Scavenger hunt to the rescue! Do your kids have a lot of time on their hands? Are your tweens feeling dumpy and bored? I have a fun low-cost solution for you! My scavenger hunt takes at least three hours to complete. Can you hear the angels sing? This adventure keeps the kids busy and the tweens having fun! This isn’t your average scavenger hunt. You may find yourself and even your teenager wanting to participate.
Not your typical scavenger hunt!
This hunt is like no other. First off, it’s not just a list of things to find. It involves reading, drawing, exercise, strategy, skill, teamwork, creativity, and cognitive thinking. Seriously the kids loved it. They were outside and having fun. And strangely they got along! As a parent, it was gratifying to watch how much joy was happening to the kids. A memory for sure!
Another fun difference from other scavenger hunts is that it tells a little story. The story starts out with Larry who is lost and needs to find his way home. He has to go through the first three challenges to unlock his map, materials, and list. Then the rest of the challenges help him find his way home. He gets hungry on the way, wants to find presents to bring home, and needs to spend the night. And the most exciting part of all is that he needs to create a flying vessel to get home!
Who is Larry?
Larry is one of my son’s stuffed animals. I just grabbed a small one that would be suitable for flight. You can use an egg…this would be interesting…or a water balloon for that matter, or a cardboard cutout. Essentially, Larry can be anything you want. However, with the stuffed animal, I found it made the hunt more personal and “real”. They really had fun with it.
Who is this scavenger hunt for?
This challenge is for 8 – 13-year-olds. Yes, an activity for tweens too! Younger kids can be helpers on some of the challenges that are too hard, obviously, that is up to you. You could make adjustments to cater to younger kids. This is a definite fun tween activity when they’re bored.
Materials and Set-up
As for materials, use items you already have in-house. No need to run to the store. This is what can make the scavenger hunt more challenging…after all, it is a scavenger hunt! For instance, for Larry’s flying vessel I just found some yarn, balloons, a plastic cup, a piece of fabric, foil, and threw in some other things from my junk drawer. Who knows what kids will come up with?
All you need to do is draw a map and set up the course. This usually takes about 30 minutes. I had a lot of fun doing this. It brought me back to my childhood fun. To make it more interesting, I allowed a phone to be present for the kids to shoot videos and for taking pictures. They enjoyed this part, especially making the trick shot video. I simply downloaded an app called Clips. My son had to show me how to work it, in other words, it’s easy to figure out.
Scavenger hunt example
Here’s a video summary of this scavenger hunt we did the other day:
Larry is waiting for you!
Ready to have some fun and watch your kiddos have a blast? To download and print Larry’s Scavenger Hunt Challenge head over to Freebies. OH! One last thing, it’s a lot of fun as a family to do too! Not to mention at a campground when on vacation. Enjoy!
Before you go, check out these other great posts!
How to Have a Happy Family: 3 Revolutionary Steps
Kid Activities at Home: 10 Things You Can Do Right Now
13 Family Games Worth Playing, Plus a Little History
By CT Copyright © 2020 Simplify Firefly. All Rights Reserved.
