Book Review: Until the Streetlights Come On - How a Return to Play Brightens our Present and Prepares our Kids for an Uncertain Future by Ginny Yurich

Having heard about the 1000 Hours Outside challenge (1,000 hours outside in a year) I was keen to read this clarion call for children to spend more time playing and discovering outside. With the average child in America spending 4-7 minutes a day outside but 5-7 hours a day on a screen there is reason to be concerned and this book seeks to address the amount of passive sitting down time. The book is well-researched with a good bibliography. The author is a well read, talented mother of 5 who is passionate about play. There are lots of good ideas for parents and grand parents to help get them and the children outside. The book feels very American - it seems easier where the author lives to get to nice places outside most of the year. There is a strong bias against competitive sport and main stream education (the author home-schools 5 children). Other than that the reader will be challenged to reflect in a healthy way the benefits of being outside...