This text is intended for use in college recreation courses. It presents leadership techniques and teaching methods for conducting successful recreation programs in community centers, schools, churches, industry, hospitals, prisons, and on playgrounds. Over 1,000 program ideas and ways to teach are suggested that cover a wide range of activities including music, dance, arts and crafts, nature and camping, athletic sports and games, and social recreation. The opening chapter, "Free Time, Work, and Leisure in Changing America," points out the significant role recreation can play in helping to solve problems. It is stressed throughout that recreation is more than entertainment; it is concerned with improving the quality of life. A chapter is devoted to techniques for teaching special groups including children, teenagers, the aged, and the handicapped (orthopedically atypical, mentally retarded, and gifted). Other chapters present techniques for successfully conducting club activities and for evaluating the results of programs and leaders. The appendix is a sample of an interest finder of activities for program leaders. (MM)