Gab’s First Treasure Hunt

At age three, Gab can read.  But can he understand what he is actually reading?  I was about to find out with a fun treasure hunt!

Technically, this is not Gab’s first treasure hunt. It’s the second time around.  We were not able to take a video of the first one.  I was happy how the first treasure hunt went that I am excited to make new ones regularly.

I find that playing treasure hunt develops a lot of important skills.

Minion holding on to the “Treasure”

First is reading.  Since the clue is in written form, he has to read the them or else he’d never get to the treasure.

Second is following instructions.  The clue is just a simple line of instruction that will lead to the treasure.  For now, I make sure the clue is easy to read and understand.  I don’t want Gab to be frustrated in his first attempt.

Finally, problem solving skills.  I haven’t incorporated this skill in the first treasure hunt yet.  But it will be great to add some puzzles and computations in future hunts. (Insert evil laugh here.)

Here is how the treasure hunt went.

The treasure is placed on the table.

While Gab is taking a bath with Quennie, I prepared the treasure and wrote the teaser and the clue.  When he got out and finished changing his clothes, the stage has been set for the treasure hunt.

First, I showed him the teaser.  It’s a piece of paper that says “Daddy has a new plane.”  The treasure, which is a toy plane, is explicitly stated.  It creates excitement right away and Gab heads to the ref where the clue is posted.

A teaser to get things started

Once he got to the ref, Quennie is pointing to the words for Gab to read.  This simple gesture of pointing is very important for early readers.  Pointing word for word helps Gab focus on the sequence of the words.  It keeps him attentive.

I am amused by how intense his concentration is.  When reading a book, he’d sometimes take off his eyes and wander.  In this treasure hunt, he gives his 100%!  He even tries to read new words on his own and with little help from Mommy. The name Ishani, and the words minion and holding are new to him.  He does know the names and words, but it is the first time he will be reading them.

Okay, he is a bit distracted by the ref magnets.  It has to be W-7-1.  It has to be EXACTLY W-7-1.  That’s our Gab.  He’s O.C. in the order of things.

My goal is to find out if he can understand the instruction that he was reading on a piece of paper.  After reading, does Gab knows where the plane was placed?  Does he know who was holding the plane?  Will he recall the name of the plane once he sees it?

Watch the video below to find out.

Like father, like son. Ehem…

We should do this again. 😀