Fall Scavenger Hunt Outdoor Activities for Kids

Invite children from toddlers and preschoolers to teens outside on a scavenger hunt this fall with these printable autumn scavenger hunt ideas!

Here’s a collection of outdoor activity ideas that includes a printable fall scavenger hunt for toddlers, preschoolers, kindergarteners, elementary school-aged children, teens, and the young at heart, as well as several other fall scavenger hunt ideas. These autumn-themed nature scavenger hunts provide an excellent way for kids to get outside, learn, and have fun. Offer these fall activities as a fun and interactive way for little ones to learn while enjoying the beauty of autumn outdoors.

Children of all ages enjoy a scavenger hunt during the fall. The ideas below include several fall scavenger hunt ideas, including two different printable checklists with clues to look for. Using a printable autumn scavenger hunt can be as much fun for grown-ups as it is for kids! Older children and adults might prefer searching for the first signs of autumn. This activity includes a printable scavenger hunt geared towards readers. It also offers a valuable resource detailing subtle changes that occur as the summer ends and fall arrives. In addition to several more fall-themed clues to look for or become aware of that occur throughout the autumn season, beyond those in the simple scavenger hunt printable, as shown in the photograph below.

Fall Scavenger Hunt Ideas:

Crisp air, golden leaves crunching underfoot, and the warm, inviting colors of autumn create a beautiful backdrop for outdoor adventures. One of the most enjoyable ways to celebrate this season is with a fall scavenger hunt! It’s a fun outdoor fall activity perfect for families, classrooms, afterschool programs, and other community groups that turns a simple walk outside into an exciting game full of discovery. You might also enjoy this list of fall art projects, crafts, and painting ideas for kids.

First published on August 27, 2021, this list of outdoor fall activity ideas for kids is regularly updated to improve the content. Today, it includes several fall scavenger hunt ideas you can try. Get outside with the kids today to enjoy looking, listening, and sensing some familiar seasonal sights, sounds, and sensations that make the fall such a magical time of year. Here are a few fall scavenger hunt ideas for you to choose from:

1. Fall Scavenger Hunt with Locally Sourced Nature Clues:

1. Collect fall-themed items from your backyard, neighborhood, or a local park. (Only use items found in nature that you know to be safe to handle.)
2. Put the items in an egg carton, a shoe box (or other recycled container), or glue them to a sensory card. (Get step-by-step instructions for making a sensory card.)
3. Then, send the kids out to look for matches to the locally sourced nature clues you collected.
4. Get step-by-step instructions that teach how to create a nature scavenger hunt with locally sourced natural clues for young children HERE–> Nature Scavenger Hunt.

2. Fall Leaf Scavenger Hunts:

• Encourage children to notice the trees and the ground below them as you walk through parks, neighborhoods, or wooded areas.
• If you’re outside with young children, such as toddlers and preschoolers, looking for specific autumn colors is a fun and educational activity. Fall leaves appear in a variety of colors. Look for bright reds, oranges, and yellows. Add counting to this fall-themed scavenger hunt for even more fun!
• Encourage older children to identify leaves from different kinds of deciduous trees common in your area, such as maple, oak, or birch.
• You might also enjoy these fun outdoor fall leaf activities. Ideas include several more fun ways to learn and play with autumn leaves.

3. Fall-Themed Scavenger Hunts:

• Encourage participants to focus on a single classic autumn item, such as pumpkins, leaves (as mentioned above), migrating birds, or certain kinds of Halloween decorations, like skeletons, spider webs, jack-o’-lanterns, or any other fall-themed item.
• Looking for a single fall-themed item, such as pumpkins, whether on a doorstep, porch, farm stand, or at a grocery store, can turn an ordinary fall scavenger hunt into a meaningful, yearly family tradition that you continue through the season as the years pass. You might also enjoy painting a fall harvest pumpkin.

4. Printable Fall Scavenger Hunt Ideas:

• If you prefer bringing printables along with a list of clues, I’ve put together two printable fall scavenger hunt lists for you to choose from.
• The first features easy, picture-based clues perfect for younger children, such as toddlers and preschoolers, and the other offers more detailed, nature-inspired prompts that are ideal for older kids, teens, and even adults. Both are discussed in greater detail in the following sections.
• Whether it’s spotting acorns and pinecones or searching for colorful leaves and signs of wildlife, these autumn scavenger hunt ideas provide an excellent opportunity for kids and adults of all ages to connect with nature, spark curiosity, and enjoy the beauty of fall.
• No matter which scavenger hunt activity idea you choose, both fall-themed scavenger hunt ideas below are great ways to educate children about the gorgeous seasonal changes you can witness only during autumn. Nothing quite compares to the magic of autumn colors.

Printable Autumn Scavenger Hunt Activity for Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Kindergarteners

Scavenger hunts provide an excellent learning opportunity for children of all ages, and this simple autumn scavenger hunt printable is no exception. Offer this printable fall activity as a fun and interactive way for little ones to learn while enjoying autumn’s beauty outdoors.

Challenge the kids to check off all the autumn-themed items they can find in one day or for the entire season, and feel free to join in the fun. I always do! Learn how to offer this engaging fall activity to children, and discover the purpose and benefits of scavenger hunts in the following sections.

Access the printable here: Fall Scavenger Hunt Printable.

Printable Fall Scavenger Hunt Activity for Older Children and Adults:

You may also enjoy our Signs of Autumn scavenger hunt, designed for elementary-aged children, teens, and adults. As you can see in the photograph below, there are two printable versions of this fall-themed scavenger hunt. This fun and educational outdoor nature scavenger hunt idea helps older children and adults explore the nature signs that signal the arrival of fall. Encourage kids to search for the first signs of fall with this fun outdoor activity idea!

