Memorial Day Scavenger Hunt – Printable List for the Weekend

Q: Can a class do it before the long weekend?

Yes. Find and read works indoors with a calendar, a library book and a grown-up's search: the words Decoration Day, a poem about poppies, the word Taps. Send Home and neighborhood home as the weekend sheet.

All 90 finds

Home and neighborhood 56

A bag of ice with a hole torn in it Spot it before it melts.
A beach towel drying on a railing Any railing, any stripes.
A bee or a butterfly on a flower Look, never catch.
A bike with a helmet hanging from the handlebar Parked, not ridden.
A bowl covered with foil or a cloth Guess what is under it before it is opened.
A burger bun with seeds on top Count ten seeds without touching.
A camper, a tent or a boat being packed or unpacked Seen from the sidewalk.
A closed sign on a door that is open most Mondays Memorial Day is a federal holiday that most businesses observe.
A dish that came from another house Ask who made it. That is the whole task.
A dog sitting as close to the grill as it is allowed Spot it. The dog gets nothing from your plate.
A flag flying halfway down its pole before noon On Memorial Day the flag is raised to the top, then lowered to half-staff, where it stays only until noon.
A flag folded into a triangle In a display case, a photo or a book.

Show all 90 finds (78 more)

Home and neighborhood, continued

A flag hanging straight down, with no wind Wait a minute and see if it lifts.
A flag on a pole fixed to a porch post Count the porches on your block that have one.
A flag patch on a jacket, a bag or a cap Spot it. No need to ask about it.
A flag reflected in a window or a car door Move until you see it.
A flag sticker on a car's bumper or back window Parked cars only, seen from the sidewalk.
A folding table with something wedged under one leg Somebody fixed a wobble.
A garden hose lying uncoiled across a lawn Step over it, not on it.
A grill cover lying on the grass It just came off for somebody's first cookout of the year.
A house with more than one flag Count them from the sidewalk.
A jar of pickles with a fork in it The fork must be standing in the jar.
A kite, a ball or a flying disc in the air It has to be off the ground when you call it.
A lemonade stand, or a sign for one Read the price aloud.
A pair of flip-flops by a door Left there by their owner.
A paper napkin held down by something heavy A rock, a fork or a bottle.
A pitcher with fruit slices floating in it Lemon, lime or orange.
A plate with nothing left on it but a crust or a stem Any plate at the table.
A porch swing or a hammock with someone in it A wave is fine. Let them rest.
A red poppy, paper or real On a collar or in a garden. The American Legion adopted the poppy as its symbol of remembrance in 1920.
A ribbon tied in a bow on a tree, a post or a mailbox Any color counts.
A row of small flags along a curb or a path Three or more in one line.
A screen door that slams Heard counts.
A serving spoon standing upright in a bowl It has to stand by itself.
A sign or a banner with the word remember on it Remembrance and in memory of count too.
A small flag standing in a flower pot or a lawn Leave it where it stands.
A squeeze bottle standing on its cap Ketchup or mustard, upside down.
A stack of paper plates taller than a cup Stand a cup beside it to check.
A sun hat with a brim wider than a dinner plate Judge it by eye.
A swimming pool with its cover off Spotted from outside the fence or the gate. Memorial Day marks the unofficial beginning of summer.
A tomato plant with a stake or a cage In a pot or in the ground.
A wading pool or a water table set out on a lawn Spotted from where you are.
A wreath on a door, a gate or a monument Flowers or leaves in a ring. Look, do not touch.
An apron with words on it Read the words aloud.
An empty chair saved with a sweater or a hat Leave the sweater where it is.
An ice cream truck, or its song Heard from far away counts.
Chalk drawings on a driveway or a sidewalk Walk around them.
Daylight after dinner Step outside after the meal: is the sky still light?
Red, white and blue flowers planted together All three colors in one bed or one pot.
The same flag back at the top after noon At noon it is raised to full-staff for the rest of the day.
Smoke rising straight up from a grill No wind, no wobble. Watch from a step back.
Somebody carrying two plates at once One in each hand counts. One stacked on the other does not.
Somebody mowing a lawn Seen or heard. Stay well back.
Someone raising or lowering a flag Watch from where you are and stay quiet until it is done.
Three kinds of salad on one table Potato, pasta, fruit or green. Name each one.
Tongs longer than your forearm Measure with your eyes, not at the grill.

