This Earth Day scavenger hunt printable deals from 108 finds, counts and small actions for April 22 or any day near it. 18 are recycling symbols and their numbers, 22 are living things, 29 are signs that somebody is looking after the place, 24 are actions a child can finish today and 15 are things to count. 53 work indoors.
Print a sheet for a class or a family
Choose 20, press a chip such as Living things or Indoors, and Lock the lines that suit your street, yard or classroom. Swap the rest, then press Print. The note under each line prints too, so a child gets the fact along with the find. Twenty is the longest list the page deals. For a class, Share the link so every group prints the same sheet.
What the recycling numbers mean
The number inside the arrows names the plastic: 1 is PET, the clear drink bottle, 2 is HDPE, the milk jug, 4 is the soft plastic of bags, 5 is PP and 6 is polystyrene foam. PAP means paper, ALU aluminum, FE steel and GL glass. A code is not a promise. It says what a thing is made of, and your town's list says what gets collected.
Tips
Every find is look-only. Nothing is picked or carried home except litter, and litter needs gloves or tongs.
An adult stays in sight for the whole hunt and handles glass jars, can rims and anything sharp.
Rain on April 22? Press Indoors for 53 lines that work in a kitchen or a classroom.
Questions and answers
When is Earth Day?
April 22, every year. The first one was held on April 22, 1970. The three chasing arrows on a recycling bin date from the same time: a 23-year-old student drew them for a design contest, and the symbol was never trademarked, which is why anyone may print it.
What age is it for?
A five-year-old can do the spotting lines with an adult reading aloud: a solar panel, a wildflower, a seed built for the wind. The recycling codes and the counts suit ages 8 and up, because they take small print and a tally. Nothing asks for a name or any typing.
What do we need to bring?
A printed sheet and a pencil. The litter line needs gloves or tongs and a bag. A magnifying glass helps with the codes, which are often molded small into the base of a tub, and a clipboard helps outdoors. Nothing is bought for the hunt and nothing living is collected. A tick or a photo is the proof.
Fall Scavenger Hunt Ideas142 autumn finds sorted by leaf color, leaf shape, seeds, fungi, animals and signs of the season, each with a fact underneath.
A crossed-out wheelie bin on something electricalLook on a charger label, under a toy or on the back of a remote. It marks electrical things, which need their own collection.
A juice or milk carton marked C/PAPC/PAP means paper joined to other materials, which is what a carton is. The number is 84.
A number 1 on a plastic bottle1 is PET, the clear plastic of soft drink bottles. Look on the base.
A number 2 on a milk jug or a bottle cap2 is HDPE, the tough plastic of milk containers and many caps.
A number 3 or a number 7The rare ones. 3 is PVC, used for pipes and window frames. 7 means any other plastic.
A number 4 on a plastic bag or a squeeze bottle4 is LDPE, the soft, stretchy plastic of bags and squeeze bottles.
A number 5 on a flower pot or a carry-out cup5 is PP, polypropylene. Microwavable food containers are made of it too.
A number 6 on foam packaging or a carry-out box6 is PS, polystyrene, the plastic that foam is made of.
A number inside a plain triangle, not chasing arrowsThe plastics code was redrawn in 2013 as a solid triangle, but many makers still print the arrows.
A plastic thing with no code on it anywhereHarder than it sounds. Check the base, the lid and inside the rim before you claim it.
A recycling symbol with a number inside itTurn over a bottle, a tub or a lid. A number from 1 to 7 tells you which plastic it is made of.
The letters ALU or FE on a can41 ALU is aluminum, as in drink cans and foil. 40 FE is steel, as in food cans.
The letters GL on a glass jar or bottle70 is clear glass, 71 is green and 72 is brown. An adult turns the jar for you.
The letters PAP on a cardboard boxPAP means paper. 20 is corrugated cardboard, 21 is thin board like a cereal box, and 22 is plain paper.
One thing with a code that your town does not takeA code is not a promise. It says what a thing is made of, and whether it gets recycled depends on local facilities.
The three chasing arrows with no number at allA 23-year-old student drew them for a design contest at the time of the first Earth Day, in 1970. The symbol was never trademarked, so anyone may print it.
Three different numbers on three different thingsLine them up in number order for the photo.
