My mantra for early child education is “keep learning fun!” I always look for ways to incorporate educational conversations into our everyday experiences. Sometimes that means paying with cash and letting my children count the money. Other times we sing preschool songs (like the “days of the week” or “Old McDonald had some vowels”). And, of course, my kids play their Rusty and Rosy Reading™ games on the computer.
Whatever we do, we are learning!
Another hands-on and very fun activity to do with my three- to five-year-old children is a scavenger hunt. Scavenger hunts are so easy to make—just open up a word processor, insert clip art, and create your activities.
I am the oldest child of five kids. I used to make these scavenger hunts up for my siblings all the time. We didn’t have a lot of money, so this was a very affordable way for us to have a blast. Now that I am a mom I still love this activity and I know how to tweak it so it teaches my kids as well as makes amazing memories.
Here are some of my tips to help you make a fun and easy scavenger hunt for your kids:
Give your children age-appropriate, yet challenging, goals. Think about specific subject areas you want to teach your children and put them into the scavenger hunt. For Geography, your goals can even be as simple as writing a clue that requires them to problem solve about the area around their house, or you can go as far as getting some neighborhood moms involved and having a block-wide hunt! For science, ask your kids to find and identify something weather related and/or plant related.
Keep the goals different and throw in a few really funny ones. If you make the scavenger hunt completely academic, it will bore them. You definitely want this to be an educational activity, but a few random and funny commands will keep it lively. Maybe ask them to write a funny joke and post it somewhere silly so people will see it.
Then, give your kids a prize if they find every single thing on the list. The prize can be as small as fresh baked cookies or as big as a toy they were eying at the store. It will be the most fun time ever!
If you need some ideas, feel free to click the photo below and print.
