Weekend Event: University of Michigan Museum of Art Scavenger Hunt

This weekend is supposed to be a blustery snowy mess around Ann Arbor, I personally have a ton to accomplish with two birthday parties, another party my son is attending, and Disney on Ice - However if you have the opportunity, consider a Family Scavenger Hunt!

I used to, and STILL, enjoy scavenger hunts, they are a great way to entertain even the smallest family member and often involve occupying the attention span for lengthy periods of time. This weekend at the University of Michigan Museum of Art (525 S. State Street, Ann Arbor) the Ann Arbor Art Center is sponsoring a fun family workshop and scavenger hunt that involves scouring the museum. Talk about a GREAT educational opportunity!

With a list of clues in hand, families can unearth the amazing animals and mythical creatures lurking in paintings and sculptures throughout the museum's collections. All attendees will then finish off the scavenger hunt by creating an animal mask or clay creature inspired by a favorite beast while sharing everyone’s exciting discoveries. All materials for the event are included - Fee for parent and child: $15 members and UM Students/$18 non-members. Make sure to visit the University of Michigan Museum of Art's website to register; The scavenger hunt is presented by the Ann Arbor Art Center.

If you can't attend the savager hunt, consider creating one of your own - Just think of the peace and quiet you'll enjoy with preoccupied children. At the very least they'll be out of your hair for a little while. Kids are often naturally curious and active, so take advantage of that by getting them a checklist to send them on their merry ways. Here are some great ideas for easy-to-create scavenger hunts that I found on ehow.com:

HIKING:

Even though it is snowy, Ann Arbor is the perfect place to get outside and take a hiking scavenger hunt. Have the kids search for animal tracks in the snow (mud or dirt), pine needles or pine cones, assorted winter berries or fallen trees. Make sure to closely supervise the children and set boundaries to make sure they don't destroy nature or get lost - You can double the hunt as a trash pickup day! I would think that the trails at Matthai Botanical Gardens, Gallup Park or even the ones at Parker Mill would provide some fun winter entertainment!

INDOORS at THE MALL:

Briarwood Mall might be a perfect spot for an indoor scavenger hunt - Pick items like a napkin from Auntie Anne's Pretzels, a movie ticket stub from the dollar theatre, a piece of cash register tape from Gymboree. Again make sure the kids are supervised so that they do not make too much trouble, instruct them to ask permission before taking something, and possibly notify any associated stores of the impending activity!

A VIRTUAL SCAVENGER HUNT at AnnArbor.com:

The kids don't have to travel far for a scavenger hunt, instead pass out local newspapers and have a newspaper scavenger hunt! Make a list of items for kids to find in the paper to cut out. Example items to include are a picture with a swimming pool, a picture of an athlete and an ad for a church fundraiser. Be sure to tailor the items to the appropriate age level, older kids can find more advanced things like a spelling error or typo in a story, or specific words while younger children might be more limited to photos.