Robertson, the Headmaster, gives Craig the unpleasant task of stopping an older woman teacher from using the strap on her pupils.
When a boy is shoved down a flight of stairs and knocked out it falls to Craig to prove what everyone already knows - that the deed was done by the school 'hard case', Kenny Patterson.
The death of a loved one is hard to accept at any age. For thirteen year old Hamish it is the beginning of a night of terror.
Obsession can corrupt a man. Allied to jealousy it threatens to destroy Alec McGregor's whole way of life.
The most popular boy at Strathaird School should have no problems, but Dougie Seaton has plenty. As a natural leader he does what he likes: shirks lessons, not pay his debts and lead others into trouble. Craig has the task of dragging the boy back to reality.
Through her outrageous schemes for bending school discipline, Chris Elliott clashes head-on with Ian Craig and the rest of the teaching staff.
The small American community at Strathaird becomes the focus of a 'Yanks - Go Home' campaign.
Davy Murchie is a late developer, though hitherto he has been as much of a 'rough diamond' as the rest of Lower Four. Now, at fourteen, he is showing a passion for mathematics, coupled with a brilliant ability. He is confused and his family and friends don't understand what has happened to him. The only person who can help him is his Maths teacher, Miss Dougall.
On the face of it Mr. Griffin seems a fine acquisition to the teaching staff. But before he can settle down he clashes violently with a bright boy called Innes. His savage reaction to the boy makes Ian Craig doubt his suitability.
When Keith Mitchell keeps having one cold after another, Ian Craig's suspicions that he is playing truant are well founded - but the reasons go deeper than he suspects.
The death of one of the pupils creates an atmosphere of suspicion and distrust at Strathaird School.
Angus Galbraith works a neglected farm. Because his poverty is masked by pride he rejects as charity Craig's efforts to provide his son with a bicycle.
Craig is in trouble after accepting an invitation to speak at a political meeting.
A probationer teacher cannot control a difficult class. How far has the school the right to protect her from publicity?
Wallace Welton is bullied by the other boys, given a nickname and generally knocked around.
Charles Houston, an undergraduate, comes to Strathaird as a temporary teacher. He is given a rough passage before he learns how to translate his idealist theories into practice.
Sixteen-year-old Jane Brewer has a row with her history teacher which brings her to the notice of Ian Craig, her Housemaster. He treats her sympathetically, but in doing so becomes the victim of a crush.
Brenda Graham returns to Strathaird as housekeeper at the Big House, once her family home. Extravagant and condescending, she insists on maintaining 'certain standards'.
Alec McKinlay, a miner's son, is one of Craig's brighter pupils. Opposition to his going to University comes from an expected source - and an unexpected one.
Sally Scott is both precocious and vulnerable, hiding her shyness behind a facade of extrovert gaiety. One day when she writes a poem she is surprised to find that it shocks Ian Craig. His show of puritan disapproval makes Sally withdraw into a shell of resentment.
Francis Cook, nicknamed 'Wee Bonkers' by his classmates because of his bookishness and old-fashioned manner, is moved to another form. Here he teams up with Fisher, one of the School's wilder spirits, with surprising results.
Robin Kyle runs off to the Highlands. Who is responsible for his disappearance? His Parents? The garage where he has been sent on an educational scheme? Or the School itself?
Arriving quietly in Strathaird, Ivor Fallon, an apparently charming man, singles out a woman teacher as his natural victim for a particularly ruthless venture.
Kenneth Woodburn is preparing a glossy tourist film in Scotland. An old flame of Margaret Craig, he stirs up not only the school, but Craig's family life as well.
During the confusion and excitement of the day before Starthaird School reopens, the Headmaster and Ian Craig are faced with a head-on clash between two teachers demanding the same job.
In his determination not to interfere with the decisions of his children, John Douglas may be offering them a dangerous kind of freedom.
Hughie Bell; total school attendance this term - one hour and ten minutes. A normal absence, or is there another reason? Ask Mrs. Bell - if you can get a straight answer!
Relying on past fame as a rugby international Harry Tasker allows his weaknesses to be covered up by his colleagues at Strathaird, until his responsibility for an accident brings matters into the open.
At school twelve year old Lizzie Tait is the despair of her teachers. At home she has grown used to the constant bickering of her parents, and sets about turning the garden shed into a beautiful retreat just like the housecraft flat at school. How she goes about this sets Ian Craig a real problem.
A twelve year old boy is suffering acute nervous strain. For Ian Craig and fellow housemaster Ben Collingwood this means a forceful investigation.
An English girl with all the outward symptoms of a snob boarding school education finds herself a wretched misfit in the more informal atmosphere of Strathaird
Should Tom Morocco, tired of teaching, set up as an industrial chemist in a competitive business world? The Craigs have sharply differing views.
After years of living in the shadow of his brother, Bob McCall's sense of injustice and inadequacy could have tragic consequences.
A Sikh girl, Nurinder, is to return to India to be married. A simple arrangement - except that at school Nurinder has acquired too much independence of thought.
The 'tycoon' of Strathaird School is thirteen year old Sammy McDougall. But will his gift for a fast deal lead him to success or disaster?
A school newspaper with a difference - topical, controversial, witty and dedicated to the truth at any price. A head-on clash with authority... and censorship is inevitable.
There are dangerous possibilities when fifteen year old Jenny Maddox tries to turn her fantasies into reality.
Why does a teenage boy wear long, VERY long hair? Bobby Donaldson's exaggerated hair style scarcely matches his unassuming manner.
The Director of Education wants Ian Craig to apply for a new job. Pressure, both subtle and blatant, is put upon Craig to try and influence his decision.
Anna Jancowska is Scottish in all but name and parentage. Although not a brilliant girl she gets through her school work by sheer determination. And this same determination helps her win a place in the Strathaird swimming team. But her father is determined that his daughter shall do better still.
Good brakes and swift reflexes enable Ian Craig to avoid a nasty accident when a boy dashes in front of his car. The boy, Joey Mackie, and his younger brother Stevie have been running away after raiding a nearby grocer's shop. Craig is surprised to find that Joey is a new boy at Strathaird AND a member of his own House. Term is already ten days old but Joey has not yet put in an appearance. Craig soon becomes involved with both the Mackie boys - and with their aggressive father.
Margaret Craig has ten small children in her charge. Then one goes missing....
Ian Craig is obliged to examine his liberal views on life after a chance meeting with a young woman.
Violette Johns is a valued member of the French department at Strathaird School until the desperate state of her private life begins to affect her judgment as a teacher.
At thirteen it is hard to be aware of adults' problems, and Stevie's bewilderment has repercussions which threaten Ian Craig's career.
Long distance running calls on the last reserves of strength and energy. For young Dougal Ramsay the strain may bring irreparable damage.
Chris Elliott, a senior pupil at Strathaird, has had many brushes with authority during her school career, but her clash with teacher Edgar Albyn is potentially the most serious.
Iain MacDonald, a boy from an island in the Outer Hebrides, finds the life of Strathaird and the mainland in general bewildering and troubling.
Money is stolen. Mysterious gifts are distributed. The Robin Hood campaign of the two small Moffatt boys could get dangerously out of hand.
When Ian Craig 'volunteers' to take charge of preparations for the school cruise he faces problems, large and small, that are increasingly distracting, absorbing and complex.