Q&A: Central Park Zoo Scavenger Hunt for Kids

Today marks a new “Mom in the City” series where I answer questions from readers.

Question:
“I’m very interested in taking my little ones on a scavenger hunt in the zoo. Do you have a copy of the hunt that you can post on line?” – annie

This particular question was asked in response to a post, “Madagascar 3 and Central Park Zoo Scavenger Hunt”, that I wrote over on Foodie City Mom about a media event that I attended back in June. As I told Annie, a sheet wasn’t given out (Of course, I had asked!) Since more than one person has asked me the same question as Annie, I decided to come up with my own zoo scavenger hunt sheet. My husband and I used to work with preteens and young teens on a volunteer basis and our team would come up with some of the best photo and regular scavenger hunts for various parks and spaces (i.e. the Museum of Natural History) in NYC so this was fun!

Anyway, it is very simple to create your own scavenger hunt. Here is how to do it…

1. Decide on teams and designate a spot to meet up after a team figures out all of the clues. (If it’s a family of four, you can split up 2 and 2. Another fun option is to make it a group outing with additional families and split up according to families.)

2. Give each team a copy of this central park scavenger hunt clues sheet.*

3. Once a team figures out the answers to all of the clues and writes them down, then they should return to the designated spot. The first group that returns (with all of the correct answers) is the winning team. The second team that returns is second place; etc., etc. (Before the game starts, you can decide if you will give out prizes to the winners.)

4. (Option) Personally, I like team photo scavenger hunts the best. In addition to filling in the answers to the clues, each team will also take a photo of the animals that are the answers to the questions. These types of hunts are fun to do with Polaroid type cameras, but digital cameras will work too.

*Please note that if you are not participating in the hunt, you can come up with your own set of clues. Simply look at the Central Park Zoo website animal descriptions for guidance. I recommend eight to ten (maximum) animal clues.

Enjoy! Also, if you have any tips or questions regarding family activities in NYC, please email them to me at [email protected]. Thanks!