An indoor treasure hunt is a fantastic way of having fun with your child and encourages lots of conversation and game your little one will want to play over and over.
Take turns in hiding a toy and then, use words like 'warmer' or 'colder' to give clues as to where the hidden object is.
For inspiration, watch the families in the film below giving it a go.
The benefits of treasure hunt games for kids
- It helps them practise following simple instructions
- It encourages them to use their imagination to find different hiding places
- It can get them practising lots of words for positions like 'over', 'under', 'behind' and 'on top of'
- It helps develop their listening skills and helps to build patience
- By counting when you're looking for a hiding place, they're practising counting aloud
- Searching for the objects engages thinking and concentration skills
How to play treasure hunt games
Take a favourite toy and take turns with your little one to choose a hiding place for it.
As you're hiding the toy, encourage them to count to 10 or 20 slowly. This will help them to practise counting while you pick a hiding place.
When they look for the toy, give them clues - you might use 'warmer' and 'colder' or 'nearer' and 'further' to guide them when they are getting closer or further away from the hiding place.
Ask them questions like 'Where do you think it is?' and 'Is it under the cushion?'.
Let them take their own turn to encourage them to come up with an imaginative hiding place.
Adapting treasure hunt games
- Maybe you could encourage their imagination even further by theming the game? Has teddy been abducted by aliens? Or got lost on the way somewhere?
- You could start the game by making them guess what it is you've hidden by giving them clues. Instead of a toy, it could be a household item or item of clothing e.g. 'Daddy wears them on his feet… There's two of them… they're soft'.
- You could try out the sound treasure hunt activity? Try encouraging your little one to find items whose names begin with different letter sounds. This helps them to learn about different word sounds.
- If you're out and about, you could challenge your little one to find different natural objects. For example, you could set them the challenge to find the biggest leaf or the smoothest stone. This encourages learning about different concepts like size and texture. Or they could arrange their found items to make a garden on a plate.
