Review: Clued in Kids

Recently we were given the opportunity to review two treasure hunts from Clued in Kids.  The first, Homework Reward Treasure Hunt was completed by my son alone.  The second, Thanksgiving Treasure Hunt was used at his birthday party.  Both were PDF downloads that I printed at home and retail for $5.99.  The hunts can be used by kids of all ages although younger ones may need some assistance.  All you need to do is cut the pages in half and hide the individual clues (they even say at the bottom where it should be hidden).

The treasure hunt for a day stuck in the house

Sniffles, congestion, and a low grade fever.  My Schnickelfritz was under the weather—and it was homeschool gym day.  He wasn’t so sick that he didn’t want to play, but I also didn’t want him to pass on germs so we had to stay home.  His consolation prize was his own private treasure hunt.  I hid the clues while he was doing schoolwork in our basement classroom. The set up was easy-peasy, even when my son in the house.  How often do kids pay attention to mom puttering about.  I did have to wait until he left his room to take a shower to plant clues in specific drawers and put the prize under the bed.

This homework themed hunt was written from a traditional school point of view with references to the yellow bus,  school bell, and the need for a backpack but it was all still do-able for us homeschoolers (even we have a back pack, although it has a cooler and we use it for picnics).   If you’re using this with younger kids, they need to be able to multiply 10X10, read a clock face, and recognize playing cards.  One of the challenges involved folding and flying a paper airplane, something my son really hasn’t done, so I had to find printable instructions online to place with that particular clue.

It took my son 34 minutes to work through all the clues and find the new DVD at the end.  Most of the time was spent finding the clues – although the locations are set by the clues, I can be devious in where they’re hidden at each location.  For instance the “bath” clue was wrapped around the shower pipe in our basement bathroom.  The hardest clue for him had to do with pajamas—the letters P, J, and S were spaced far enough apart that he didn’t recognize it as PJ’s and he was trying to come up with words to fit the initials, like Peanut butter & Jelly Sandwich.

Treasure Hunt for the party

My son’s birthday is in the fall and we always celebrate with bonfires, hay rides, and a romp in the leaf pile.  This year Schnickelfritz asked for an “orienteering” themed party.  Rather than have the kids race through my house, typed up a sheet with all the answers written randomly with each assigned a specific number.  The number pointed them to a map (I used a Google satellite image) with recognizable points on our property (back of the barn, wagon wheel, etc.) where they would find there next clue.  By the way, make sure all the parents are there to watch the kids run around the house three times gobbling like a turkey.  The party treats were hidden at the final location. The Thanksgiving theme worked with our fall event (we don’t celebrate Halloween, but there is a themed hunt for that available) and 12 years old-12 clues was a perfect match..  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since we’re talking about groups of kids at this point, let me say that each clue has a spot to write in the name of a child at the top.  This way you can make sure everyone has a chance at solving the clues.  I know from experience that letting the one who gets there first be the clue-reader/solver can lead to pushing and shoving and eventually hurt feelings. 

The only downside to these treasure hunts is they can only be used once with the same kid or group of kids.  Still it was nice to have around for taking a sick child’s mind off what he was missing and entertainment for a party.

The treasure hunts are designed for kids ages 4 and up, and they say 1-10 kids (you decide if you really want 10 kids running through your house). Want to try a Clued in Kids treasure hunt for yourself.  You can receive the same Homework Reward hunt we did by signing up for the Clued in Kids newsletter.