50 Dangerous Things

’50 Dangerous Things (you should let your children do)’ is a book by Gever Tulley with a pretty self-explanatory title. When I first opened the book and skimmed through the Table of Contents, I was a little outraged. I read titles like ‘Drive a Car’, ‘Throw a Spear’, ‘Put Strange Stuff in the Microwave’ and ‘Find a Beehive’. My initial reaction before diving into each section was, “What the **** is this author trying to do? Get my children killed, my property ruined?” Then I took a deep breath and began reading the actual chapters.

The book starts with a forward and introductions for kids and parents explaining why it is important for kids (and anyone) to experience these 50 dangerous activities. At some point in our child’s lives they may encounter situations where they are faced with the phenomenon encountered in these activities and what better way to prepare our children then to be there by their sides as they learn the correct way to handle them. The introduction warns to practice safety and caution while doing these activities.

Lick a 9-volt Battery

The first activity is a simple one. At least you would think so. One of my children wouldn’t do it. He was too afraid of getting shocked. ‘Lick a 9-volt Battery’ teaches children about the way our tongue works and how it is connected to our brain. In this section a warning is given that the child may receive a little shock. They are also instructed on how to correctly do the activity, how long the activity takes and the difficulty level of the activity. There are questions to get the child thinking and communicating about what they experienced and supplemental activities they can try. On the opposite page there is a large section for field notes, observations, new ideas or whatever.

Each section in the book is pretty much the same. Some of the other sections that I think will be interesting include:

Cook something in the dishwasher
superglue your fingers together
melt glass
and so many more

If you are still wondering why your child should do these 50 dangerous things, your question will be answered in the back of the book. Each section has it’s own ‘Why’ answer in the back.

I am planning to try a few of these over the summer with my kids if I can get them to try them. I think this is a great book for new, exciting and challenging activities for the whole family to participate in.

{Buy It}

You can find out more about ’50 Dangerous Things’ on fiftydangerousthings.com. Buy your own copy of 50 Dangerous Things
on Amazon.