The Practical Forest School

If you’re looking for spring scavenger hunt ideas, you’re in the right place!

The weather is starting to mellow, the days are longer. And after being cooped up during the winter months, it feels like it’s time to get outdoors.

Ways to use a scavenger hunt at this time of year

There are lots of ways to make use of a scavenger hunt during spring. Here are some ideas:

• Use it as an incentive to get kids outdoors! In our experience, children love having something to tick off and find
• Use it as a game for an outdoor spring birthday party idea
• Take it on holiday with you and use it as something to do with the children if you are camping or staying away from home (or just use it on a walk if you are having a staycation)
• Use it in your backyard — see how many items you can find in an area they know well
• And, of course, use it in educational and forest school settings as an activity for children to opt into as part of their outdoor explorations.

I love this PDF worksheet! It’s so bright and attractive, which is perfect for encouraging children to get outside.

As someone who works with preschool children, it’s a perfect activity for small hands and little legs. A spring scavenger hunt for preschoolers is an easy activity to set up and do.

You can use it with your preschool or primary-aged children, with your own family, or in your Forest School setting.

This is the perfect time of year to be looking out for tiny buds, new life and more. What will your little detectives find in nature?

What’s on the PDF Spring scavenger hunt checklist

Download the printable list and take copies out with you so you can tick off the signs of spring. Take it with you when you wander around the woodland, forest, or even your local urban area.

Here is what is on the checklist:

• Feather
• Caterpillar
• Blossom
• Dew on the grass
• Lichen on a twig
• Bird
• Worm
• Puddle
• Flower
• Seedling
• Nest
• Something yellow
• Pond life
• Rainbow
• Bee
• Animal tracks
• Bug

Tips for Spring scavenger hunts

It’s still a little bit chilly, so make sure everyone has the right kind of clothes. Layer up, and pack a sweater just in case.

Remember: If children seem to want to collect things, they should only collect fallen items from the woodland floor, and ideally replace them before they leave. Avoid taking things home with you, and avoid disturbing wildlife and living plants.

At this time of year, so much is growing that there is a lot of new life on the forest floor. If possible, try to avoid collecting anything as you don’t know what you might be disturbing.

And of course don’t collect living creatures and steer clear of mushrooms.

Instead, children can draw what they find. If you are feeling really crafty, how about making plaster of paris moulds of any animal tracks or horseshoe prints that you find?

Keeping the activity going

Some children are going to be super fast at finding items, and if you are in a nature-rich area they probably won’t have to look very far before they’ve found everything on the list!

As a parent, I know the feeling of ‘oh, have you finished already?’ And while we take a child-led approach, sometimes children might need a bit of help working out how to keep an activity going if they are really enjoying exploring and finding.

You can add extra things to the list — make up some additional items they need to find.

You can also ask questions about what they’ve discovered. That will also help them reflect and think about what they’ve seen, felt, smelled, heard and so on.

If you’re stuck for things to ask, here are some question prompts:

• What did you find that is smooth/rough/prickly?
• What did you find that is damp/dry?
• Was there anything on the list you didn’t touch/pick up? Why?
• What is the most delicate object you found? Why do you say that?
• How would you describe [item]?
• Where did you find [item]?
• Why do you think [item] ended up looking like that? What might have happened to it?

How are you going to use this free spring scavenger hunt printable list? Let us know on our Facebook page!

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When you’re looking for winter scavenger hunt ideas, I think it’s important that we get outside!

Even on cold days, we can still go out and see some nature. A scavenger hunt is a good way to convince children to go for a walk on a bright cold day. It gives a bit of focus to getting out, especially if the weather isn’t great.

Here is a beautiful winter scavenger hunt printable. You can use it with your primary school children, your family, or in your Forest School setting.

There are plenty of things to look for in winter. Be a nature detective and find these items on your scavenger hunt! How many can you find?

Download the printable and take copies out with you so you can tick off the signs of winter that you spot on your travel around the woodland, forest, or even your local urban area.

• Worm
• Spider’s web
• Mud
• Acorn
• Fallen leaf
• Leaf skeleton
• Squirrel
• Beetle
• Mushroom
• Pine cone
• Hole in a tree
• Log
• Lichen on a tree
• Smooth evergreen leaf
• Feather
• Puddle
• Shadow
• Tree stump

Wrap up warm and get outside!

