Stay-at-Home Scavenger Hunt (Free Printable)

Tomorrow is National Scavenger Hunt Day, but many of us are still under shelter-in-place orders. That’s why I created these free printables for a Stay-at-Home Scavenger Hunt.

How many of these things can you find in your house?

I made the first version with pictures of each item sought, so even pre-readers can play easily. The majority of things on the list are commonly found in most households.

Give your child a laundry basket or dishpan to use in collecting his treasures. Offer a small prize to whomever finishes first.

Then, once the hunt is over, have each child return everything to its proper place.

The life-changing magic of choring with children

If it pains you to watch your children dragging things out only to turn around and have to put them all back again, don’t despair. I made a special version of this game just for you!

This one lets you skip straight to tidying up. Forget the Konmari method. When it comes to chores, there is nothing more magical or life-changing than finding ways to get kids excited about doing them!

My own kids and grandkids served as guinea pigs for this little experiment. I tried this version of my Stay-at-Home Scavenger Hunt on them this afternoon, and it worked even better than expected.

We did the work in teams. I paired each grandchild with an aunt or uncle and took one with me. Then we raced to see who could finish every task on the list first.

Enthusiasm ran high. The kids threw themselves into their chores and accomplished an amazing amount in a short time. And they were doing things far beyond the scope of their normal chores.

They mended a torn cushion on the couch. Repaired a loose seat on the tractor. Organized bookshelves that had fallen into disarray. Transferred wet clothes from washer to dryer. Changed burnt out lightbulbs. Cleaned out the refrigerator. Lined the flowerbed with paving bricks. Watered neglected houseplants.

And the best part? They noticed all these things that needed to be done on their own. Without any additional prompting, save the scavenger hunt list. It was a win-win-win, and well-worth the candy prize I promised to the team that finished first.

In fact, they all worked hard enough — and did their chores thoroughly enough — to warrant a prize. Of course, results may vary. But if you give this version a try, I’d love to hear how it works for you!