# Online Scavenger Hunt

Small remote breakout teams solve sequential digital clues and post solutions onto a shared collaborative board within a set time limit.

**Time:** 25 minutes. Playmeo recommends 20 to 30 minutes; structured here as a 25-minute standard session.
**People:** 4 to 24. Breakout teams of 3 to 5 participants working in parallel

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Practice small-group coordination and collaborative digital problem solving under light time boundaries.
**Use it when:** Use during remote meetings or virtual workshops when participants need an active, collaborative task in breakout groups.
**Skip it when:** Skip when participants lack stable internet access, cannot open external web boards alongside video calls, or need a quiet individual reflection.

## Materials and tools

- Video conferencing platform with breakout rooms (such as Zoom or Teams)
- Digital collaborative board account and pre-built challenge boards (such as Padlet or an open shared document)
- One help/starting board URL accessible without participant sign-in
- Timer or digital countdown display
- Participant prompt sheet with challenge clues

## Before participants arrive

1. Set up the starting digital board with challenge instructions, rules, and a dedicated help section.
2. Configure board access permissions so participants can view and post without creating paid accounts.
3. Pre-populate 4 challenge prompts on the board or in linked sub-pages.
4. Test opening links and posting an image or text note to confirm permissions are open.
5. Prepare breakout rooms of 3 to 5 participants in your video platform.

## Say this to open

Welcome. We are running a 25-minute digital scavenger hunt in breakout teams of 3 to 5. Your team will receive a link to our central challenge board. Work together to solve each clue in order. Post your answer, photo, or solution directly to your team column. I will monitor the board and post hints if anyone gets stuck. Open the link in the chat now, test your access, and head into your breakout rooms when prompted.

## How to run it

### 1. Briefing and setup (4 minutes)

Explain the rules and share the starting digital board URL in the meeting chat. Check that every participant can open the page. Outline how teams record solutions by posting under their team column. Form breakout rooms of 3 to 5 people.

### 2. Solve challenge round 1 (7 minutes)

Open breakout rooms. Teams introduce themselves briefly, open Clue 1 and Clue 2 from the board, and agree on answers. Once solved, one team member posts the verified answer or screenshot to their column. The facilitator monitors submissions and answers questions posted on the help board.

### 3. Solve challenge round 2 (7 minutes)

Teams proceed to Clue 3 and Clue 4. Facilitator broadcasts a 10-minute and 3-minute remaining notice to all breakout rooms. Teams finalize their posts. Teams that finish early can add an optional creative team photo or tagline to their board.

### 4. Return and review boards (4 minutes)

Close breakout rooms and bring all participants back to the main room. Share the central board on screen. Walk through the four correct solutions. Acknowledge teams that completed all four items.

### 5. Debrief (3 minutes)

Facilitate a brief whole-room debrief using one or two targeted questions. Invite two or three volunteers to answer aloud or invite all participants to type brief reflections in the meeting chat.


## Debrief questions

- How did your team divide responsibilities between reading clues, searching for answers, and posting?
- What obstacle slowed your group down, and how did you resolve it?
- Which communication method worked best inside your breakout room?

**Finished output:** A completed team column on the shared digital board displaying submitted solutions for each challenge clue.

## Remote

Conducted entirely online. The facilitator shares the board link in video chat, sends groups to breakout rooms of 3 to 5, monitors digital posts in real time, and screenshares the board for the final review.

## Hybrid

Assign remote participants together in online breakout rooms and in-person participants in clustered physical pods around one shared laptop. In-person pods access the same digital board via laptop or tablet and submit work alongside remote groups.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may contribute by verbal brainstorming, typing answers, conducting web searches, or posting media.
- Any participant may opt out of speaking by serving as the designated board recorder or timekeeper.
- Participants can pass on individual puzzle solving without explanation.

## If the session gets stuck

**A participant cannot access the external digital board due to corporate firewall or browser blocks.**

Pair that participant with a teammate who shares their screen inside the breakout room, or paste the text clues directly into the breakout room chat.

**A team gets stuck on an early clue and stops progressing.**

Monitor the board actively. Post a pre-written hint directly into their column or visit their breakout room after 3 minutes without activity.


## Terms used here

- Padlet: An online collaborative board application where multiple users can post notes, links, and media cards on a shared canvas.
- Breakout Room: A smaller, independent sub-meeting within a video call where a small group speaks and works privately.

## Participant material: Sample Challenge Clues

Challenge Clues (Post answers to your Team Column):

Clue 1 (Text Riddle): I have keys without locks, space without rooms, and you can enter but never go outside. What am I? (Post the exact one-word answer).

Clue 2 (Web Discovery): Find the year the first email was sent across ARPANET. Post the year and the engineer who sent it.

Clue 3 (Creative Photo): Take a screenshot or upload an image of a household or desk item that is yellow. Post the picture to your column.

Clue 4 (Word Cipher): Decrypt this reversed message: 'noitaroballoc laer si krowmaet'. Post the deciphered sentence.

Bonus Task (Optional): Create a 3-word team motto and post it as the final card.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Playmeo Activity Database, posted December 2020 and attributed to Mark Collard.

Retained the core Playmeo structure of using breakout rooms and an external collaborative board (specifically referencing Padlet) with sequential challenges and facilitator monitoring. UWT added concrete clue content, specific time allocations summing to 25 minutes, hybrid accommodations, and structured debrief prompts.

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/fun-team-building-puzzles/online-scavenger-hunt)

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/fun-team-building-puzzles/online-scavenger-hunt/)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/super-fun-virtual-team-building-activity-online-scavenger-hunt/