Access the printable here: Signs of Autumn Scavenger Hunt.

How to Go on a Fall Scavenger Hunt With Kids:

The instructions below share how to offer these outdoor fall activity ideas to young children:

1. First, choose one of the following options:
   • Learn how to create a nature scavenger hunt with locally sourced natural clues for young children HERE–> Nature Scavenger Hunt.
   • Visit the Rhythms of Play Learning Center to access the printable autumn-themed scavenger hunt for toddlers and preschoolers HERE—> Fall Scavenger Hunt.
     • You can also try the Signs of Autumn scavenger hunt if you instruct older elementary school-aged students, tweens, and teens.
     • Print your favorite fall scavenger hunt activity idea for kids onto cardstock or regular printer paper.
   • Choose one of the other fall-themed scavenger hunt ideas mentioned above, such as looking for colors of leaves or pumpkins.
2. Next, invite children to search for the autumn-themed clues, whether on a printable scavenger hunt or with the locally sourced nature clues you’ve gathered using this handy guide.
   • When you spot one of the clues or signs on the printable, put a check mark in the box next to the clue you noticed to complete that portion of the activity.
3. Finally, it’s optional to reward your children or students for a job well done once they have checked off a certain number of fall-themed items on the scavenger hunt list:
   • Children may not be able to find all the fall clues during a single outdoor adventure, depending on their location and the natural resources available to them in that particular area or region.
   • Excellent fall-themed rewards for kids include a trip to the pumpkin patch, a visit to the library for fall-themed books, a trip to the park, apple picking at an apple orchard, baking a fall treat such as pumpkin bread or apple pie, or going on an adventure to a corn maze.

Purpose of Scavenger Hunts: Learning Objectives and Benefits

The purpose of a scavenger hunt is to combine fun and learning by engaging participants in finding items or clues. As such, scavenger hunts encourage exploration, problem-solving, and teamwork as participants search for items based on a list of clues. Participating in this activity stimulates critical thinking, promotes physical activity, and enhances social interaction, making it a versatile activity for team-building, education, and entertainment for all ages.

These fall-themed scavenger hunts were created to inspire people to connect with the changing season in an enjoyable and meaningful way. As autumn brings its vibrant array of seasonal changes across the landscape, scavenger hunts help participants slow down and notice the seasonal details they might otherwise miss. They offer a chance to connect with nature, explore the outdoors, and develop observational skills while appreciating the sensory beauty of the fall season.

Scavenger hunts also serve as a tool for education and bonding. For children, they are an interactive way to learn about the environment, seasonal cycles, and local wildlife. For families and groups, a scavenger hunt offers a shared experience that encourages communication, cooperation, and a sense of play. Whether it’s finding specific colored leaves, animal tracks, or signs of animals preparing for winter, the tasks foster curiosity and teamwork.

Beyond their recreational and educational benefits, going on a fall scavenger hunt promotes physical activity and mental well-being. As people spend more time indoors during the colder months, these hunts provide a reason to stay active outside. They help children and adults of all ages disconnect from their screens and reconnect with their surroundings, making them a simple yet powerful way to celebrate the autumn season.

Benefits of This Fall Outdoor Activity:

As briefly discussed above, these printable scavenger hunt activities offer a delightful blend of educational, physical, and social-emotional benefits for toddlers, preschoolers, and kids of all ages. Scavenger hunts are more than just a hunt; they’re a journey of discovery. They encourage active play as toddlers and preschoolers run, walk, and explore their surroundings, learning to navigate their environment. This helps improve their gross motor skills, overall coordination, and many other physical benefits. 

Outdoor scavenger hunts like this are also an educational fall activity that encourages toddlers and preschoolers to engage with nature in a new way. This helps them learn to identify a few more subtle seasonal changes as quickly as the vibrant autumn colors that most people associate with the fall season. Thus, an autumn scavenger hunt can be a powerful tool for enhancing the observational skills of toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergarteners, an essential aspect of cognitive development. 

Ultimately, participating in a scavenger hunt with this printable fall outdoor activity for kids is a powerful way to foster social-emotional health and well-being. Not only does it help promote teamwork and communication as children work together to find items, but it is also a fun way to encourage friendships. It enhances children’s ability to explore the great outdoors, engaging their curiosity and improving their understanding in new and meaningful ways. 

Related: Nature Sensory Bin Scavenger Hunt

Fall Nature Scavenger Hunt Activity Idea for All Ages

Although this fall scavenger hunt printable was designed for toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergarteners, older children, and adults will also enjoy checking off the autumn-themed clues on the list. And, of course, you can always invite older children to search for the signs of autumn for even more of a challenge.

You will notice that both printables include similar autumn-themed items on their lists. However, the pictures on this printable fall scavenger hunt make it easier for children who have not yet learned how to read, while our Signs of Autumn printable is more challenging for older children and adults. For more fun outdoor activity ideas for kids, check out this list of engaging outdoor learning activities.

Learn more about Nell Regan Kartychok, author of these fall scavenger hunt outdoor activity ideas HERE, and Rhythms of Play HERE!

More Scavenger Hunt Ideas for Kids:

• Nature Sensory Bin Scavenger Hunt
• Seasonal Nature Scavenger Hunt Ideas
• Sensory Card Nature Scavenger Hunt
• Bird Scavenger Hunt Ideas (Included in Birding for Kids)
• Signs of Summer Scavenger Hunt
• Search for the Signs of Autumn Fall Scavenger Hunt
• Signs of Winter Nature Scavenger Hunt
• Search for the Signs of Spring Scavenger Hunt