Do your kids love following treasure maps or going on a scavenger hunt? Mine too!
There are so many ways of incorporating this kind of play into your homeschool. Not only that, your kids will learn skills such as:
- Problem solving
- Leadership
- Team work
- Careful observation
- Map reading
- Following instructions
- Diligence in completing tasks
- Not eating the map (what, your kids don’t do that?)
In our home, we have used maps and hunts for a variety of subjects. Here is a big list of ideas to get your creative juices flowing. You can find more ideas on my Pinterest board: Homeschool – Scavenger Hunts and Treasure Maps.
HOLIDAYS
- Christmas Scavenger Hunt (writing/matching) from Mom’s Heart
- Nativity in a Box from Our Family For His Glory – Corresponds to Truth in the Tinsel
- Valentine’s Day Treasure Map – We used this for our “We Love Our Family” day last Valentine’s Day
- Valentine’s Day Love Scavenger Hunt (scripture) from Sonshine Classical Academy
- Easter Walk from Wild and Precious – A scavenger hunt walk gathering symbols from the Easter story.
- Easter Scavenger Hunt from Rumbly Time – Includes printable
BIBLE
- Doorposts’ Hidden Treasures – We’ve used this fantastic devotion on Proverbs that uses treasure hunts.
- Bible Treasure Hunt from Taunya’s Place – includes printable
- “Joy” Treasure Hunt from The Fantastic Five
- God’s Treasure Hunt from The Bunkhouse – littles gathering and talking about things God created
- Family Night Scripture Activity from Sugardoodle
READING / WRITING
- Sight Word Treasure Hunt from Life with Moore Babies
- Preschool Treasure Maps (letter recognition) from Reading Confetti
- Reading Maps from Crayon Wishes and Popsicle Dreams – Read one book in each secret spot, includes printable
- Word Scavenger Hunt with Treasure Stones from No Time for Flashcards
- Post-It Sentence Building from Blissful and Domestic
MATH
- Shape Hunt from Life With Moore Babies
- Shape Binoculars and Shape Hunt Maths Game from The Imagination Tree
- 6 Ways to Use Magazines and Junk Mail (math scavenger hunt) from Teaching in Room 6 – includes printable
- Addition Treasure Hunt (using coins) from Education.com
- Number Hunt from Mess For less
- Measure That Treasure from Stories and Children
HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY
- Family History Treasure Hunt from Homemaking with Heart
- Make a Compass Rose (for use on your treasure hunt) from Kids Activity Blog
- Free Geography Scavenger Hunt from DIY Homeschooler
- Geocaching: What It Is and Why We’re Hooked from Teach Mama
FITNESS / LIFE SKILLS
- Pirate Treasure Hunt from Teach Beside Me (map skills) – Uses a map of your house/yard and a grid with a challenging final task at the end.
- Treasure Hunt (gross motor) from Life With Moore Babies – Focuses on gross motor skills during the hunt.
- Easter Egg Fitness Treasure Hunt from Super Healthy Kids – The best reason I’ve ever seen for keeping the plastic eggs on hand all year.
- Treasure Hunt (turning chores into one) from Bees Tees
- Garbage Collecting on Our Walk (service project treasure hunt) from Musings of a NICU Mommy
SCIENCE / NATURE
- Outdoor Scavenger Hunt (for littles) from Growing in His Glory
- How to Make Your Own Nature Scavenger Hunt from Go Explore Nature
- Interesting Things (nature treasure hunt) from Paint Cut Paste
- Scavenger Hunt {Egg Carton Style} from Twins Plus One Muma
OTHER
- Flash Card Hunts – We do these a lot with flash cards for various subjects
- Excavating for Stuff – Treasure hunt in the ice. Complete with hot water and hammers.
- Photographic Treasure Hunt (kids make their own map) from Kindertown
- Map Your Backyard from Kid World Citizen – Map the yard and then create a new world by assigning landmarks (bird bath is a huge lake). Create the story of your new world.
What’s your favorite idea from this list? Do you have any treasure or scavenger hunt activities you love?
Tauna loves her family and loves God. She is a homeschooling mama that has been married for 8 years and has 4 young children. She writes about family, faith, homemaking and homeschooling. You can find her at ProverbialHomemaker.com, so named because, as she says, “me becoming a wife, mom, and homemaker proves that anything is possible with God.”
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