DOUBLE TAP TO ZOOM WITH PHONE OR TABLET • You can take this book off the shelf now and then use it when you have an empty spot to fill in your day. • You can use this book to spark your own imagination and inspire fresh new play ideas. Are these activities kid tested and caregiver approved? They sure are. As we developed the activities, we tested them with the children in our own child care programs. Once we had projects we felt worked, we wrote them up and sent them out to a committed squad of Test Drivers for review. We then used their feedback to refine the projects. Once you’ve done the projects, we’d love to hear all about your ideas and experiences too. Visit our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LetThemPlayBook, to share. How involved should kids be in building and setting up projects? As involved as they can be. In a properly supervised setting, kids can handle all the building or setup involved in these projects. For some adults, it may mean trusting kids a bit more than usual or going a bit outside their comfort zone, but it’s worth the effort. Let kids own the whole process. Is it really okay to let kids play with bricks, sticks, and other potentially dangerous items? We think so—as long as the adult in the room is tuned in, attentive, and fo- cused on creating an engaging but safe environment. You obviously can’t hand a roomful of three-year-olds glue guns, wish them luck, and go watch Dr. Oz. You can, however, control your environment in such a way that kids can safely do some hot gluing. xvi COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL