Playing the game

Firstly, you are the game organiser and leader. You will therefore need to be present throughout the activity to introduce the plot, and then guide the children on their adventure.

The start of the story

The game starts by reading the start of the story. This tells the children what is expected of them. To progress in the game, the children have to start looking for various clues that you have hidden beforehand.

Hiding places

During the game preparation phase, plan a hiding place for each clue. Make a note of the hiding places on the planning sheet then choose how to announce them to the children, using a variety of these options : 

- Use a simple phrase like “your next clue is waiting for you near the swing" (perfect for younger children).

- Choose from amongst the ready-to-use riddles given in our 'ideas for hiding places' article ('Advice' section) (for children aged 7 years and above).

- Take a photo of the place where the clue is hidden. You can then show the photo to the children on a tablet, computer, TV, smartphone or paper printout.

- Or show one of our pictures of hiding places, which you can download by clicking here.

- You can choose to send the children off to look for clues in small groups (1, 2 or 3). This allows all the children to take part and stops the same ones always finding the clues.

Clues

The clues are the main theme of the game. Each clue requires the children to think or to carry out an action. After each clue has been completed, the children come back to you. If they get the answer right, they can move on to look for the next clue. If the children are having difficulty understanding a clue, help them so that they are not left behind. For children who are not able to read very well yet, it is up to you to read out the clues. You can also help to solve them.

End of the game

The game ends when the children have solved the last clue and find out how the story ends. It is then that you can hand out the certificates (to be printed). You can also plan to give them small gifts (books, small toys, homemade items such as crowns or magic wands for example) or packets of sweets as a reward. You may wish to hide them in a chest or cardboard box used as a treasure chest.