I recently shared my newfound love for the Animal Crossing™: New Horizons game for the Nintendo Switch™ system. My kids also love this game and want to “help” me as much as they can.

Knowing how much they love to assist with some of the game’s daily activities, I wanted them to have an opportunity to do some of these tasks in real life.

Some of the daily activities in the game involve tending to flowers, fishing, and digging for fossils. In the game, you are able to visit a museum to learn more about some of the fish and fossils. The kids love helping me with this activity in-game and are eager to learn more about dinosaurs in real life. Inspired by Animal Crossing: New Horizons, we created fossils out of air-dry clay for the kids to discover and identify.

Fossil Scavenger Hunt

Materials Needed:

• Air-Dry Clay
• Small Plastic Dinosaurs (or other small, hard-plastic animals, figures, etc.)

1. Grab a small handful of air-dry clay and roll it into a ball.
2. Flatten the ball with your hands or use a roller to make a thick, flat disk.
3. Take your hard plastic dinosaur, and press one side of the body into the clay.
4. Remove the dinosaur carefully. You should have a dinosaur-shaped recess in the clay.
5. Let the clay dry according to the manufacturer’s instructions (I let mine dry overnight).

That’s literally it. We also had fun using other plastic toys and pressing feet in the clay to create “footsteps.” You can use shells, twigs, leaves, or any other items you can imagine for a fossil.

After the fossils were dry, I hid them outside.

Parents, this is the easiest, least messy craft that takes little to no time, and my kids loved it!

Want to learn more about Nintendo Switch or my obsession with Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

Editor’s Note: This post was sponsored by Nintendo. The compensation we receive in exchange for placement on Wit & Delight is used to purchase props, hire a photographer, write/edit the blog post, and support the larger team behind Wit & Delight.

While compensation was received in exchange for coverage, all thoughts and opinions are always my own. Sponsored posts like these allow us to continue to develop dynamic unsponsored content.
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Kate Arends

Kate is the founder of Wit & Delight. She is currently learning how to play tennis and is forever testing the boundaries of her creative muscle. Follow her on Instagram at @witanddelight_.