each topic. There are inevitable places where the scientific terminology adds to the complexity of the language, but this is no worse than many science textbooks for this age group.

The page layout varies through the booklet and while this adds interest, I fear that some students will have difficulty in tracking the text. This is partly overcome by photographs and drawings, linked to the text by small green arrowheads.

The Teacher’s Guide begins promisingly with advice on investigative work and differentiation. I was impressed by the section on differentiation by teacher intervention, which shows how the materials can be used in a differentiated manner in the classroom, rather than stopping at the planning or material provision stage.

The rest of the Teacher’s Guide is disappointing. The pages are surrendered to brief answers to the questions in the student booklets, mark schemes for tests and the ubiquitous national curriculum coverage maps. While this may prove useful to newly qualified teachers and PGCE students teaching outside their specialist subject area when marking, it excludes important information on children’s understanding about the topics and relevant background information.

Science at Work could prove rather expensive, at over Pounds 560 for a class of 30, and a potential cost of three times this for the whole key stage scheme. However, adopting specific modules may be a way forward for many science departments.