Theme Party Thursday: Scavenger Hunt

Heaven knows I am the queen of theme parties. However, my kids now inform me that they are too old for theme parties. Thus, I have decided to post all of my theme party ideas online so I can delete them from my files. I'll post one a week over the next several weeks. However, if you're desperate for a certain theme sooner, just submit it in my comments and I'll see what I can do to help.

Oh and piece of advice. I only schedule my parties to last 90 minutes for small/elementary school aged kids (unless we go swimming or bowling or something). Cuz the games will go fast and you will end up with lots of kids out of control. I also tend to run my parties the same way. 1) welcome activity. 2) games 3) gifts 4) eat 5) party favors & good-byes. That way if a parent comes early the kids can take their cake to go and not miss out on the fun. 'Nuff said. Here goes... Enjoy!
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This is a great one for the pre-teen or young teen. The good thing is, the bulk of the party is taken up by the scavenger hunt, and you don't need to plan a whole lot of activities.

Invites:

The Game’s Afoot!
It’s [child's name]'s birthday!

I’ve searched and hunted for things to do,
Of course I decided to invite you too!
So if you’re up for a challenge, some adventure and fun
then come join the party for a scavenger hunt!

[date]

[time]

[location]

Regrets only [ph #]

Type of scavenger Hunts:
Take the Cake: Decide on cake recipe and then use the same amount of ingredients for the list of scavenger hunt items to be found (i.e., 1 C sugar, 3 eggs, 2 tbsp cooking oil in plastic baggie). When the group returns, have everyone help bake the cake. While the cake is baking, continue with the other food and presents, or any other game.
Silly Sounds: Give each group a list of items and a voice recorder. The groups will then go and try to find the sounds. The first group back with all of the sounds recorded wins. Use things, like “train whistle”, “bell”, “dog bark”, “baby cry”, etc.
Picture Hunt: Give each group a digital camera or camcorder. Include a list of items around town. The first group back with all of the images on their camera wins.
Mall Hunt: Give each group a set amount of money, such as $5. Then give a list of items to purchase. Items could be things like “hair clip from Claire’s”, “pen from Office Max”, “chocolate dipped Oreo from Suzy’s Chocolate”, etc. Visit the mall ahead of time to determine items, stores, and cost for each group. If you want, you could give each group an extra $10 and have them purchase a gift card from the birthday child’s favorite store. At the end of the party, the bought items become the party favors, and the gift cards is one of your gifts to your teen.
Bigger & Better: Split guests into groups of 3 or more. Give each group a penny. Explain that they have a certain time limit to try and exchange their penny for something bigger or better. They can continue to trade up for things that are bigger or better, as long as they return within the time limit. Then, when all the groups return, determine which group has the biggest item and which group has the best. Award both groups with a prize, such as a bag full of mini candy bars.
Traditional Scavenger: Make a list of hard to find items for a traditional scavenger hunt. Use items such as a “wheat penny”, “broken mug”, “foam hair roller”, “unused baby diaper”, “red inked pen” etc.


*We did the "bigger & better" scavenger hunt for my oldest son's 12th birthday. Everyone thought it was a hit. We had 3 groups and ended up with a Giant, bigger-than-life stuffed tiger, a 6 foot Artificial Christmas Tree and a girls pink bike. It's amazing what other people are willing to let you haul away. When the kids got back they had worked up an appetite. It was perfect timing as our 5 Buck Pizza had just arrived. They basically just hung out and shared their "hunt stories", ate pizza and drank soda till it was time for presents, cake & ice cream.

Party Favors: I didn't make any themes party favors for the guests as my son insisted that I not. (he was "too old"). But I did have their dad drive around the neighborhood snapping shots of each group on their hunts. After we developed the prints and handed them out to his friends. They loved that. I also sent them home with a movie-size candy. They were like 88 cents each at Wal-Mart. I attached a little note that said, "thanks for playing". It was perfect for teens.