Conduct a Beach Scavenger Hunt
If you’re planning a day trip or a vacation at the beach, or if you live near the shore, take advantage of all the wonderful things your tween can find on his scavenger hunt. Provide the tweens with a small plastic shovel, a small net, binoculars, sunscreen, a pail to put their finds in and a small journal or notebook. Look for:
To Find
Five different types of shells (oyster, mussel, crab, etc.)Three different types of shorebirds (ospreys, sandpipers, seagulls, etc.)Seagrass or sea oatsDog tracks (or other animal tracks) in the sandA few items of trash (might as well clean the beach while you’re hunting)A ghost crab (also known as a sand crab)Different colored beach sandSea glassDriftwood
Listen For
The sound of the wavesThe caw of seagulls or other birdsA dog barking on the beach
Watch
Fish in the waterA predator catching its preyPeople swimming or having fun near the water The sun move across the skyAnimals or birds eatingThe waves moving something around (a boat, a seashell, etc.)
Smell
The fresh airThe salt waterA seashellA native plantWet and dry sand
Things to Make
A rubbing of three different kinds of shellsDraw two different kinds of animalsWrite a poem about the beauty of the ocean
Ideas for a Scavenger Hunt in the Woods
If you live near a park or the woods, a scavenger hunt should be easy to pull off. Give each tween a plastic bag to put their items in as well as binoculars, a small journal, and pencil, bug spray, a magnifying glass, and their list of scavenger hunt items. Be flexible. You can add or change the list below depending on where you live, the time of year or even the time of day. At night, for example, you can have the children look for lightning bugs.
To Find
Three different kinds of birds A dead tree Berries of something edible (but don’t eat it!) Something poison, like poison ivy or poison oak A water source Deer or animal tracks A spider web Three different types of insects A feather An ant hill A bird’s nest Seeds Eroded soil Trash A small rock or pebble Three different textures such as smooth, course or slimy
Listen For
The wind blowing through the treesAn animal soundRunning waterThe crunch of leavesThe sound of humansThe sound of insects
Watch
An animal hunting for foodSomething that’s growingSomething in the midst of decayThe weather changing, or the clouds going byHow shadows move with the sunHow families use the park or the woods for recreation
Smell
A flowerA pine tree or a cedar treeThe fresh airMudThe grassA bushA water source
Things to Make
A leaf rubbingA sketch of an animal they spottedWrite a poem or a story of what they sawA clover or a dandelion crown
