301 Top Tips for Design Engineers

This book is aimed at new mechanical design engineers – to improve your employability and to help you ‘hit the ground running’.

It also contains useful information and checklists for more experienced designers.

It’s a quick read, listing real-world, non-academic, practical experiences which you won’t find in an engineer’s technical reference book.

It includes design and drafting guides, good advice for everyday design and general office life, advice on job interviews, how to handle meetings, insights into other departments, looking after yourself in a work environment and more.

A Broad View of Educational Perspectives

A Broad View of Educational Perspectives is for teachers and school leaders working in English as a Second Language. It is a comprehensive textbook written by Nicola Walsh, an experienced educator from Yorkshire, England. With a hands-on approach to education and a focus on what truly makes a difference in the lives of children and their families, this book is designed for teachers and school leaders working in English as a Second Language. It covers a wide range of topics, from language acquisition to classroom management, and assessment strategies to cultural considerations. The book is organized in chapters that are easy to read and understand, making it an ideal resource for educators at all levels. It offers a great way to explore and gain an understanding of the latest thinking in the field of English as a Second Language education, by choosing a topic and diving in. It is written in a simple and engaging style, with practical examples and case studies, making it an essential guide for any teacher or school leader working in this field. 

An Idiot's Love of Idioms

Ever wondered where the sayings we commonly use originate from?

Sometimes the things we say, if we really think about it, make absolutely no logical sense.

Why on earth has a cat got my tongue? Why does a wall have ears? And why the heck are my ears burning? Why would I possibly want to break a leg?

If you think you know the answers, you might be close but have no cigar and if you don’t want to wake up on the wrong side of the bed or even worse, wait until you kick the bucket then you may want to step up to the plate and read on.

Now I certainly don’t want to read the Riot Act on you and I think by hook or by crook if you read this book you’ll be happy as Larry and as pleased as Punch.

I don’t want to be a clever clogs but by and large I think you’ll have a field day with what you’ll discover, if you catch my drift?

Basic Italian for English Speakers

The aim of the book is to teach basic Italian in fifteen lessons. Readers will learn the language by building sentences and phrases as they proceed through the lessons. Italian grammar is quite complicated so grammar rules have been simplified where possible and are used in exercises, comprehension and even games so that the reader can practice immediately and in a fun way.

Explanations begin in English, but as the book progresses, the English language is gradually phased out and Italian is used primarily to explain and elaborate.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive Italian grammar book. Its objective is to present basic Italian in an easily understandable way for English-speaking people who may want to holiday, spend longer periods, or even decide to set up home in this truly beautiful country.

Child Centered Education

Children are the harbingers of the propositions advanced in Child Centered Education with a primordial-connection to the world, with an urge to belong, explore and experiment. Primed to learn, from their first moments, the ensuing adventures could be what will set your child on the road to discovery, happiness and personal well-being. Whether grappling with the mysteries of Language or Mathematics; transfixed at the awesomeness of life; singing to his heart’s content; or immersed in nature, every opportunity must be wholeheartedly embraced. Copper-fastened by a discipline, redolent of expectation, challenge and surprise, teaching, is as variegated, as the imagination is creative. Acquiring those fundamental skills of engagement, in the process, may be what will ultimately enable them to navigate their way between the cognitively demanding, the spiritually uplifting and the social, seamlessly and effortlessly.

How to Lead a School

Targeted primarily at those running a school, or contemplating doing so, this book talks frankly about the pleasures and pitfalls of the job, common to all schools across the world. Each chapter considers in detail the different constituencies a Principal or Head will encounter.

The book endorses good practice, highlights some tricks of the trade, asks questions to provoke thinking, and includes imaginary case studies.

Covid-19 may have disrupted conventional ways of education but has not significantly re-defined school leadership. Rather, it has put even greater pressure on school leaders to meet the demands of their existing constituencies. So this is a handy ‘go-to’ guide, written from experience of over 20 years in senior leadership, as a school inspector and as a member of several school boards.

It’s not another manual on leadership theory because it concentrates on immediate practical responses to the landscape a school leader will face, including a final chapter on personal well-being and how to survive the unexpected.

It's All An Act

From trainee teachers to veteran, battle-hardened staff, the recurring nightmare is of a class of teenagers who simply will not do as they are told. The stomach-clenching, hand-trembling, knee-jittering question we ask ourselves at the start of each new year is, ‘What if the pupils walk all over me?’ No matter how confident we are in our own abilities, regardless of our position in the school, irrespective of the reputation we have built for ourselves, if we do not ask ourselves that question, then sooner or later we are in for a nasty shock. When it comes to classroom management, we are all in the same boat. We all experience classroom management challenges.

It’s All An Act offers a range of practical, no-nonsense, pragmatic strategies and techniques to try out, practise, adapt or abandon. It works on the premise that, to a great extent, classroom management is something we can do with pupils rather than to them. In response to the cry of, ‘What’s the point? That would never work!’ the reply is, ‘Give it a go. What have you got to lose?’ For colleagues under the cosh of lesson preparation, marking, administration, meetings and deadlines, it’s an easy read. What have you got to lose?

Leak Testing Made Easy

Leak testing has become a major aspect of many processes in a wide range of industries, from castings to crisp packets. But it seems it is often shrouded in “secret formulas” and specialist knowledge, known only to the leak test manufacturers.

