Guides

Things that actually work with children, written by someone in the middle of it rather than someone describing it from a distance. Mostly about filling the gaps: the car, the airport, the wet afternoon, the walk between two things nobody wanted to walk between.

For parents

Scavenger hunts when your kids are different ages

How to run a scavenger hunt when your kids are four and ten. Practical ways to keep both interested at once, without making either feel patronised.

6 min read
Seasonal

Autumn scavenger hunt for kids

An autumn scavenger hunt for kids: thirty things to find on a walk, sorted by how hard they are, plus what to do when it rains.

7 min read
Travel

Car journey games that survive longer than ten minutes

Games for long car journeys with kids: what works at what age, what to do when the tablet dies, and how to get more than ten minutes out of each one.

7 min read
Travel

Games to play with kids on holiday

What to actually do with kids on holiday: games for the airport, the pool, a new city and the long afternoon when everyone has had enough of sightseeing.

8 min read
At home

Rainy day games for when nobody can go outside

Indoor games for a wet afternoon with kids, using things you already own. What works at what age, and how to get an hour out of them rather than ten minutes.

6 min read
Parties

How to run a birthday party scavenger hunt

How to run a scavenger hunt at a kids' birthday party: timings, team sizes, what to do about the child who cries, and how to end it before it sags.

8 min read
Little ones

Scavenger hunts for toddlers

How to play a scavenger hunt with a two, three or four-year-old: what they can actually do at each age, and why most hunts are pitched far too high.

6 min read
Days out

Museums with kids, without the meltdown

Museums with children: how long to stay, what to skip, and the trick that turns a gallery from something they endure into something they search.

6 min read
Summer

Beach games for the hour after sandcastles

Beach games for children that need no equipment: what to do in the third hour, games for the tide line, and how to make the walk back bearable.

5 min read
For parents

Using a screen to get kids outside

A phone app that gets children outdoors is still a phone app. An honest look at when screen-led outdoor play helps, when it does not, and what to watch for.

6 min read