Get Outside: The Kids Guide to Fun in the Great Outdoors

Armed with Get Outside, a kid will never say, “I'm bored!” again. This book is a key to the world of fun beyond the front door. Activities are divided into four categories (Nature Lover, Outdoor Fun and Games, Cozy Inside and Look to the Sky), where readers will find instructions for making things like sundials, bird feeders and kites, as well as rules for games such as 500 Up, Spud and Shinny. Accompanying these descriptions are fun facts and scientific, historic and cultural context. The passage on playing jacks, for example, includes a sidebar about a similar game played by the ancient Greeks. Children in Northern climes will love learning to play traditional First Nations winter games and be thrilled to find out how to create a backyard ice rink. It's a wealth of fun and fascination that will captivate any young person --- who won't mind ditching the video game for the great outdoors.

Jane Drake, with her co-author and sister Ann Love, has co-authored many award-winning non fiction books for kids including The Kids Book of the Night Sky, The Kids Book of the Far North, The Kids Cottage Book, and most recently, Alien Invaders: Species that Threaten Our World. Their works usually have an environmental flavor. Jane lives in Toronto.

Ann Love, with her co-author and sister Jane Drake, has co-authored many award-winning non fiction books for kids including The Kids Book of the Night Sky, The Kids Book of the Far North, The Kids Cottage Book, and most recently, Alien Invaders: Species that Threaten Our World. Their works always have an environmental flavor. Ann lives in the Toronto area.

Heather Collins has been illustrating children's books for more than 20 years. Her body of work includes many nonfiction books, such as the award-winning A Pioneer Story and Out Came the Sun. She lives in Toronto, Ontario, with her husband and two children.