Summer is here, and for some parents that means their kids are looking for stuff to do. One great way to while away a lazy summer day is to head outside. If your family is looking for an activity — beyond bike riding, floating the river or swinging at a local park — consider a scavenger hunt.

With the help of Sarah Mowry, outreach manager for Deschutes Land Trust (plus suggestions from nature-oriented websites), we put together some scavenger hunts aimed at elementary- and middle-school-aged kids. Peruse the list below and mix and match a selection of ideas to fit your family.

General guidelines

• Kids can work in groups or individually. Younger children should be paired up with older kids or have an adult helper.

• Before starting, designate some basic safety guidelines. Outline the area in which kids are expected to stay and go over safe practices, based on the age of the kids (don’t climb up cliffs or go into the river, for example). Adults may want to talk to kids about the potential dangers they could encounter (rattlesnakes, for instance) and what to do in those circumstances.

• Encourage kids to get off the trail and wander.

• Give each child or team a phone or watch and designate a time and place to meet back up.

• Consider offering a prize to the winning child or team.

Traditional scavenger hunt

Give each participating child a large sack in which to place the items as well as a camera (or notebook to write things down). Some items are best observed, while others can be collected. Mowry supplied inspiration for many of the ideas here. Feel free to adapt the list based on the location (Shevlin Park is a different environment than the Badlands, for example.)

Find an object that will float. Find another one that will sink.

Animal poop.

A seed that flies in the wind.

A place where a critter lives (such as a dead tree that has many holes).

A bird’s nest.

A feathery item that isn’t a feather (such as yarrow).

Lava rock.

Wildflowers.

Mushrooms.

Insects.

A perfect skipping stone.

Animal tracks.

A piece of litter to bring back and throw away.

Stick shaped like a “Y.”

A face — if you look closely, some trees, rocks or other features create the shape of a face.

Action nature hunt

This scavenger hunt is more about doing activities than finding objects. You can also try out one or more activity without making it into a traditional scavenger hunt.

Record the sounds of three different birds.

Find a cozy spot in nature (beneath a tree, next to a creek, on a large rock) and sit there for five minutes. During this time, be still and simply listen. After five minutes have passed, take a minute to write down what you heard and observed.

Find an interesting natural scene and draw or paint it.

Build a fairy house. These are tiny homes for fairies that kids can create using just the nature items around them — grass, rocks, pinecones and twigs. Looking for inspiration? Check out www.fairyhouses.com. (The Deschutes Land Trust, www.deschuteslandtrust.org, is hosting a fairy house-related outing in the fall).

Create a daisy or dandelion chain.

Make a leaf rubbing (with a paper and pencil).

Skip a rock.

Bend scavenger hunt

Here’s a scavenger hunt for downtown Bend. With some modifications, it could be applied to any urban area. Use a digital camera or cellphone to snap pictures of the finds (or check them off of a list).

Take pictures of:

A squirrel.

A dog smaller than a cat.

A dog wearing an item of clothing.

A bike parking spot.

A duck.

“Make Local Habit” sticker.

Art, the statue on the bench (pose alongside him).

Take pictures of individual letters that spell B-E-N-D” (or your name).

Someone playing a musical instrument.

The most delicious thing you can find.

One building (store, school, etc.) and one home on the National Register of Historic places. Here’s the list: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Deschutes_County,_Oregon.

Do:

Check out a book from the library.

Count the coffee shops.

Draw a picture of your favorite building.

Color scavenger hunt

This idea, from Mowry, asks kids to explore the colors in the natural world. Make a color wheel or color chart for kids to hold as they search (construction paper works well). “This is a great way for kids to realize that not everything in nature is green or brown,” said Mowry.

The goal: Find one object for each color on the color chart.

What to look for: Wildflowers, rocks, leaves, dirt, shrubs and more.