Connect To The Youth In Your Family By Connecting Them To Their Family History


Friday, June 14, 2013

Family History Amazing Race


I had a wonderful idea sent to me by Sandra Walsh that I've already shared with several people I've talked too.  This is a good one!  Sandra and I got to talk at the UGA conference this spring and she told me about the wonderful activity she did with her grown children and their families.  For a family reunion activity she sent them on a an "Amazing Race" scavenger hunt to their family history sites in the area.  Each family had to text pictures of themselves at the sites back to her to check off that they had been to the site.  She sent me this list that they used and I'm not sure how these sites relate to their family history, but you can see how one could easily adapt this idea to work for family history sites such as schools, churches, gravesites, businesses and homes that were frequented by your family members.  Add a few stories and pictures and you have a great family history activity.  I'm going to work on putting one together for my family.  Let me know if you try it in yours...

Thanks so much to Sandra for sharing!  Such a fantastic idea! Sandra told me that as the children were leaving after their several day family reunion, many of them had commented to her that this was the funnest activity of all. 
She even put together a graphic just for the family activity.  Here are Sandra's instructions:

Instructions:
  • ·         Follow these clues in the order listed.  It will take approximately 2.5 hours to complete this race.  A 30-45 minute lunch stop is included.
  • ·         The clues are in individual envelopes.  Teams may open one clue at a time.  Some of the envelopes may have money inside to purchase a treat or lunch along the way.
  • ·         Teams may use Google on their cell phones to help solve clues; or www.visitsaltlake.com; or brochures; or a SLC Downtown Map.
  • ·         Teams should text photos of each location to the game captain when a clue is solved. The game captain may then send an “approved” text if the clue is solved correctly – or a “rejected” text if the team goes to the wrong location.
  • ·         A “roadblock” may be texted to teams during the game.  In this case, the roadblocked team will need to solve an additional clue before continuing on the race.
  • ·         At the final destination, the game captain may have a special rug or mat for the teams to jump on when they complete the race (just like Phil does on TV!)  Small gnome garden statues were presented as “trophies” to some of our individual players.  They had an Amazing Race tag that listed various accomplishments, such as:  “Best texter”; “Best use of fry sauce”; “Best bite of chocolate” (one of our kids lost a loose tooth biting into a chocolate covered strawberry!); “Best clue solver”; “Best use of accessories” (we used colorful bandanas to identify each family/team); “Best clue reader”; “Most photogenic”; etc.

Salt Lake City, Utah
Walsh Family Reunion
July 4, 2012

Clue #1:  This year (2012) is the 150th anniversary of one of America’s great railroads.  Find this large railroad logo and have your team photo made with this symbol in the background.

Union Pacific Railroad sign at The Gateway (18 N. Rio Grande St., SLC)


Clue #2:  Where do the Utah JAZZ play their home basketball games?  There is a statue outside the arena that shows two of their most famous players.  Who were they?  Take a photo of one person on your team trying to steal the ball from one of the statue-players.
John Stockton & Karl Malone
 EnergySolutions Arena  (301 W. South Temple, SLC; utahjazz.com)


Clue #3:  What did Brigham Young say when he saw the Salt Lake Valley for the first time in 1847?  Take a picture of your team by this statue and tell us where it’s located.  Challenge:  Circle around this statue walking backwards.

“This is the (right) place!” 
This is the Place Monument
2601 E. Sunnyside Ave., SLC
801-582-1847



Clue #4:  This facility hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics.  Find the Olympic cauldron.  Count the number of rings and name the colors that make up the Olympic symbol.
5 rings – black, blue, yellow, green, red (which are colors found in all the flags of the world!)
Olympic Cauldron Park
Rice Eccles Stadium (1400 East; U of U campus)

Clue #5:  What is the opposite of “little”?  Now find the 8th letter of alphabet.  Put these two clues together to find your next destination. You may spend up to 45 minutes here without penalty.  Each team member will be given $10 to spend for lunch.
Where are you going?  ______________________________________________________________________
HIRES “BIG H” (425 S. 700 E., SLC; 801-364-4582)

Clue #6:   These Little Chocolatiers have delighted TV audiences and locals alike with their hand-made chocolates, carmels and Banana Splits.  The Hatch Family is sure to measure up to your request to taste one of the best chocolates in Utah.  Your challenge here is to do these three things:
1.        Find their store in downtown SLC.
2.       Each member of your team must taste a small bite of one of their special chocolate creations.  ($10 per team allotted.)
3.       You must talk to one of the owners or employees to find out how they started their business.
Hatch Family Chocolates
376 8th Ave., Suite A
Salt Lake City, UT  84013
801-532-4912


Clue #7:  Go to City Creek Center, Salt Lake’s newest shopping mall that features 90 stores, a retractable glass roof, a pedestrian skybridge and a creek reminiscent of one you’d see in Utah’s beautiful canyons. Find the ZCMI façade (or front of the building).  What is this building front made from?  What does ZCMI mean?

City Creek Center (50 South Main St., SLC)
Iron
Zion’s Cooperative Merchantile Institution, founded by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1868 to encourage Mormons to buy locally made products.


Clue #8:  Find a statue of a little dog over at City Creek Center.  Something special is available to customers next to the little dog.  Each team should bring us a sample and tell us what it’s used for.

Plastic bag – It’s a pooper-scooper!
City Creek Center (50 S. Main St., SLC)


Clue #9:  Why does Salt Lake City have chirping signs at the downtown crosswalks?  Count the number of chirps it takes you to cross South Temple Street (between City Creek Center and Temple Square)

How many chirps?   _____________________(5)
Downtown crosswalks chirp with two different signals for blind pedestrians and to create a certain avian ambience.  The chirps also serve as a countdown to aid you in crossing the unusually wide streets here.


Clue #10:  Find the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Administration Building. What are the names of the pilasters which surround the exterior of this building?  What are they made of?  How many of them are there?

24 Ionic pilasters, which are made of solid granite and weigh approximately 8 tons each
LDS Church Administration Bldg. (47 East South Temple, SLC)


ROADBLOCK:   Find a painting or statue of the first leader of the Mormon Church and take a photo of your team here.

Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg. on Temple Square; or one of the Visitor’s Centers or the LDS Conference Center


Clue #11:  What is a cupola?  Find two buildings in Temple Square that have a cupola in the shape of a beehive as part of their design.

A Cupola is a decorative feature at the top of the roof on a building.
Beehive Cupola is found on The Beehive House and on top of the old Hotel Utah, now known as the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.


Clue #12:  Find a statue of a pioneer handcart on Temple Square.  How many spokes are on the left back wheel?

No. =  __________________
Statue located near the LDS Church Assembly Hall at Temple Square -- 10 spokes


Clue #13:   Your pit stop for the final leg of the AMAZING RACE is a large white building with a dome that sits atop a hill in downtown SLC.  Go to the east side of this building.  Time your team to see how fast they can run up and down the stairs here. 
Stair climb time:   _________________________
Utah State Capitol
350 N. State St., SLC
801-538-1800


Bonus clue: 
Name 2 foods that are probably more popular in Utah than anywhere else:

Fry Sauce, Green Jell-o, Cinnamon Buns, Fried Scones, Bison Burgers, Funeral Potatoes, Ice Cream & Frozen Custard

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