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Organize a Classroom Scavenger Hunt

There's nothing like good old teamwork and competition to get your students learning inside or outside the classroom. Make your adventure of discovery memorable and exciting with these ideas, along with more how to's for scavenger hunts that simply make learning fun ....


Open House Scavenger Hunt

There's no better way for parents to become involved in young kids' education than an open house. Enhance the experience by organizing a scavenger hunt in which students get involved by leading grownups around the classroom. You can provide a list of clues to each child before the event:

• These are the art projects we created.
• This is where we hang our coats.
• Here are pictures of the class outing.
• This is our reading table.

Customize the hunt to your own classroom and watch as the kids proudly check-off each item on the list. Use the list as a conversation starter, or get involved by asking students if they covered a particular section of the school or classroom. Unlike most scavenger hunts no prizes are awarded for this game, but you'll score points with parents.

Our Town Scavenger Hunt

How well do your students know their community or neighborhood? The end result may be assigned as a scrapbook or classroom presentation with credits or prizes awarded.

Depending upon how large a city, this works well as an Internet scavenger hunt, as well. Here's a partial list of assigned items to get you started:

• A picture of the mayor
• A bus schedule
• A city map
• A picture of a famous city landmark
• Hours and location of the local library
• A brochure from a museum or art gallery
• A picture of a four-legged animal at the zoo
  

"College Knowledge" Scavenger Hunt

Even big corporations may use a variation of this "ice breaker" scavenger hunt for new employees, but the list below works well for college freshman to help them become familiar with their new campus (and may even aid in an emergency):

• Who or what is the school mascot?
• When was the college founded?
• How many fire exit signs are there in your dorm building?
• How many floors are there in the library?
• The cafeteria has how many windows?
• Where is campus security located?
• What does the plaque inscription read on the main campus entrance?

Again, you can customize or expand this list as you see fit. Assign it as a pop quiz, and award a prize (how about an expensive text book?) to the first student to come back with the correct answers.

More about scavenger hunts in the classroom:

Geometry Scavenger Hunt

Nature Scavenger Hunt

Holiday Scavenger Hunts

Library Scavenger Hunt for College Students

Internet Scavenger Hunts for the Classroom:

Green Valley AEA 14's Scavenger Hunt Page - a WWW directory

Education World - Scavenger Hunts - an extensive collection.

How To ... Create and Use a Math Scavenger Hunt - with related resources.