Book excerpt: This book reviews recent work in psychology which sheds new light on important areas of concern to primary school teachers, providing clear guidelines for good practice. The Psychology of Teaching and Learning in the Primary School details the current controversies regarding the effective teaching of reading and numeracy, how to deal with emotional and behavioural difficulties, the best methods of assessing learning, as well as teaching children to think and develop their creativity. It is a useful text for tutors and students on initial teacher training courses, and to teachers involved in professional development. Each chapter contains an editor's summary, a list of further reading, a full list of references and activities to develop and deepen the readers' understanding in each area. At the same time, the book is written in an accessible style ideal for the non-psychologist and is well illustrated with practical classroom examples.