FREE Winter Scavenger Hunt Printable

Are you looking for an easy and fun activity to get children outside this winter? This Free Winter Scavenger Hunt is perfect for a winter walk and exploring nature with children.

We woke up to snow today, which prompted me to create a FREE Winter Nature Scavenger Hunt to share with you. It’s ideal for winter walks, forest school sessions, and outdoor exploring, especially with younger children.

Scavenger hunts are a fantastic way to encourage children to slow down and notice their surroundings. They invite children to take a closer look at what’s happening around them, all while having fun and without it feeling like a lesson.

Download the FREE Winter Nature Spotter Sheet here

Exploring Nature with Children in Winter

Winter can sometimes feel like a harder season to get children outdoors. The days are colder, plants aren’t flowering, and nature can look quiet at first glance. But winter is actually a wonderful time for helping children slow down and notice what’s around them.

With fewer leaves on trees, their shapes, branches, and buds are much easier to see. This makes winter a great time for children to begin noticing differences between trees, even without needing to know their names.

Birds are often easier to spot in winter too. You’ll see them perched on bare branches or visiting bird feeders, where they stand out much more clearly than when trees are full of leaves.

If you’re in the UK and enjoy noticing birds in winter, you might also like to take part in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch, which takes place each January. It’s a simple, family-friendly way to spend time watching birds and recording what you see.

Many of the birds you might spot during the Birdwatch are the same ones children notice on winter walks or at feeders.

The ground also tells more stories in winter. Muddy paths, soft earth, and snow can reveal animal tracks that might otherwise go unnoticed. Icy puddles, fallen leaves, pine cones, and evergreen plants suddenly become interesting details worth stopping for.

Because the landscape is barer, children often notice things they might usually walk straight past.

Why Spotter Sheets Work So Well for Young Children

Spotter sheets and scavenger hunts are something I’ve used with my own children since they were very young. They’re a fun, stress-free way to help children look closely at their surroundings without it feeling like a lesson.

Rather than being told what to learn, children are invited to notice things for themselves. This often opens up simple conversations as you walk, such as:

• Why does that tree still have leaves, but this one doesn’t?
• Who might have left those tracks?
• What do you notice about the ground today?

There’s no right or wrong way to use a spotter sheet. Children can scooter/run around looking for items, or simply point things out as they walk. Younger children can join in from a pushchair, and you can easily turn it into an eye-spy style game by talking about what you notice together.

There are lots of ways to use them, which makes spotter sheets a fun, flexible activity for children of all ages.

Free Winter Nature Scavenger Hunt

The Winter Nature Spotter Sheet includes a mix of winter nature finds such as:

• evergreen and deciduous trees
• birds and animal tracks
• ivy and pine cones
• muddy or icy puddles

You don’t need to find everything on the sheet. It’s simply a guide to help children slow down and notice what’s around them.

This printable works well for:

• family walks
• forest school sessions
• early years and primary classrooms
• outdoor groups and clubs

Download the FREE Winter Scavenger Hunt Sheet here

Taking Noticing a Step Further

If you enjoy activities like this and find yourselves talking about seasonal changes as you walk, you might enjoy recording what you notice over time.

That’s exactly what My Year in Nature is about. It’s a free, low-pressure project for families who want to notice one small seasonal change each month using a phenology wheel.

You can read more about the project here: My Year in Nature | Phenology Wheel for Families

Or if you are after something with a little less commitment you might enjoy reading about our 5 Senses Nature Walk in January printable.

I hope this free winter scavenger hunt printable gives you an easy reason to step outside and explore together.

Thanks so much for reading.

Jo.