Free Printable Scavenger Hunts for Kids

An easy way to get kids active and learning outside is to go on a scavenger hunt. My daughter loves doing nature walks and observing things (here’s one we did in the fall that includes seeing, hearing and collecting items as you go). They’re sutiable fo all seasons and can be adapted for wherever you live, depending on what you’re likely to see when you go out.

Buggy and Buddy has a great list of more than 30 printable scavenger hunts, so you’re sure to find something that will suit your needs. There’s a wide range of ideas here, including:

color hunt
sound hunt
hiking scavenger hunt
night scavenger hunt
bug scavenger hunt
airplane scavenger hunt
beach scavenger hunt
zoo scavenger hunt
Christmas scavenger hunt

It’s pretty easy to make your own scavenge hunt checklist, too; I made mine in Word with a little clip art and some squares to make checkboxes. And you can always do a nature walk without a printable and just write down or draw pictures of things you observe. Count trees and squirrels in the city or collect a great rock, and kids will have fun walking wherever you are.

Do you like to do scavenger hunts? I’d love to hear about what you go looking for!

[Photo via Buggy and Buddy.]

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Summer Outdoor Activities for Kids

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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