Organizing a Kids Treasure Hunt

A kids treasure hunt is a fun idea for any birthday, Halloween, Easter or other holiday party. The key to a successful hunt is to gear the clues to the children's ages. If there will be children of different ages, you have to take that into consideration.

My favorite, for groups of 10 or less, is to group the kids into pairs. Pair older kids with younger kids. If you have an uneven amount, put three in one group. If some of the kids don't show up, let the first group done do the leftover hunt. Each pair will have their own set of clues and should they complete their list, each child will be rewarded, in the end. The hunts keep them busy and excited. No one is frustrated, because everyone gets a prize.

The clues that you would write for a kids treasure hunt would depend on whether you are doing an indoor or an outdoor hunt. Remember that planning an outdoor hunt is dependent upon the weather. You can't always count on the forecast. You always need a backup plan.

If you are worried about costs, the treasures don't need to be expensive. Children are happy with just about anything. Look at the prizes that they give away at arcades and you'll see. Rubber balls, funny glasses, candy, rings or any small trinket will do. The most fun is actually in the hunting.

My biggest challenge has always been organizing a kids treasure hunt that lasts as long as I expect it to. They are likely to be done much sooner than you expected. If you've never tried anything like this, there are several different ways to go about it. Here are the basics.

You will need paper and a Sharpie or other marker. I prefer construction paper, because it is heavier. You can either hide clues around the house or give each group a check list of things to find. For example, if you have the luxury of a big yard, the check list might say "find a frog with a flower in its mouth". We happen to have a planter that looks like a frog.

If you use the checklist, the children will return to you when they have found all of the items and you give them their prize. If you hide clues around the house or outdoors, the clues will eventually lead them to their prize.

Organizing a kids treasure hunt is not that difficult. You just need to use your imagination and think like a kid.