For the littlest scientists, the whole wide world can be a laboratory for learning. Nurture their natural curiosity with A Head Start on Science, a treasury of 89 hands-on science activities specifically for children ages 3 to 6.

The activities are grouped into seven stimulating topic areas: the five senses, weather, physical science, critters, water and water mixture, seeds, and nature walks.

Because the activities have been field-tested by more than a thousand Head Start teachers over 10 years, you’ll find this collection unusually easy to use in a variety of settings, including elementary schools, pre-K programs, and day care. In addition to clear background and a helpful materials list, you get step-by-step procedures and help preparing for comments and questions children may pose. Each activity ends with a reproducible Family Science Connection—in both English and Spanish—to send home so the whole family can share a learning experience that’s both simple and pleasant.

Thanks to a focus on the fun of exploration and discovery, children probably won’t be the only ones who find these activities irresistible. As Editor Bill Ritz writes in the Introduction, “We hope your own sense of wonder will be heightened as you observe children and as their curiosity leads them to answer their own questions about everything they see, hear, smell, and touch.”