Easy Toddler Activities | Going on a Treasure Hunt

Toddlers are always on the go, and need almost constant entertainment. There's so many simple and cheap activities you can do though to keep them busy, and having fun. Jack works in a nursery so is full of great ideas, and his most recent was to create a treasure map and go on an adventure! It was a huge hit with our two year old Indiana, and both of us and her 1 year old brother loved it too.

The map was SO simple to make. Most people have paper laying around and tea bags in the cupboard, making it completely free too. Just pour / dab the paper with tea (or coffee) and leave to dry. Scrunch up the paper to give it a really old look - you could tear or burn the edges to add extra effect if you want too! 

Once the paper is dry simply add on things / places to spot, and make sure you don't forget the all important 'X' marks the spot! We chose to do our hunt at our local National Trust property Knole Park, so added things such as the house, deer and the golf course for Indiana to find. Once finished we rolled it up and tied it with string to complete the look.  

The second we arrived Indiana wanted to begin the adventure. We unrolled the map and she was off! We found everything on the map with Indie leading the way. She loved pointing out the pictures on the map and then discovering them in real life. The deer were probably her favourite, and she wasn't shy in going to show them her map.

Of course Parker is still a bit too little at 12 months, but he loved playing with the map too. Although with Indiana by his side pointing things out, I'm sure it won't be long before he's off finding the treasure with her!

We didn't keep the activity going too long as, 2 year olds don't have the longest attention span - the good thing about this is you can the activity as long or short as possible! I sneaked off ahead and placed the 'treasure' is an easy to reach and see spot (I say easy, but it took her about 5 minutes to find it, even when it was right in front of her haha).

We just used a medal we already had and some little sweets, but you could use anything you have laying around - if you're feeling creative you could even make a treasure chest to hide the treasure in! Indie was thrilled with her prizes though and proudly wore her medal for the rest of the day.

We did so much walking and exploring during the hunt - much more than Indie would usually do as she can get quite lazy. So if you have a toddler and want a fun, cheap and easy activity to do. Make a treasure map and go on an adventure!