Scavenger hunts for kids are always fun - enjoyable for the kids as they try to solve the challenges, and entertaining for the adults as we watch the little ones excitedly crack the codes.
I played scavenger hunt at home with my kids once in April 2019 when they were 4 years and 2 months old - so it was a simpler version with easy clues. And because they insisted so much, I played again in October 2019 when they were going to turn 5 years old in a few months - hence, the scavenger hunt clues given to them were different, a little more testing but age appropriate.
This was the quick and simple little treasure hunt I played with my 4 year old children:
This is a video of the scavenger hunt for my soon-to-be 5 year olds in October 2019 with a bit more challenging clues:
→ If you like these clues and want to play this Indoor Scavenger Hunt for kids, you can purchase my listing on Etsy which comes with 1 PDF file that contains 1 page of instructions and 4 pages of clues (total 18 clues). Click the picture below to read the details on the page:
How to plan scavenger hunt for children at home?
- If you want to do it indoors: make a list of places or things your kids are familiar with at home where you can safely hide your clues at, for instance: inside microwave, inside refrigerator, under the coffee table, under the dining table, under the sofa, under a chair, under a pillow, a specific kitchen cabinet, etc. Your clues have to lead them to these places.
- If you can include your balcony, patio, backyard, front yard, courtyard, that would give you more opportunity to have a longer scavenger hunt with more clues and have the kids run around for longer (which I always prefer so that my kids get tired and sleep early!!! ha ha ha.).
- I like to plan placement of my clues based on how well I can make them run around the house. If one clue is in the bedroom, I will place next clue in the garage. I will not place all the clues for the kitchen one after another. The movement and running around get them tired when they play treasure hunt in a small indoor space of the home.
- Your scavenger hunt clues can include anything to do with alphabets, numbers, solving a puzzle, a riddle, fill in the blanks, rhyming words, matching, maze, connect the dots. basically, my concept is: anything that they have studied in school, I can apply it for making scavenger hunt clues.
- You don't want the kids to lose interest by giving too challenging clues. A 4 year can understand simple language like "where do you sit to eat food" instead of a cryptic clue with jumbled letters of a word.
- Once you have your list of locations ready and numbered, once you have your clues written or printed and ready, fold them and write the location number on them if you want to make it simple for you to keep track. Remember that you will be giving them their first clue in their hand, which will lead them to the next. So don't put the clue for the microwave inside the microwave. Each clue has to lead to its destination, which will take them to the next location.
Playing this game on a dull weekend at home, or playing treasure hunt on a rainy day, or playing a birthday treasure hunt especially is a great idea and makes a fun memory, even more if you hide the birthday present at the final spot. Regardless, when I played treasure hunt with my kids in April it was solely because the wrist watches I had ordered for them had arrived and instead of giving it as is, I turned it into a simple scavenger hunt game.
► Click here for Indoor Scavenger Hunt for Kids at Home | Treasure Hunt Game at Home for Kids
xoxo,
Nisha
