Treasure map for kids activity

The Pirate Treasure Map

I was going to write up a different game this week but I played this one on Monday when a friend with two boys came over for a “play-date” (hate that word – I prefer Chaos Catch-Up 😛) and it was such a hit with all four kids that I wanted to share it with you all ASAP!

The basic idea – a pirate has broken into your house and hidden letters and treasure but left a map (pirates are so bloody stupid!) – your child has to follow the map to find all the letters until they reach the end where X marks the spot and treasure is hidden. So here’s how I did it…

Draw a rough simple map of your house/garden and plant 6 letters and some sort of treat. I buried gold coins in our sandpit but you can place cakes under buckets, actual coins under a pillow etc. etc.

2. Roll map into a scroll with a pencil and plonk it by your letter box. Ask the kids if they heard the postman and do they want to go and see what he’s posted.

3. Tell them the map says “Pirate Pete has hidden treasure in your house/garden and it is their job to find all letters and write them down by following the map. If they do it correctly they will find the X and the buried treasure.”

4. Help them with where to start, then let them find the letters and write them down as they find them, following the map each time.

5. At the end they find the treasure, they are SUPER GIDDY if anything like the four in my garden, and yet what they have actually done is practice writing 6 letters. Bingo!

Obviously you can do variations on this depending on what your child is into. Perhaps a cheeky fairy hid them and left a note, or a disgusting troll, or a naughty witch. If they are too little for writing they can just find the letters, as we did with the little ones who are just two. Whatever works to get their little imaginations running wild. And yes the kids were all starkers playing this because it was boiling hot. It meant for some careful

Avast, me hearties! Make this pirate’s treasure map game and challenge your family to find the hidden booty!

How to make a pirate treasure map game

What you’ll need…

Two A3 sheets of paper
Water
Instant coffee and/or tea bags
Spoon
Old cloth
Pen
Bowl
Sponge
Scissors
Ribbon
Toys or sweets for treasure

Step 1

Mix the tea bags and coffee into a bowl of warm water. Put the cloth under the paper and sponge the mixture onto the paper. Repeat with the other piece of paper. Leave to dry.

Step 2

Once dry, your paper will look old and dirty – perfect for a pirate map! Now scrunch up the paper and tear all the edges. In the middle, you can even make holes, but be careful not to rip them too much!

Step 3

Time to design your map! Choose four locations in your house, like the bathroom or kitchen, then mark them on your map with a pen. Add skulls, caves and other spooky images to make it look pirate-y!

Step 4

Pain the map’s edges and flick it with specks of the tea mixture. Now rip the other sheet of paper into pieces (one for each letter of the treasure’s location), e.g. six for FRIDGE.

Step 5

Write a letter on each piece of paper and put them at the map locations. Hide your treasure in the place the letters spell out. Tie the map with a ribbon and let your motley crew get plundering!

How to play your pirate treasure map game!

Now you have your genuine pirate map. here’s how to play your game!

1) The aim of the game is to follow the treasure map to four different locations, where different letters are hidden that spell out the whereabouts of the treasure. One player is the pirate who knows where the treasure is hidden, and the others are the scurvy plunderers looking for the booty!

2) To set up the game, the pirate must take the letters that spell out where the treasure is, and hide them at each location on the treasure map, along with the treasure (sweets or toys) in the place that the

Ways to Play

Go on a Treasure Hunt!

Hide treasure (stickers, snacks, or pennies are fun) and mark it on the map (X marks the spot) for your child to find! Consider adding lines for a suggested path, riddles, clues, and warnings for your adventurer to follow. Mix it up by having the entire family take turns hiding treasure to see if the others can follow the map to find it.
Level up the learning by taking the time to talk about how the hunt went. Some example questions include:

What things on the map were the most/least helpful?
What might we change on our map for next time?

Expand and Contract

If you have mapped one room, can you map the whole house? What about the yard? Neighborhood? Alternately, what if you zoomed in really close into one room, or one part of a room. Play with adding and taking away details to grow and shrink the scope of a map is a great way to introduce and talk about scale.

Map More

Maps can communicate all kinds of information! What are some other things that can be mapped? Some ideas to get your started:

Where you go and what you do there each day.
Favorite places to play, hide, or read.
Where pets like to hang out.
Where flowers or bugs are growing or living. Using maps to observe nature is great, because the map can be checked and updated regularly!

This is a great opportunity to talk about map keys and symbols.

Extend the Learning

For learners ages 3 to 4, consider starting with a map of just one room using blocks or other items. Try pointing out on the model where you have hidden something. Help them think through how to find it.
Practice using and looking at maps. What do you notice about other maps? How do they use color? Keys? Symbols? How are maps different from one another? Why might that be? What kinds of information do different maps communicate?
Try mapping places in our imagination. Maps are often included in literary works – make a map of a location described in a favorite book or story, or make u

Simple treasure map

Make Your Own Treasure Map

Go on a treasure hunting, pirate adventure with your little one! Your preschooler will have a blast making their very own treasure map and searching for hidden letter clues to find the treasure. This fun, play-based learning activity is great for both fine and gross motor skills, as well as important early literacy skills.

My Pre-K Box: The best monthly subscription box for kids ages 3-5

My Pre-K Box is an educational subscription box for preschoolers filled with different learning activities for math and literacy skills! Each box is based on a different theme and is focused on play based learning. Your kids will love exploring new activities each month while practicing kindergarten readiness skills!

Learn More

Making the Treaure Map

Materials

paper grocery bag cut into 2 rectangular pieces
water
coffee and/or tea bags
spoon
old cloth
black marker
pencil
bowl
sponge
something to use as "treasure" - a favorite toy, pretend pirate treasure (gold beads, treasure chest, etc.), a sweet treat (juice box, lollipop, etc.) - really anything works here!

Instructions

Step 1 Mix the tea bags and/or coffee into a bowl of warm water.

Step 2 Put one of paper on top of the old cloth and use the sponge to put the mixture onto the paper, turning it a darker, multi-toned brown.

Step 3 Repeat step 2 with the other piece of paper and leave both to dry.

Step 4 Once the papers are dry it will look old and dirty, just like a pirate map! Scrunch up the paper.

Step 5 Choose fo

How to make a treasure map for kids

Treasure hunt map with clues