Remember: Only collect from the forest/woodland floor. You don’t actually need to collect anything. If children have a copy of the winter scavenger hunt printable, they can tick off what they find as they go.

However, if you’re out in the forest, and the children want to make a collection, then be child-led. The children can gather their items as they find them, and put them in a basket, or bring them back to the circle, or whatever they like.

Questions to ask on a scavenger hunt

Make the activity last a bit longer and build the children’s enthusiasm in what they’ve found by asking about the items.

Have a natural conversation, and let the children tell you about their scavenged treasures. If you need conversation prompts, here are some questions to ask:

• What did you find that is smooth/rough/prickly?
• What did you find that is damp/dry?
• Was there anything on the list you didn’t touch/pick up? Why?
• What is the most delicate object you found? Why do you say that?
• How would you describe [item]?
• Where did you find [item]?
• Why do you think [item] ended up looking like that? What might have happened to it?

What to do with scavenger hunt items

If you’re with a big group, and they are keen to collect items from the list (obviously not the living creatures), you could end up with an amount of fallen leaves, twigs, feathers and so on. In our experience, children also collect things that are not on the scavenger hunt list!

Once your group has finished seeking and collecting, think about what you could do with the items. Could they be rearranged on the ground to make a pattern or a picture? Could you do leaf printing with any of the (non-skeleton) leaves?

How are you going to use this free winter scavenger hunt printable? Let us know on our Facebook page!

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It’s autumn (or fall, depending on where you are) and it’s still warm enough to get outside for a scavenger hunt.

Scavenger hunt ideas

Here are some ways you could use a scavenger hunt with your children, or children in your setting.

• On a walk, where the scavenger hunt is the purpose of the activity
• On a walk to somewhere else, where the scavenger hunt is simply something to do on the journey
• As part of a structured activity
• As part of child-led learning if they show an interest in exploring the seasons or outside
• As a game, in an education or forest school setting (for those who want to join in) or even at a party!

I can imagine some great autumn outdoor birthday party ideas using a scavenger hunt as a way to kick off the fun!

I’ve created a beautiful autumn/fall scavenger hunt printable, primarily for use in our preschool environment, where I run forest school mornings. You can use it too with your primary school children, your family, or in your Forest School setting.

There are plenty of things to look for at this time of year. What will your little nature detectives find?

What’s in the Printable Autumn/Fall Scavenger hunt list?

Download the printable and take copies out with you so you can tick off the signs of the season that you spot on your travel around the woodland, forest, or even your local urban area.

Here’s what’s on the list:

• Acorn
• Conker
• Shiny evergreen leaf
• Berries
• Squirrel
• Prickly conker case
• Brown leaf
• Red leaf
• Winged seed (like a sycamore)
• Pinecone
• Mushroom (do not pick mushrooms)
• Spider’s web
• A pile of leaves
• Puddle
• Leaf bigger than your hand
• Pine needles

This autumn scavenger hunt is suitable for toddlers upwards, although younger children may need help interpreting the pictures. As the PDF also has words as well as images, you can use it as a guide to learning the words and for spellings too.

Tips for autumn scavenger hunts

If it’s chilly, you can still get outside. Make sure feet and hands are warm enough — extra pair of socks inside wellies is a good idea if it’s on the cold side.

Remember: Don’t pull anything off trees or bushes, and don’t pick flowers and other plants. Only collect from the forest/woodland floor. You don’t actually need to collect anything. If children have a copy of the autumn scavenger hunt checklist, they can tick off what they find as they go.

However, if you’re out in the forest, and the children want to make a collection, then be child-led. The children can gather their items as they find them, and put them in a basket, or bring them back to the circle, or whatever they like.

Questions to ask on a scavenger hunt

As a parent, I’ve often wished activities lasted just a little bit longer! You can tailor the activity to the enthusiasm of the child, and if they seem keen, ask some questions to keep the topic going.

Have a conversation, and let the children tell you about their scavenged items from the list (or things they found and loved that weren’t on the sheet). If you need conversation prompts, here are some questions to ask:

• What did you find that is smooth/rough/prickly?
• What did you find that is damp/dry?
• Was there anything on the list you didn’t touch/pick up? Why?
• What is the most delicate object you found? Why do you say that?
• How would you describe [item]?
• What do you think would eat [item]?
• Where did you find [item]?
• Why do you think [item] ended up looking like that? What might have happened to it?