Your town's list of what goes in the recycling binOn the bin lid, a fridge magnet or the town website. The code tells you the material. The list tells you what your town takes.
Living things 22
A bird carrying something in its beakFood or nest material. Watch where it goes, from a distance.
A dead log turning back into soilCrumbly wood, moss, fungus, beetle holes. Look, and do not roll it.
A decomposer: a worm, a slug, a snail or a sow bugThey help turn dead plants back into soil. Look at the edge of a leaf pile and leave it as you found it.
A home: a nest, a burrow, a web or a hole in a treeSpot it from where you stand and come no closer.
A hoverfly holding still in the airLook for a small fly hanging in one spot over a flower. Hoverflies are often rated the most important pollinators after wild bees.
A living thing smaller than a grain of riceAn aphid, a mite, a tiny fly. A magnifying glass helps.
A patch of mud a bird could build withMany cup-shaped nests are made of grass and mud.
A plant that feeds somebody, and who the somebody isLeaves for a caterpillar, nectar for a bee, berries for a bird. Look, never taste.
A pollinator at work on a flowerInsects pollinate most plants, and bees are the best known. Watch from an arm's length and let it work.
A pollinator that is not a beeButterflies, moths, wasps and beetles all carry pollen too.
A puddle, a pond or a ditch with something alive in itLook from the edge with an adult beside you. Wrigglers and skaters both count.
A seed built to hitch a rideHooks or stickiness. Check socks, sleeves and the dog.
A seed built to travel on the windWings or fluff. Drop it from shoulder height and watch what it does.
A tree in bud, and a guess at what the buds will beLeaves or flowers? Come back in two weeks and see who was right.
A tree you think is older than your grandparentsA guess is fine. Ask an adult how anyone could find out.
A wildflower that planted itselfIn a lawn, on a verge or in a crack in the sidewalk. Leave it for the pollinators.
The biggest living thing you can see from where you standAlmost always a tree. The whole team points at once.
Lichen, and the shape it grows inFlat and crusty, leafy, or bushy like a tiny shrub. Many lichens are sensitive to air pollution, and the leafy and bushy kinds do best in clean air.
Something a bird could build a nest withDry grass, moss, a feather, a tuft of fur. Many small birds bind their nests with spider silk. Point to it and leave it for them.
Something green growing on a wall or a roofMoss, ivy, a fern in a gutter. Nobody planted it there.
Three kinds of seedA winged one, a fluffy one, one in a pod, one inside a fruit. Photograph them where they lie.
Two links of a food chain in one placeA chewed leaf and its caterpillar. Aphids and a ladybug. A flower and a bee.
Signs of care 29
A bike rack with a bike in itCount the bikes.
A book-swap box or a sharing shelfTake a book, leave a book. A book that is read twice needs no new paper.
A bug hotel or a bee houseA box of hollow stems, drilled wood or pine cones, put up for insects to shelter in.
A bus stop, a tram stop or a train stationRead where the next one is going.
A collection box for batteries or ink cartridgesTry a school office, a library or a shop doorway.
A community garden or a shared planterRead the sign to find out who looks after it.
A compost binCompost needs greens, such as grass clippings and food scraps, and browns, such as fallen leaves and cardboard.
A garden planted for pollinatorsLook for a small sign, or for a flower bed that is loud with bees.
A light that switches itself offA motion sensor in a hallway or a restroom. Walk out, wait and watch.
A nest box, a bird feeder or a bird bathSomebody put it there on purpose. Wait one quiet minute and see who visits.
A patch of grass left long on purposeLook for a mown edge around it or a sign that explains it.
A rain barrel under a downspoutIt saves roof water for the garden.
A reusable bag, bottle or lunch box in useCount how many your own team is carrying.
A sign asking people to stay on the pathRead it aloud, then do what it says.
A solar panelOn a roof, a road sign, a parking meter or a garden light.
A storm drain with a fish or a no-dumping markerMany storm drains run to a river or a stream with no treatment, which is what the marker is saying. Look from the sidewalk with an adult.
A storm drain, seen from the sidewalkIt is not the pipe under your sink. Storm drains are separate from the sewers that carry waste water.
A thrift shop, a repair shop or a swap tablePlaces where things find a second owner.
