Checkout Line Countdown

About 30 minutes, indoors, for ages 8 to 10.

Where it works

Works in any indoor space

Who it's for

ages 8 to 10

Try this adventure now:

  • Guess how many items are in our cart
  • Guess what the total will be
  • Find the shortest line
  • Spot something in another cart we have never tried
  • Find a package with an animal on it
  • Count how many things in our cart are green
  • Guess which line will move first

Today's Challenge

  1. 1.Whose guess about the total was closest?
  2. 2.Did the line you picked actually move fastest?
  3. 3.What did somebody else buy that you want to try?

Quick Start: What you need

  • 1Nothing at all. Just go outside and look.

The Goal

A guessing game for the last ten minutes of the grocery run.

How to start

  1. 1

    No supplies needed. You can start from wherever you are.

  2. 2

    Head indoors and see how many you can find: Guess how many items are in our cart, Guess what the total will be, Find the shortest line, Spot something in another cart we have never tried.

  3. 3

    Talk about what you are seeing. Start with "Whose guess about the total was closest?"

  4. 4

    Print the worksheet to check things off as you find them, and keep it afterwards.

Guess Then Check

Write your guess for the total before you reach the register, then write what it actually came to.

Shops put sweets at the register because that is where people wait, and a waiting person looks around far more than a walking one.

If you want to push it further

  • Guess the total within five dollars
  • Pick the fastest line correctly two trips in a row

Print it and go

The worksheet has the checklist, the prompts, and a space to draw in. One page, ready for a bag or a glovebox.

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