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A Scavenger Hunt List for Children

Most children love scavenger hunts. Getting a group of friends together and running around the neighborhood, or even their own backyard, can be a team building exercise for children. Usually scavenger hunts start with a list of items that each team must acquire. The hunt should involve at least two teams so they can compete against each other. The scavenger hunt list should consist of child-friendly items based on the age range of the children playing.

Home and Backyard Scavenger Hunt
- For younger children the home and backyard is the perfect place for a scavenger hunt. Create a list with easy to read items like pan, drumstick, golf club, baseball and other household items. Have the children search for each item in the house or in the backyard. Assist them as needed. The team that gathers the items fastest wins a prize. The runners-up should also get a prize. This will show the children that winning is not everything and being a good sport is worth more than winning the hunt.
Classroom Scavenger Hunts
- Some teachers use the Internet to conduct classroom scavenger hunts with their students. A teacher can choose from hundreds of themes. Students working in teams go online to search for specific items or information. For example, if the theme of the scavenger hunt is Roman architecture, the students can search the web for information, photos, names, dates and anything else encompassing Roman architecture.
Photo Scavenger Hunt
- In the digital age, cameras are on cell phones, certain keychains and many other portable hand-held devices. The availability of digital cameras makes it easy to use them for photo scavenger hunts. You may choose to put on your photo scavenger hunt list a sports car, a hamburger, hardwood flooring, a pink bathrobe and any other random thing that would be reasonable for the participants to take photos of. Rather than bringing back items, participants bring back their photos.
Chaperoned Scavenger Hunts
- If the children are old enough, and they have an adult chaperon, they can use an around-the-town type of scavenger hunt list. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's kids' site recommends putting local landmarks and governmental figures on the list. For example, they can look for a picture of your city's mayor, a picture of a landmark, a flyer for a local event and a document issued by the local government.

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