Abstract
This study focuses on the dilemma of modern children's play and seeks ways to foster the imagination and cognitive abilities of children by deemphasizing store-bought "toys" in favor of the everyday objects and items that children naturally find fascinating. By introducing the "Asobi no Tane" (lit. "Seeds of Play") series of books specially designed for outdoor play, to children playing at a nursery school facility visited by the author on a weekly basis to study play patterns. The author seeks a new paradigm for fostering children to play not with store-bought toys that have predefined play patterns, but rather by providing the outdoor play books with themes including sounds, tree seeds, water, and light and letting the children define their own play.
