Nature Scavenger Hunt-- Template

This is from my long, but not exhaustive, list of outdoor hunt ideas. As you will notice, some of it is very local and much of it is not geared towards our winters. I'll have to remedy that later... find icicles, build a snow home, look for animal tracks, draw in the snow, etc!

Here's my little spiel....

Scavenger hunts can be indoors or outdoors… to break boredom, to have fun, to foster outdoor interests and play. Specific lists for specific locations are a great idea too (for example, Fort Edmonton Park or the Zoo). Create short or long or themed lists from the ideas below. Print off and use! Bring a pencil/pen to either check off or fill in answers. Another option is to take a camera and CAPTURE all the answers with it; this is a great way to document the excursion and maybe scrapbook/photo album the adventure!

If you forget to print off a list, but find your family wanting to engage in a scavenger hunt, try finding something that begins with the letter "A" and work your way through the alphabet--- it's most challenging if you keep to alphabetical order before proceeding to the next letter/item!

Read on for the list... 

Outdoor List Ideas

Find an item that begins with the letter “ a…b…c…”

Find something that is the colour “…choose a colour”

Find a pine cone

Find a spruce cone

Find an oak leaf/ other tree leaf

Find a licence plate from a different province

Find a licence plate from a different country

Find a mountain ash tree/ or other tree species

Find 3 different kinds of yellow flowers and name them, if you can

Find a cat
Find and identify a mammal/ reptile/ bird/ plant/ fungus

Find a beetle/ other local insect

Find a flying insect

Count how many different kinds of birds you observe while on your quest (tally marks?)

Find the number “…choose a number”

Find a child with blond hair/ pick other hair colour or piece of clothing
Ask a person wearing "fill-in-the-blank" what their middle name is

Find a park bench

Find the perfect spot

Find a beaver

Find a Canadian flag

Find a foreign flag

Find a popular spot

Find a bottle/can to recycle

Using paper and pencil/crayon make a rubbing of a cool leaf, date and label it

Using paper and pencil/crayon make a rubbing of some tree bark, date and label it

Find an ant and describe what it is doing

Find an airplane

Describe the clouds. Any shapes? Know the names of the clouds?

Find some seeds

Spin around blind-folded, take off the blind fold and write down the first thing you see

Have a parent guide you blind-folded on a nature path. List all the sounds you hear.

Have a parent guide you blind-folded on a nature path. List all the smells you smell.

Have a parent guide you blind-folded on a nature path. Write down the first thing you see once you can

While blind-folded, have someone hand you objects to touch and describe and identify.

Document the animals you see

Count how many people you say “Hi” to

Find something furry

Find something hot

Find something cold

Find something cute

Find something strange

Find something out of place

Find something rough

Find a non-green leaf

Find a 4 leaf clover

What’s the largest thing you saw

What’s the smallest thing you could see

What’s the youngest/newest thing you saw

What’s the oldest thing you saw

Find something soft

Find some berries (don’t eat)

Find two different kinds of grass

Find 3 different kinds of leaves

Find some moss, gently touch it, smell it!

Find three different coloured rocks

Find and identify animal tracks

Find water, in what form is it?

Find some plastic

Find an animal home

Find a feather

Find something that makes noise

Find something that never makes noise

Find something faster than a snail

Find something that fell out of a tree

Find something shiny

Find something that begins with the same letter that begins your name