Parade or ceremony 18

A banner that names a veterans' group Read it from the curb.
A bugle or a trumpet playing alone At commemoration ceremonies Taps is played on the bugle. Stand still until the last note.
A cap covered in pins or patches Spotted from where you stand.
A color guard carrying the flags Stand until the flags have passed.
A drum keeping the marching beat Tap the beat on your leg.
A hand held over a heart Yours can be the one.
A large flag carried flat by several people Count the people holding it.
A monument with flowers at its foot Look, do not touch.
A program or a leaflet for today's ceremony Find the time it begins.
A row of empty chairs waiting for guests Leave them empty.
A salute as the flag goes by Hold still until the hand comes down.
A scout troop, a school band or a youth group marching Read the name on their banner.
A truck or a car from the armed forces, old or new In the parade or parked beside it.
A whole crowd standing in silence Say nothing. Tick it afterward.
A wreath being carried or laid Stay quiet while it is set down.
Marchers in uniform walking in step Watch their feet: left, right, together.
Somebody reading names aloud Listen to at least three.
Three generations standing together A child, a parent and a grandparent.

Find and read 16

A clock at 3 o'clock in the afternoon The National Moment of Remembrance is at 3 p.m. local time: a minute of silence for those who died in service.
A photo or a medal of someone in your family who served Ask a grown-up to tell you one thing about them. Not every family has one.
A picture of rows of headstones, each with a small flag Volunteers place American flags on graves in national cemeteries for Memorial Day.
A plaque or a stone with a list of names Read three names quietly. Memorial Day mourns U.S. military personnel who died while serving.
A poem about poppies In Flanders Fields, written in 1915, speaks of poppies growing among the graves of soldiers.
A street, a park, a bridge or a school named in memory of someone Look for memorial or in memory of on the sign.
Armed Forces Day on a May calendar It comes earlier in May and honors those serving now.
Flowers in bloom today May 30 was chosen in 1868 so that the choicest flowers of springtime could be found all over the country.
The last Monday of May on a calendar Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May. Find this year's date.
May 30 on a calendar The day was kept on May 30 until a law passed in 1968, in effect from 1971, moved it to the last Monday in May.
The name of a war on a monument Read the years beside it. The holiday began after the Civil War of 1861 to 1865.
November 11 on a calendar That is Veterans Day, which honors all who have served. Memorial Day is for those who died in service.
The word Taps In a program, a songbook or online with a grown-up. It is the bugle call played at commemoration ceremonies.
The words Decoration Day In a book, on a plaque or online with a grown-up. It is what Memorial Day was first called.
The words Memorial Day in print On a sign, a card or a newspaper. The name was first used in 1882.
The year 1868, written anywhere The first national Decoration Day was held on May 30, 1868, at Arlington National Cemetery.

How this list was compiled: An original list of October 2026: 90 finds for the Memorial Day weekend. 18 are flags and signs of remembrance seen from the sidewalk, 20 belong to the cookout, 18 are first signs of summer, 18 are seen at a parade or a ceremony and 16 are things to find and read about the day. Nothing was copied from another list. The 20 notes that state a fact about the day were checked on 2026-10-15 against Wikipedia's article Memorial Day, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day, and the Memorial Day history page of the National Cemetery Administration at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, https://www.cem.va.gov/history/Memorial-Day-History.asp. The other notes are spotting rules, not facts. Every find is made by looking, listening or reading: nothing is touched, moved or collected at a memorial or a cemetery, nobody in a crowd is approached, the grill is watched from a step back and a pool from outside its fence. Levels are a judgment of how rare a find is, not a standard. Licence: own work

How it works

The weekend opens the summer, and the Monday is for those who died in military service. This Memorial Day scavenger hunt holds both: flags, cookout and first-of-summer finds, and a quiet round to find, read and remember.

Read the full guide

Around home, then around town

The sheet opens on Home and neighborhood: ten finds from the flags on the street, the cookout and the first signs of summer, none farther than a walk around the block. Going to a parade or a ceremony? Choose Parade or ceremony in the menu under the button. Everything on it is spotted from the curb, standing still.

The find-and-read round

Find and read is about the day itself: a calendar, a plaque, a poem, a clock at three. Most notes give one checked fact, such as why May 30 was chosen in 1868. Read it aloud when the find is ticked. On the Monday, stop at 3 p.m. for the minute of silence.

Before noon, look for a flag at half-staff. After noon, find the same flag at the top.
At a memorial, read names quietly, stay on the path and leave every flag and flower in place.

Questions and answers

What do you put on a Memorial Day scavenger hunt?

Things the weekend really has: a red poppy, a row of small flags along a curb, a squeeze bottle standing on its cap, a swimming pool with its cover off. Add finds that teach the day, such as the year 1868, written anywhere.

How do you keep a Memorial Day hunt respectful?

Keep the remembrance finds to looking and reading. Nothing is touched, moved or collected, and nobody in a crowd is approached. Say what the day is for before the start, and pause together at 3 p.m.

Is there a treasure hunt for Memorial Day?

This list hides nothing: its treasure is the last box ticked. For rhymes that lead to a prize hidden in the yard, print the outdoor treasure hunt clues. The last clue there has a blank for the place.

Can a class do it before the long weekend?

Yes. Find and read works indoors with a calendar, a library book and a grown-up's search: the words Decoration Day, a poem about poppies, the word Taps. Send Home and neighborhood home as the weekend sheet.