Activities for Kids Thanksgivingscavenger Hunt
Thanksgiving brings forth ideas of turkey, pumpkin pie, family, thankfulness and kids abounding with energy. It seems like they have energy before the meal and after. A fun way to help divert some of this energy so they are not underfoot during dinner preparation, is to give them a scavenger hunt to complete.There are a few simple things to keep in mind when putting together the hunt. One of them is make sure that the items they are hunting for are age appropriate for the children doing the hunting. Next, the items should be hidden well, or the hunt will be over more quickly than planned. Last, make sure that the children know all the rules before beginning and make sure they have a way to get the clues along the way.A scavenger hunt can be created with items found around the house or with just a little expenditure of money. Some fun Thanksgiving themed items include: a picture of a turkey or small stuffed turkeys; feathers from a craft store with a rubber band wrapped around them to keep them together, a bag of craisins or some cranberries, a gourd or small pumpkin, a small pilgrim’s hat, Indian corn, a cornucopia, and a can of pumpkin.Once all the supplies have been gathered together it is time to think about where the items are to be hidden and some clues that can go with the items. If Thanksgiving is occurring in a warm climate, the items could be hidden outside. Or if the weather is cooler, the hunt might need to be limited to inside the house.The hiding places should be as random as possible, for example in a pair of shoes, in or beside a certain book, in a dryer, or under beds, or other furniture. Wherever the items are hidden, make sure all the children are able to reach them easily.Next the creator of the scavenger hunt needs to decide if they would like to have a map and clues, or if they would like to just give the children clues to find the items on the hunt.Some of the clues here would work for the items that were listed above."I am round and have feathers and I get gobbled up. To find what I am go to the shoes of your pop." (Ththis is for the picture of the turkey)Another idea, "I am red and I’m round and I swim in a bog, to find what I am find the book with a hog."The hints can be short or long, depending on how much time the creator of the hunt has to create them.When it is time to begin the scavenger hunt, gather all of the children together. Try to place the children into even groups. If there is an uneven number of children, see if an older child or an adult could help with the activity.Give each group a copy of the clues, or the map, then tell them how many minutes they have to find all the items that are hidden. When the time is up, they are all to go to a designated place to compare answers. The items on the list can either require an answer to a question, or if there are enough of the items to hide in each place, they can bring one of the hidden items back with them.Have a small prize for all the teams, so there are not any hurt feelings. If it is desired the group who found the most items, or who completed the list first could receive another small prize.This is a great activity to keep kids active before the meal, however, perhaps an activity would be desired for after the meal. A scavenger hunt while taking a family walk after the dinner is great.The children on the walk can be given a list of things to look for on their walk. When they find them, they can point them out to an adult and then the adult can check the item off of their list.Some items to include on this easy-going activity could include: chrysanthemums, early Christmas decorations, Thanksgiving decorations, a pile of leaves, or dried corn. Let your imagination be the limit and enjoy these fun activities with the children.
