Reviewed by Wendy Lipke
This 224-page book, which resembles a textbook in size, has a busy cover in blue and yellow. As well as presenting the title of the book in large letters, it is decorated with science and maths symbols with a picture of the author tucked into the bottom lefthand corner of the front cover. The back cover tells the reader that STEM is everywhere while both covers reveal the names of the disciplines starting with the letters which make up the word STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.
The interior of the book is all black, white, and grey and contains activities for students interested in these disciplines. It is broken up into seven sections, Stem, On the Move, Out of This World, The Patterns Around us, Sky and Sea, Robotics and Steam. The remaining pages include the answers to the activities.
This workbook contains a double page spread – All About Eddie, which explains that he had been a maths teacher for more than fifteen years when in 2012 he started uploading his lessons to YouTube – creating “Wootube’. He now has amassed millions of subscribers and his videos have been viewed more than 150 million times.
In 2018 Eddie Woo was named Australia’s Local Hero of the Year.
Activities within the book have larger than usual font size and pictures are also larger, suggesting that this book might be best suited to a Primary School student.
Topics included in the activities are Fibonacci numbers, fractals, Typography, drones, nephology, and space. There are a variety of things to engage the students and these cover drawing, making things, quizzes, observation tasks, surveys, and other challenges.
Professor Woo joined the Sydney School of Education and Social Work in March 2023 where he will spend time working with both staff and students. He will work at the University on a part-time basis so he can continue teaching in classrooms.
He is the author of Woo’s Wonderful World of Maths, Eddie Woo’s Magical Maths 1 and 2, and two titles in the Maths Super Sleuth series: Time Out and Team Trouble.
There is certainly a lot of variety in both topics and activities for students which would help stimulate the fertile minds. His name also lends itself to interesting titles for his books. In this publication it leads to the alliteration of the letter ‘W’.
Eddie Woo’s Wonderful World of Science Technology Engineering Maths
(2023)
by Eddie Woo
Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 978-1-76126-684-3
$19.99; 224pp