A toilet with two flush buttonsOne small flush, one big. Find out which is which.
A vegetable patch, a herb pot or a fruit treeFood that never needed a truck.
A water fountain or a bottle refill pointFill your own bottle while you are there.
A wind turbine, or anything the wind is turningA pinwheel counts on a breezy day.
A young tree with a stake or a guardSomebody planted it not long ago. See whether the tie still has room to grow.
An electric car charging pointLook at the edge of a parking lot for a post with a cable.
Laundry drying on a line or a rackSun and wind doing a machine's job.
The oldest thing in the room that is still in useAsk an adult how old it is. Old and still working means nothing new had to be made.
Something doing a second jobA jar holding pencils, a tire swing, a boot with flowers in it.
Something that has been mended, not replacedA patched knee, a taped book, a glued mug, a fence with one new board.
Trash, recycling and compost bins side by sideRead the labels. Which one would an apple core go in?
Small actions 24
Build a small pile of nest materialDry grass, moss and twigs that were already on the ground, left in one spot. Natural bits only.
Carry your own bottle or wrapper home because there was no binPockets count.
Draw or write on the back of a used sheet of paperBoth sides used before it goes in the paper bin.
Draw the three chasing arrows from memoryThen check against a real one. Which way do the arrows turn?
Flatten a cardboard box for the recyclingStamp on it. Flat boxes leave room in the bin.
Move a worm from the sidewalk to the soilUse a leaf and be gentle. Then wash your hands.
Pack a snack with no wrapper to throw awayFruit with its own peel is the easy answer.
Plant one seedIn a pot, a cup or a patch of soil you are allowed to dig.
Put one piece of litter in the right binGloves or tongs, with an adult beside you. Never touch glass, needles or anything sharp: point to it and tell the adult.
Refill a bottle instead of opening a new oneTap water is fine.
Rinse a can or a jar for the recyclingWith an adult, because can rims are sharp. Old dishwater does the job.
Shut a door or a window that is letting the warm air outAsk first if you are not at home.
Sit silent for one minute and count the sounds that are not machinesEyes shut, fingers up. Compare numbers afterward.
Sort five things into the right binsUse your town's list, not a guess.
Switch off a light in an empty roomCheck that the room really is empty first.
Teach someone what one recycling number meansPick the number you found first.
Think of a second use for something in the recycling binA clean thing, picked out by an adult. Say the idea aloud, and make the best one.
Turn off a dripping faucet, or tell someone who can fix itCount the drips for one minute first. That is what you saved.
Turn off the faucet while you brush your teethTonight counts. Report back tomorrow.
Unplug a charger nobody is usingAsk the owner first.
Walk, scoot or cycle to the huntIt counts the moment you arrive.
Water a plant that looks thirstyUse the water left in a bottle or a glass if you can.
Write a thank-you note to someone who looks after a place you loveA park keeper, a school caretaker, a neighbor with a good garden. An adult delivers it.
Write one promise for the year, in one sentenceSmall enough to keep. Put it on the fridge.
Count and compare 15
Count the bins in your home or classroomThen count how many of them are for recycling.
Count the birds you see in five minutesSit still in one spot. Tally marks, no names needed.
Count the cars and the bikes that pass in two minutesFrom well back on the sidewalk, with an adult.
Count the creatures under one stoneOne stone, lifted by an adult and set back exactly as it was.
Count the flower colors you can see from one spotTurn in a full circle before you give your number.
Count the kinds of seed the team foundDifferent shapes, not different sizes.
Count the lights left on in empty roomsSwitch them off, then count again.
Count the pollinator visits to one flower patch in three minutesPick a patch the size of a doormat and count every landing.
Count the things plugged in in one roomThen count how many are switched on with nobody using them.
Count the wrappers in your lunch boxTomorrow, try for a lower number.
Count your steps to the nearest treeFrom the front door, the school gate or wherever the hunt begins.
Measure a tree in hugsArms out, fingertip to fingertip around the trunk.
Sort your lunch leftovers: compost, recycling or trashCount each pile. The smallest trash pile wins.
Tally the litter you pass by type: plastic, paper, metal, glassWhich type wins? Count with your eyes. Picking up needs tongs and an adult.
Work out which recycling number you found most oftenMake a tally chart from 1 to 7.