When national holidays roll around, it’s a great opportunity to jazz up your daily routine with themed excitement. St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner and we have just the activity to keep the kids learning and laughing throughout the day. We’ve taken the traditional scavenger hunt and added St. Patrick’s Day elements—leprechauns, gold, and rainbows—to create an adventure in your own home. We call it, the Pot O’ Gold Math Hunt.
What You’ll Need:
Colored construction paper (green, yellow, brown), scissors, tape, and a sharpie marker.
Setting Up:
Using colored construction paper, cut out the following shapes:
- 10-20 tiny green feet to represent the leprechaun’s footprints (this will determine the length of the hunt)
- 10 yellow circles to represent gold coins
- 1 brown kettle to represent the pot
Once you have all of your shapes cut, use tape to affix the yellow circles to the brown kettle cutout to create what looks like a mounting pile of gold. Now, it’s time to find a place to hide the pot o’ gold. You can lean it against any wall of your choosing, or use tape to place it on the inside of a cabinet or shower wall (we personally like this element of surprise).
Next, use your sharpie marker to write math problems on each of the tiny green feet leaving the answer blank for your child to write in. Finally, create the leprechaun’s path using the tiny green feet and tape, spacing them a few feet apart. Get creative and have them climb up a wall or under furniture before finally leading to the pot o’ gold.
You’re all set! Lastly, explain to your kiddo the legend of the leprechaun and how he can guide you to a pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow. Show your child the first footprint and encourage them to solve each math problem before jumping to the next footprint—eventually leading to the treasure.
