Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt

About this resource

A Thanksgiving scavenger hunt for kindergarten, first and second grade: 16 numbered clue cards to cut and post around the room (Clues 1-15 and an END card), and recording sheets at two levels. Cut the cards apart, post them, and hand out a sheet. The child reads Clue 1, solves it, and circles or writes the answer on row 1 of the sheet. Each card ends with the number of the clue to find next, and the sheet rows carry the same clue numbers. Every student page has a big "My name" line, one short instruction, and room to work. Untimed: no clock, no score on the page. A classroom activity: nothing here is meant to be done outdoors or online.

EVERYTHING INSIDE (22 pages: 7 student pages, 2 cut pages, 13 for you)

• 16 clue cards: Clues 1-15 and an END card. Each card has a big number, a clue in large print and the number of the clue to find next (pages 6-7)
• The 15 answers: turkey, pumpkin, corn, pie, fork, spoon, cup, apple, basket, bread, plate, leaf, acorn, candle and sun
• Cards sit edge to edge, 8 to a page: three cuts across and one down, straight lines every time
• Circle It, Level 1: read the clue, circle the picture from three choices, 15 clues, each row labeled with its clue number (2 pages)
• Write It, Level 2: read the clue, write the answer on a half-inch writing line, 15 clues, each row labeled with its clue number (2 pages)
• Find It in Our Room: 8 pictures of things in a classroom (book, pencil, clock, door, window, chair, backpack, crayon), a box to check and a line to say where (1 page)
• Write a Riddle: 2 spaces to write a riddle of your own and draw the answer (1 page)
• My Word Bank: all 15 answer pictures with their words (1 page)
• 1 answer key for Clues 1-15, 1 tracker (5 rows, 38 items), 1 class grid, a helper and team note for an aide or substitute, a filled example (an invented student), a phrase and talk bank (16 starters), a binder cover and 6 divider tabs with a spine label
• Start Here, a how-it-works page and a "What's next" back page

Built For The Child, Not The Office

Every student page has a big "My name" line, one short instruction with a picture, rounded boxes made for a child's handwriting, and plenty of room. Everything for you (directions, answer key, tracking) is on separate teacher pages. The pictures are plain objects with no faces and no clothing.

Two Levels, Marked By Dots

One dot: starting (Circle It, pick the picture). Two dots: building (Write It, Find It, the word bank). Three dots: ready for more (Write a Riddle). The dots are the only level code, so children at one table are not comparing papers.

Post, Hunt, Record

Page 3 is a three-step Start Here: post the cards, hunt and record, check it and record it. Cards and sheet rows share the same clue numbers, so a child always knows which row a clue goes on. The answer pictures are on the Circle It and word bank pages, not on the cards, so the clue has to be read.

Type In, Or Print

The name and date lines, every writing line, every check box, the tracker, class grid and team note are type-in fields in any PDF reader. The cards are always printed. Every page also prints clean in black and white. This is a fillable PDF; it is not a Google Slides, Google Docs or PowerPoint file.

Who This Is For

Kindergarten, first and second grade teachers, special education and resource room teachers, interventionists, paraprofessionals and substitutes (the team note page is for them).

What This Is, And What It Is Not

An untimed Thanksgiving reading-and-writing hunt with the record-keeping around it. It is not a timed fluency probe or a goal page, not a full reading curriculum, and not a claim about any student's grade level or rate of progress. There are no facts about the holiday's history in it: the clues are about everyday Thanksgiving objects. The pictures show the answers on the sheets and the word bank.

Also From Bright Path Sped

Thanksgiving Write the Room, Thanksgiving Sentence Scramble Worksheets, Thanksgiving Color by Sight Word Worksheets and Thanksgiving Compound Words Worksheets.