Treasure Hunt Party  The birthday party for my 7-year-old son and 5-year old daughter (their birthdays are a week apart) was a  challenge because of the wide age ranges of the  guests (from 3 - 12 years old). But they all had a fun  time together!  The treasure hunt left out any mention of pirates since  my children love treasure hunts but aren't interested in pirates. However these ideas can be adapted to any pirate treasure hunt!  CAKE: We bought a regular cake, scraped off the  flowers, and covered the holes with piles of  foil-covered candy coins, candy necklaces, and Jell-O beans that looked like jewels (mold available from jello.com). The cake looked like there was a pile of  treasure sitting on it. CRAFTS: We spray-painted small paper-mache boxes with gold paint and let them dry overnight. The kids received a box and a small cup of sequins,  buttons, and craft jewels. All these were placed on a plate where their name was written. Using glitter glue, each child decorated their treasure box and brought  the box home on the plate. The kids were more interested decorating the inside than the outside! GAMES: The kids were split into teams of 4 or 5 kids each, with each team led by an adult. The adults were given a list of photos to take for the photo scavenger hunt. For example: 1) Everyone by a fire hydrant, everyone with one leg up in the air. 2) Everyone by a stop sign, holding onto the pole. 3) Everyone lying in a circle on the grass. 4) Everyone by a tree, posing like a tree. 5) Everyone by the number "8," holding hands. 6) Everyone sitting on a different square on the  sidewalk. 7) Everyone shading their eyes and looking at the sky. There were other clues that they were able to find around the neighborhood. I borrowed my friend's  digital cameras and let each team have a camera. When they came back, my friend downloaded the  pictures and used a borrowed video projector to project them onto the wall for a slide show at the end of the party. The kids loved seeing the pictures of  themselves and the adults enjoyed it too! While the kids were gone taking pictures, other friends hid foil-covered candy coins around the yard  (we used bubblegum coins because chocolate would  melt). The kids came back and searched for the coins. Then we had a treasure-chest pinata filled with  candy and toys (pinata was purchased from a party store). After that, they went in to the family room where  I had written a clue on a sheet of colored paper, cut it in pieces, and hidden it all around the room. They  found the pieces, put together the puzzle, and tried to figure out where the next clue was. The next clues were also puzzles in an envelope. Here is an example of what the clues were like: 1)I'm on a  machine that holds water/Sometimes it's colder, sometimes it's hotter./It's noisy and spins and makes  things so clean/But it's behind a door and is rarely seen. (washing machine). 2)The next clue is behind a  door/There's only one shelf where things are  stored./The room is very, very small/And is  surrounded by 3 walls. (coat closet) The final clue led to a hiding place where all the goody bags were  stored. The kids had a great time and went home tired but  happy!