What 'Huh' offers school leaders
In "Huh", Mary Myatt and John Tomsett set out curriculum conversations between subject leaders and the senior leaders who line-manage them, for primary and secondary schools. They argue for a balanced curriculum rather than one narrowed by a leader's own passions.
The book is particularly useful in primary schools, where subject leadership and line management roles often overlap.
How the book works
The publisher describes one case study per national curriculum subject, each built on a conversation with a subject leader. In each, the subject leader explains:
- why the subject matters beyond exam preparation
- how knowledge, understanding and skills build over time
- how they judge the quality of their schemes of work
- what support they would welcome from senior leaders
Mary Myatt describes the starting point as senior leaders feeling intimidated by subject terminology and lacking knowledge of the subjects they line-manage, while subject leaders felt asked to reinvent the whole curriculum to unrealistic deadlines. The case studies are offered as prompts for discussion, not model answers.
Who it is for
Senior leaders who line-manage subjects outside their own specialism, and the subject leaders they meet with. A practical use is to read the relevant case study before a line-management meeting. Myatt says the conversations began with secondary subjects and then moved to primary; the authors later published Primary Huh and SEND Huh.
About the book
- Authors: Mary Myatt and John Tomsett.
- Publisher: Hachette UK. Paperback, 18 September 2021.
- ISBN: paperback 9781913622732.
Sources: Hachette UK listing and Mary Myatt's newsletter on the Huh work, checked 13 October 2026.