The Play’s the Thing is a sheer joy to read and brim full of practical ideas for parents and teachers who strive to boost the confidence of children as think-for-themselves, can-do people. As a long-time teacher, I know that the routine use of “play-debrief-replay” transforms the learning environment from one of sit-still, meaningless tasks to one of experimentation, creativity and yes, powerful free play. This book is a teacher’s professional development of the highest order.