Bunting, C.J. (2006). Interdisciplinary teaching through outdoor education. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 243 pages, ISBN: 0-7360-5502-9. I admit to being instinctively skeptical when presented with a book the back cover of which contained the claim that it provides teachers and other outdoor leaders "with outdoor activities and expertise to expand students' understanding of the outdoors and develop their character." However, as the co-author of a textbook (Gough, Pleasants, & Black, 2006), I am mindful of the adage 'people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones' as I write this review. 'Interdisciplinary Teaching Through Outdoor Education' is directed at teachers and leaders of students aged from 5 - 15 and has three goals: to provide an introduction to and overview of outdoor education; to present a range of topical units in ready-to-teach format; and, to provide an integrated resource that reinforces curriculum standards in a way that develops the students' capacity to make interdisciplinary connections. Corresponding to these goals, the text is presented in three parts. Part I introduces readers to outdoor education and its role in schools, and explores the foundations and methods for using outdoor education, highlighting its interdisciplinary connections. Part II provides detailed instructions for the novice in conducting outdoor education lessons through unit plans, sample lesson plans and activities. Part III explores school programming, such as planning field trips and starting a school-based outdoor education program. The author achieves the first of her aims quite well in places, and somewhat superficially in others. Outdoor education is 'defined' using the oft-repeated aphorism that it is in, for and about the outdoors. Bunting adds a fourth element, suggesting that it should also be through the outdoors: "education through activities in the natural environment means that through participation in such activities other subject areas become interesting and more easily understood" (p. 4). Of course the suggestion that outdoor education can be defined in any kind of predetermined manner will be problematic for some readers, myself among them. Bunting goes on to discuss what she refers to as the three dimensions of outdoor education: extension, content, and teaching method. The primary focus of the book is on the latter dimension and Bunting devotes considerable time to a discussion of the merits of experiential learning and teaching, as well as the role of the teacher as facilitator. The 'fundamentals of outdoor education' describe it as primarily experiential, connecting with natural environments, encouraging reflection, generalization and application, and finally, intentionally interdisciplinary. Although Bunting acknowledges that "all outdoor education need not take place in an outdoor environment" (p. 14), there is limited discussion of the merits, or otherwise, of choosing natural environments for these pursuits. The natural environment in this case is relegated to a vehicle for achieving an end: engaged students who can make interdisciplinary connections. In her discussion of the notion of interdisciplinary connections and embedded curriculum Bunting is at pains to highlight the need for careful planning and purposeful decision-making regarding the activities teachers undertake with students. She repeatedly emphasizes that teachers should have a clear conception of their objectives and methodology before venturing into the outdoors. Bunting is not alone in her belief that "character development has natural connections with outdoor education activities" (p. 17). The cornerstone of some theory, research and promotion within the field of outdoor education does seem to lie in the belief that 'character' can be transported from one location or situation to another. The claim that outdoor education can build characters is not always explicit, however, sometimes it is implied in the rhetoric of advertising and promotion (Brookes 2003a). …