Ice Block Treasure Hunt

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Keep the kids cool this summer with this fun Ice Block Treasure Hunt with a pirate theme. Just buy plastic toys at the dollar store, put them in a pan of water, freeze and then let them have fun chipping away the ice to find their treasures!

Ice Block Treasure hunt broken apart on concrete

It’s summer, the kids are out of school and constantly looking for a fun activity! Keep them busy with these fun, easy Ice Block Treasure Hunt with a pirate theme. It will keep them busy, cool them off and you can relax for a bit.

Sounds perfect, doesn’t it?

You only need to pick up the treasure hunt toys, a few supplies and you are ready to make this easy summer activity. It’s the perfect sensory play activity for toddlers and elementary age kids.

What kid doesn’t love bashing things with a hammer?

Do you have kids that aren’t into pirates? Just grab whatever plastic toys your kids will love and use those. You could make the theme princesses, unicorns, construction, underwater and more! Make an ice block with each kids favorite toys in them, so they each have their own treasure hunt.

Supplies Needed

Hand putting plastic toys into a square aluminum foil pan

Square aluminum foil pan with frozen water and plastic toys

Square block of blue ice with plastic toys

Steps to Make an Ice Block

Place the pirate toys into the aluminum pan.
Add a few drops of the blue food coloring to the water until it is a lovely ocean blue. Pour the water into the aluminum pan. Place the pan into the freezer overnight.
Remove the ice from the pan and place it on the ground outside.
Allow your little pirate to try to remove all of their treasures for an ice block with the hammer first, and then once you’re a bit pirate has gotten it broken down to smaller pieces, you can give them a cup full of warm water to slowly pour over the pieces to help melt the ice.

FAQs

Any tips for making this educational?

Yes, there are a few. The first thing you can do is let them experiment to see if sugar or salt will help melt ice. Second, you can give them a cup of cold water, a cup of warm water, and a cup of hot water and experiment to see what will melt the ice.

Any other tools they can use to help break apart the ice?

You can use whatever you feel comfortable with your child’s skill level, my older daughter; I will give her the hammer and a flat head screwdriver to use as a chisel.

Will this ruin the kid’s toys?

I’ve done this a few times with their toys, and as long as you are using just the cheaper plastic toys, they will be safe.

Where do you find the toys for this?

I found these Treasure Hunt Toys in the summer section at target with all the pool stuff. Check out the dollar store to find toys. Any theme will work!

This doesn’t seem like it would entertain the kids for a long time, will it?

My kids were very entertained by this! It didn’t take them very long to break the big chunk into smaller pieces, but they were having fun playing with their treasures in the ice chunks.

Can I make these into a different theme?

Of course! The sky is the limit on this fun summer activity. Theme them to whatever your kids are interested in. Make each child their own based on what they lo

Would this be a good birthday party activity?

It would be great! Theme the Ice Block Treasure Hunt to what the birthday party theme is. Let the kids bring their treasures home as a party favor. It will keep them busy and having fun!

Red hammer breaking apart ice block treasure hunt

More Summer Activities for Kids!

Need a fun way to cool off this summer? Learn how to make reusable sponge water bombs! They are inexpensive and easy to make.
Turn your leftover, broken sidewalk chalk into this fun Sidewalk Chalk Paint! The kids will love using their imagination to paint pictures on the driveway.

If you take a picture making this and share them on Instagram make sure to #kidsactivityzone or tag us @kidsactivityzoneblog so we can see them!

Keep cool with this fun summer activity! Freeze water with toys in it to create a Ice Block Treasure Hunt for kids!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Materials

Instructions

Place the pirate toys into the aluminum pan.
Add a few drops of the blue food coloring to the water until it is a lovely ocean blue. Pour the water into the aluminum pan. Place the pan into the freezer overnight.
Remove the ice from the pan and place it on the ground outside.
Allow your little pirate to try to remove all of their treasures for an ice block with the hammer first, and then once you're a bit pirate has gotten it broken down to smaller pieces, you can give them a cup full of warm water to slowly pour over the pieces to help melt the ice.