GAME IDEA: Scavenger Hunt

This game idea can be used with young or old groups.  A "simple" scavenger hunt can be a fun break in the middle of a long teaching session, or it can be a great introductory game.  I used it recently at our CentriKid Camps director training weekend to stretch our legs while working through the Director Notebook.

Contrary to a "normal" scavenger hunt, the simple scavenger hunt is easy to prepare and doesn't have to take very long.  In fact, it can all take place within the classroom if you desire.

For the CentriKid camp directors, I had 4 teams leave at the same time to find 4 different clues.  This picture shows my preparation:

• 5 envelopes per team
• the first envelope has only a clue, but I made sure each team got a different clue, sending them to a different area to find the next clue
• the clues were staggered so each team started with a different clue, but went to each clue in the same order (of course they didn't know this)
• the last envelope contained a duplicate clue because with all the clues hidden in the same area, it wouldn't matter which envelope they grabbed.  Teams were instructed to gather 4 different envelopes and then return.

The clues can be tricky or they can be very direct, depending on the group.  With elementary kids who are very concrete thinkers, you could make a simple scavenger hunt that just tells them where to go look for the next clue, and it would serve the purpose of getting them up and moving.  Your goal issimply to create a guided activity that challenges the kids to work together and communicate.

How could you use a "simple" scavenger hunt in your programming?

Comments

[Claire]

Scavenger hunts are so fun! You could spice them up by giving away little prizes (our church did custom rubber bracelets in different colors with Bible versus - the kids loved trying to "collect them all"!) at the end/at each pit stop. We got our bracelets at www.the-wristband-factory.com with the code TWF20%Off2011 which saved us some money.