What to do with scavenger hunt items

In a class or a big group of students, you could end up with a pile of leaves, berries, conkers and so on. (I’m sure I don’t need to tell you not to collect the living creatures.) Plus anything else that the kids have picked up on the way.

Once your activity has come to a natural close — you’ve reached your destination on a walk, or people have found everything they want to find — think about what you could do with the items collected. You could make patterns, group them by colours, sort them big to small, make piles or arrange them into a picture.

How are you going to use this free autumn scavenger hunt list? Let us know on our Facebook page!

It is time for a summer activitiy and we have the perfect summer outdoor scavenger hunt printable for you to use.

Get out of the house and into see how many of these items the children can find.

Ways to use a scavenger hunt at this time of year

There are many ways that you can use a scavenger hunt in the summer. Here are some ideas:

• Use it as a way to get your kids outside. Print out the list, attach it to a clipboard, and watch their excitement as they tick things off
• It is the perfect game for an outdoor summer birthday party
• Bring it along to a local park as an activity
• It is a perfect forest school enrichment activity for the children to do as part of their outdoor exploring.

This a beautiful PDF worksheet. It is colorful and has some great pictures to help show the children what to look for.

What’s on the PDF Summer scavenger hunt checklist

Download the printable list and take copies out with you so you can tick off the signs of summer. Take it with you when you wander around the woodland, forest, or even your local urban area.

Slap on a hat and some sunscreen and get outside! Can you spot these things?

• Dandelion clock
• Caterpillar
• Butterfly
• Yellow petals
• Purple petals
• Ant
• Green leaf
• Two different types of grass
• Fruit growing
• Ladybird
• A twig shaped like a letter
• Animal tracks
• Worm
• Dragonfly
• Bee

Tips for Summer scavenger hunts

It can be very warm and sunny this time of year so remember to wear a good hat and apply sunblock on a regular basis. Rain is always a possibility so be prepared!

Remember: Only collect from the forest/woodland floor or with your eyes! And of course don’t collect living creatures and steer clear of mushrooms.

What kinds of tree are around you?

As well as being out in the woods, we think it’s important to know what’s there in the forest with us!

And that’s where this tree identification guide with pictures comes in.

How to use the tree identification guide

Simply enter your email below to access the printable. Then download it, print it out and use it in your setting.

There are two pages, and nine trees, plus space to make notes if you need to. It’s a tree leaf guide really, as it has photographs of the different leaves so you can spot the characteristic traits of the trees.

It’s designed in colour, but I know many people will only have access to black and white printing. It prints fine in black and white too, and if you print it double-sided it will fit on one sheet of paper.

Here’s how I use it.

Tree identification game

This is a game to help children learn about trees. Before you start the game, make sure you do actually have the trees in your wood! See below for a list of the UK trees covered by this guide.

Split the children into three teams.

Give each team a tree identification guide. They will be finding three trees per team. You can cut the tree ID sheet into sections and give each team a section with only their trees on if that is easier for you (and them).

Each team has to find the three trees on their sheet.

When a team finds a tree they think is one of theirs, I get them to explain what features they used to ID the tree. They can talk about leaf shape, twigs, buds, bark and so on, linking the ‘real’ tree to the tree ID notes on their guide sheet.

If they get it right, they can read out a ‘fascinating fact’ about the tree from their sheet (and I learned something putting that guide together!).

The winning team is the team that finds their trees first.

You don’t have to offer a prize – we typically don’t – but you could if there was a reason to, or you were using the game as part of an outdoor birthday party activity or something similar.

A British Tree ID Guide

Note that as we are in the UK, this is a British tree identification guide, covering the following trees:

• Rowan
• Oak
• Hazel
• Birch
• Willow
• Scots Pine
• Norwegian Spruce
• Sweet Chestnut
• Beech.

These trees may also be present in your location, but check before you send children off looking for them!

Share the trees!

We couldn’t find a guide to tree identification that we wanted to use in our setting, or one that would be suitable for sharing as part of a Forest School Level 3 portfolio. This leaf identification programme is OK, but hard to use when you are outside.

So I made one and frankly I think it’s the best tree identification guide out there, if I do say so myself!

Grab a copy and see what you think! Enter your email in the box below to download the PDF and share the trees with your community.

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