The kids loved this brain teaser treasure hunt. They ran around the park for 30 minutes looking for the hidden clues. I placed each clue in a plastic bag under the object referenced in the previous clue.
We started the hunt by reading them the first clue. The kids found the first one pretty easily but the rest made them think. There were four Irish sayings as clues and at the end we had a pot of gold (chocolate coins) for the kids to share. It was a blast.
To create your own treasure hunt, choose 4 or more Irish sayings and four items associated with the sayings. You are welcome to use mine. Below are my clues and sayings:
1) “Top o the morning to you.” The next clue was hidden inside the hat.
2) “Depend on the rabbit’s foot if you will, but remember it didn’t work for the rabbit.” ~R.E. Shay. The kids found a concrete rabbit with the next clue under the feet.
3) “What do you get when you cross poison ivy with a four-leaf clover? A rash of good luck.” ~Author Unknown. The kids found a shamrock plant hidden in monkey grass with the next clue under the pot.
4) “May your home always be too small to hold your friends.” ~Author Unknown. The kids found a small bird house hidden on top of a swinging bench with gold coins under it and around the grass that led to the pot of gold.
We had about 30 kids join in the fun. They loved eating all the chocolate coins. You can easily do this for another holiday. These kind of games make kids think outside the box as well as burn some energy.
I hope you have fun trying this with your kids!
Note: Something interesting I learned while creating this hunt is “Top o the morning to you” is not originally from Ireland but from New Zealand. If someone says “top of the morning to you” you should reply “and the balance of the day to yourself”. This translates into “thank you for wishing me a good morning, I now wish you a good afternoon”.
