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craft box for toddlers

Why a Treasure Hunt can be enjoyed by the whole family! (includes free download)

During lockdown parents and kids have had to get creative in their playtime. A quick dash to the shops is not as easy as it was and as playtime has pretty much been stretched to a three month stint, a new era of ‘make do and mend,’ has begun.

children playing in a field

Whilst lockdown has been hard, we have a new-found appreciation for simple games that keep our kids busy or that can act as a springboard for more educational fun, ticking the homeschool box as well. For example using a world map to plot a virtual adventure across the world, serving a meal themed to a different country and let’s not forget that new staple of throwing the bbq to pretend we really did make it abroad this year.

family cooking in the kitchen

One of the positives of lockdown for Fi and I has been quite simply exploring the parks, forests and streams that were always nearby but we never had the time to appreciate. It has given our children plenty of exercise and allowed us some much needed time in the fresh air.

walking into the forest

Many of us have competing priorities such as juggling our jobs, navigating a full house and at times just coping with day to day life in lockdown. We hear you! Fi and I are both working mums and have experienced a rollercoaster of emotions as well as motivation levels to keep up the fun in our homes. It is not easy, even as owners of an arts and crafts business.

Of course social media can can be a double-edged sword. It is fantastic for picking up activity ideas that others have tried but there are always some posts that make you feel that you should be doing more than you are.

So what does this have to do with National Scavenger Hunt Day? Everything! Scavenger or Treasure Hunts are literally the family dream for us all to enjoy. It is a game, typically played in an outdoor area in which kids have to collect or find a number of miscellaneous objects. You can go large (or small!), depending on your own energy levels and time to plan.

family out on a forest walk

Theme your treasure hunt indoors or outdoors depending on the weather. Everything from counting the number of doors, windows and cupboards in the house to discovering the different variety of trees on your daily walk. From nature to nurture, sizes and shapes or even a subject they are learning about in school. Throw in a prize at the end and you have the perfect scavenger hunt!

If it has been a particularly tough day, theme your treasure hunt to whatever you think will keep them busy for the longest amount of time. A mutual friend recently tasked her three boys with finding ten sticks all the same size, genius!

harassed mum with kids

If you are looking for a Treasure Hunt with a focus on learning about different countries and that can be completed indoors with some kid-friendly internet involved, simply download our activity sheet below which is completely free. We have designed this activity sheet so that it can either be printed off or for you to duplicate.

Treasure Hunt Activity Sheet