A very easy game to play with children that helps with so many different skills—from early literacy to fine and gross motor to communication and many others—alphabet hunts are a lot of fun to do.

Alphabet hunts can be done indoors, but now that it’s summertime it’s a lot of fun to play the game outdoors. When you play outside, there is also the added bonus of being able to learn new vocabulary. You’re also not limited to your 1,200 (plus or minus) square feet, but wherever you go—from the park to the lake to your own back or front yard.

Make up a sheet featuring the alphabet. It doesn’t have to be fancy; you don’t even have to type it up. Just write letters A through Z out on a single sheet of notebook paper with each letter spaced out so there is enough room to write next to each one.

Older kids can then simply go out and about, searching for anything that starts with each letter. Sometimes they might need help. When my daughter and I played, I coached her a bit since she’s not completely familiar with the alphabet yet. Plus, I needed help too! We got stuck on the E letter, only to be told by both my aunt and my mother via telephone that there are evergreens, Echinacea, and several other E words in our yard! It was one of those “silly Mommy” moments.

Many people believe that you have know at least know the alphabet before finding things on such a hunt, but that’s not always required. Rather than asking, “What can we find that begins with the letter B?” create a small portfolio of things you know that start with the letter in your yard. Make some index cards or a small notebook up and either draw pictures or cut them out from online print-outs or magazines and glue them to the cards or notebook pages. Then, help little ones find the objects while pointing out the letters and how each word is spelled.

Of course, if kiddos are familiar with a few letters—my daughter is an ace with A through C, S, O, U, and W, for example—let them do those letters on their own, and you can simply help with writing the found objects down. To make the game more artistic, have them draw a picture of each object found, or let older kids take photos if they like.