When an adult reads to a small child, there's a lot more going on than the decoding of the words on the page. There is the bonding between the reader and child because it is a shared activity, one on one. For the child, it is a special quiet time with a loving adult. It is also an opportunity to interact. If a child has questions about the book the adult is there to answer it. New discoveries can be made and exclaimed over. Reading to a child on a regular basis inculcates a love of literature—the child learns that books contain worlds of their own to explore, worlds that have something of value to enhance the child's current existence.

In the "Science Play Series" I wanted to give the experience of looking at ordinary aspects of life as a scientist would look at them by tapping into the picture book reading experience. That's why the books have been given the full picture book treatment by the very talented illustrator, Julia Gorton. The art and text are totally integrated into a cohesive experience which includes the interactivity, seamlessly built into the text. The purpose of each book is to give a series of concepts, reinforced by discovery (experiential) learning, that lead to understanding an abstract concept-how a child can see him or herself in a shiny surface like a mirror (I See Myself), why water sticks to you (I Get Wet), why the invisible wind pushes you (I Face the Wind) and how gravity pulls you down (I Fall Down). There are no simple answers to the questions raised in these books and the fact that there are some questions for which there are no simple answers is part of the sub-text of the series. This comes under the heading of critical thinking skills.

I believe that most so-called "educational" and problem-solving books underestimate the intelligence of their audience. Children can be presented with new and unfamiliar ideas without patronizing them. An example is Mama Do You Love Me, which presents a foreign culture to the reader without explanation (except in the back of the book). I have read that book to a number of children and they accept ideas like "umiak" without any further analysis or explanation. Kids need to be challenged. They need books they can go back to and absorb on many different levels. If you spoon feed pap, they'll eat it only under duress. These books are meant to be read and enjoyed over and over.

Children are natural scientists. They learn by interacting with the world, experimenting, discovering the results of their actions and drawing conclusions. Unfortunately, this behavior is discouraged by unwitting parents and teachers who don't understand how a scientist thinks. The process by which a scientist learns is the very heart of science. The fruits of this process, the information that has given us the disciplines of physics, chemistry, molecular biology, etc., is now so complex that it cannot be taught totally experientially. Each discipline has so many abstract concepts that many people turn off science before they even get their feet wet. Many adults who read "Science Play" are astounded to find that they truly understand science for the first time and this is part of what I want people to get from the series.

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