When the kids are looking for something to do indoors, give them a few clues and see what they notice around the house. A sock, a spoon or a book with a number on the cover can turn an ordinary room into a scavenger hunt.
This free printable has 30 indoor scavenger hunt clues, with a different page for each age group. Toddlers aged 2–3 can point to familiar objects, kids aged 4–6 can tick off what they find, and older kids aged 7–10 can solve riddles and explain their discoveries.
Choose the page that suits your child and start in whichever room you’re already in. If siblings are playing together, give each child their own page and let them share what they find along the way.
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How to Play the Indoor Scavenger Hunt
Choose a list and decide where to look. A living room and hallway might be enough for a quick round, or you can use several rooms for a longer hunt. Give each child a pencil or a few stickers to mark what they find.
Start with any clue. Kids can point to each item or show you where they spotted it. If a clue doesn’t suit what you have at home, skip it or make up a replacement together.
Indoor Scavenger Hunt for Toddlers Ages 2–3
Show your toddler one picture at a time and ask, “Can you find one like this?” Let them point to the item, then help them put a sticker on the picture. You can start with three or four clues and save the rest for another round.
- Find a sock.
- Find a spoon.
- Find a pillow.
- Find a shoe.
- Find a book.
- Find a cup.
- Find a towel.
- Find a chair.
- Find a ball.
- Find something blue.
Once they’ve found an item, try a quick follow-up. “You found one shoe. Where’s its partner?” Or see if they can find a second blue object in the same room.
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Indoor Scavenger Hunt for Kids Ages 4–6
This checklist gives kids a reason to look more closely at familiar things. Read the clues together or let your child read the ones they can. Ask them to show you their match before ticking the box.
- Find something with a zip.
- Find two things that are the same colour.
- Find something shaped like a circle.
- Find a book with an animal on the cover.
- Find something you wear when it’s cold.
- Find something longer than your hand.
- Find something with stripes or spots.
- Find something made of paper that isn’t a book.
- Find something with a lid.
- Find something that makes a sound when you tap it gently.
If your child finds several matches, let them pick the most surprising one. A clock face, a plate and a roll of tape can all fit the circle clue.
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Indoor Scavenger Hunt for Kids Ages 7–10
For this hunt, solve a riddle and find something that fits, or pick an observation challenge and explain what you discovered. Use the space on the printable to write a few words or make a quick sketch.
Five Indoor Scavenger Hunt Riddles
- I have a spine and pages, and I can tell you a story. What am I?
- I have a face and hands, but I can’t smile or clap. What am I?
- I have teeth in a row and can help tidy your hair. What am I?
- I copy your smile, but I never make a sound. What am I?
- I have a tongue and sometimes laces, but I never say a word. What am I?
Five Look-Closer Challenges
- Find something with a number on it that isn’t a clock. What does the number tell you?
- Find a repeating pattern. Draw the smallest part that repeats.
- Find two objects made of the same material that do different jobs. What is each one used for?
- Find something that opens without a handle. Show or explain how it opens.
- Choose a household object and write a riddle about it. Can someone else solve it and find the object?
Riddle Answers
- A book
- An analogue clock or watch
- A comb
- A mirror
- A shoe
If your child comes up with a different answer that fits the whole clue, count it and ask them to explain how they worked it out.
How to Play With Siblings of Different Ages
Give each child the page that suits them and let them search the same room. One object can solve several clues. A toddler might point to a book, a younger sibling might notice the animal on its cover, and an older child might spot a number and work out whether it’s the book’s volume or part of the title.
You can also give an older child a turn as the clue reader. Let the youngest choose what to look for first, then swap roles when it’s time for the older child to solve a riddle.
Try a One-Room Scavenger Hunt
Pick one room and choose five clues that could work there. If an item is usually somewhere else, change the clue to match the space. In the living room, “Find a spoon” could become “Find a cushion”. A little boundary like this makes the game easy to play in a flat or when you want to keep everyone together.
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Download the Free Indoor Scavenger Hunt Printable
The free printable includes three pages with 10 clues each. Choose the picture hunt for ages 2–3, the tick-off checklist for ages 4–6, or the riddles and observation challenges for ages 7–10. Print one page for a quick round or all three if siblings want to play together.
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Take the Hunt Outside
If the kids want another round outdoors, try my Backyard Scavenger Hunt for Kids. It also has a free printable with a separate hunt for ages 2–3, 4–6 and 7–10.