Have you ever asked:

· What is my leak specification?

· Can I set up my air pressure tester myself?

· How do I check/calibrate my leak test machine?

· Would a helium test be better?

· Why is my leak test failing good parts?

· What are the problems I need to be aware of?

· Who can I ask for honest help and advice?

Many of you will already know the wealth of knowledge the author brings to this subject, and how he makes even the complicated easy to understand. Now retired from industry, Barry wanted to share his knowledge with anyone who wants to be an expert in this field or simply has an interest and wants to know more.

With this easy-to-follow guide, you can call on all of Barry’s vast experience in all aspects of leak testing, including air under water, pressure decay, flow measurement, helium leak testing, gas sniffers and many more.

The book guides you through all you need to know, from the basic mathematics, through developing your leak specifications, selection and setting up your leak test, right through to fault diagnosis and effective maintenance.

Leak Testing Made Easy does exactly what it says, taking the mystery of the subject, and making it simple and practical to understand, with many pictorial examples, along with lots of practical analogies to common-day things that you already know about.

Packed with look-up tables and charts, this book is a must for any specifiers and users of leaks and leak testing equipment, or simply for those who would like to know more.

Monologues and Duologues for Young Actors

This collection of scenes offers drama teachers a wide range of topics to explore through characterisation of the moment. There are scenes based on the historical past, these could be linked to cross-curricular activities. Those set in the present seek to draw young actors into a setting with which they can identify and emotionally explore. The author believes that young actors often wish to explore comedy. With this in mind, many of the scenes reflect comedic values. Some of these fun situations hold deeper resonances which the drama teacher would be able to explore with the actor. Each scene contains many different levels for the actor to identify with and emotionally develop. As the words are brought to life, the actor should imagine that they relate to a given set of circumstances; each scene is directly linked to the human situation. A young actor's motto should be: "I will live the words I learn."

Mundane Insurance

Manufacturing industries are a common knowledge as are the likes of the motor car, television, foodstuffs and electrical goods that exist around us every day and are forcefully advertised. Banking too but it is only true to a lesser degree regarding insurance because if canvasing the average person in the street about insurance they would think only about their life insurance, health insurance, motor cover, house and contents, pet plan insurance and so on. Put like that, it is all very wearisome and therefore hardly a subject worth writing about, or is it? That was certainly the author’s impression of insurance even up to the point of moving into the financial sector from manufacturing industry.

Pursuing the subject a step further, hazarding a guess, if those very same people were quizzed regarding the types of people they imagined are employed in insurance they would probably describe their insurance broker or simply a voice at an insurance call centre. This account therefore will, in all probability, dispel the notion that all insurance dealings are routine and in the main, predictable as did an international group of young insurance delegates at a Middle East seminar, many of whom were totally unaware that the insurance industry’s activities were so diverse.

Neuroscience and Teaching Very Difficult Kids

Teaching students whose behaviour is so ‘out of control’ is a challenge faced by all teachers in modern schools. Contemporary approaches have focused on dealing with the presenting behaviours and attempting to control those. This approach may deal with the problem in the short term but creates no long-term solution.

This work accepts that the majority of extremely dysfunctional behaviour is carried out by children who have suffered early, persistent trauma and/or neglect. Disruptive conduct can be explained by the effect their early childhood environment has had on the neural construction of their brain. These children are not ‘born bad’ but behave this way because of the ‘parenting’ they received in their early life. These are the children who have graduated out of these dysfunctional environments.

Recognising this provides the key to understanding how to deal with these kids. Because the social conditions created these problems, if we change those conditions, over time these children will develop different behaviours to get their fundamental needs met. The solution lies in the fact that everyone acts to get their needs met in the environment in which they live, so it makes sense to present an environment that demands different behaviours to satisfy these needs.

The book provides a description about how the early childhood environment creates the neural scaffold that drives dysfunctional behaviour and how developing a well-defined classroom environment will make a positive contribution to changing that behaviour.

Parenting is (Not) Child's Play

Most parents would say that they love their children, passionately. They might also admit that at times they experience frustration, anger and even disappointment because of disobedience and a lack of cooperation from their children.

Parenting is (Not) Child’s Play deals with the ‘Special Play Time’ method, a revolutionary and proven tool that empowers both parents and children. During a 40-minute weekly play session, parents learn, not only clear and practical skills in setting boundaries, they also gain a deeper understanding of the emotions and worries of their children. They discover how to encourage positive behaviour, too and thus increase the self-esteem of their children.

Within a short time, parents notice positive changes in the home. While enjoying mutual fun and play, they regain their parental authority and notice an increase in the emotional and social abilities of their children.

Orit Josefi Wiseman is a non-directive play therapist with an M.A. from the University of York in the United Kingdom. She has a clinic in Israel and has rich and extensive experience with parents and children using this method. She has also established trainings for families and professionals in the field of education in order for them to improve their communication with and empower the psychological robustness of children.

During her work, Orit has met many parents who have learnt parental skills but could not implement them in real time. Her book is written for all those parents. Having a deep faith in the efficacy of the method, Orit wishes to share her knowledge and make it accessible to every household with children.