The Highlights Book of Things to Do is the essential book of pure creativity and inspiration. Kids ages seven and up will find hundreds of ways to build, play, experiment, craft, cook, dream, think, and become outstanding citizens of the world. This highly visual, hands-on activity book shows kids some of the best ways to do great things--from practicing the lost arts of knot-tying, building campfires, connecting circuits, playing jump rope, drawing maps, and writing letters, to learning how to empower themselves socially, emotionally, and in their communities. The final chapter, Do Great Things, inspires kids become caring individuals, confident problem solvers, and thoughtful people who can change the world. Full List of Chapters: Things to Do Inside Things to Do Outside Science Experiments to Do Things to Build Things to Do with Your Brain Things to Do in the Kitchen Things to Draw Things to Write Things to Do with Color Things to Do with Paper More Things to Do with Recycled Materials Do Great Things National Parenting Seal of Approval Winner, National Parenting Product Award (NAPPA) Winner, Mom's Choice Award, Gold

The New York Times bestselling author of The Year of Living Biblically goes on a rollicking journey to understand the enduring power of puzzles: why we love them, what they do to our brains, and how they can improve our world. “Even though I’ve never attempted the New York Times crossword puzzle or solved the Rubik’s Cube, I couldn’t put down The Puzzler.”—Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before Look for the author’s new podcast, The Puzzler, based on this book! What makes puzzles—jigsaws, mazes, riddles, sudokus—so satisfying? Be it the formation of new cerebral pathways, their close link to insight and humor, or their community-building properties, they’re among the fundamental elements that make us human. Convinced that puzzles have made him a better person, A.J. Jacobs—four-time New York Times bestselling author, master of immersion journalism, and nightly crossworder—set out to determine their myriad benefits. And maybe, in the process, solve the puzzle of our very existence. Well, almost. In The Puzzler, Jacobs meets the most zealous devotees, enters (sometimes with his family in tow) any puzzle competition that will have him, unpacks the history of the most popular puzzles, and aims to solve the most impossible head-scratchers, from a mutant Rubik’s Cube, to the hardest corn maze in America, to the most sadistic jigsaw. Chock-full of unforgettable adventures and original examples from around the world—including new work by Greg Pliska, one of America’s top puzzle-makers, and a hidden, super-challenging but solvable puzzle—The Puzzler will open readers’ eyes to the power of flexible thinking and concentration. Whether you’re puzzle obsessed or puzzle hesitant, you’ll walk away with real problem-solving strategies and pathways toward becoming a better thinker and decision maker—for these are certainly puzzling times.

** WINNER OF 'STOCKING FILLER OF THE YEAR AWARD' GUARDIAN ** Pit your wits against the people who cracked Enigma in the official puzzle book from Britain's secretive intelligence organisation, GCHQ. 'A fiendish work, as frustrating, divisive and annoying as it is deeply fulfilling: the true spirit of Christmas' Guardian 'Surely the trickiest puzzle book in years. Crack these fiendish problems and Trivial Pursuit should be a doddle' Daily Telegraph If 3=T, 4=S, 5=P, 6=H, 7=H ...what is 8? What is the next letter in the sequence: M, V, E, M, J, S, U, ? Which of the following words is the odd one out: CHAT, COMMENT, ELF, MANGER, PAIN, POUR? GCHQ is a top-secret intelligence and security agency which recruits some of the very brightest minds. Over the years, their codebreakers have helped keep our country safe, from the Bletchley Park breakthroughs of WWII to the modern-day threat of cyberattack. So it comes as no surprise that, even in their time off, the staff at GCHQ love a good puzzle. Whether they're recruiting new staff or challenging each other to the toughest Christmas quizzes and treasure hunts imaginable, puzzles are at the heart of what GCHQ does. Now they're opening up their archives of decades' worth of codes, puzzles and challenges for everyone to try. In this book you will find: - Tips on how to get into the mindset of a codebreaker - Puzzles ranging in difficulty from easy to brain-bending - A competition section where we search for Britain's smartest puzzler Good luck! 'Ideal for the crossword enthusiast' Daily Telegraph