Weekly Quest · Learn
Five Trees Challenge
The Five Trees Challenge is a 60-minute outdoor quest that sends families out to identify five trees or plants near home or a local park. It is Week 22 of Outside's 52-week family adventure calendar, and it earns the Tree Tracker badge. Simple enough for a Sunday afternoon, meaningful enough to remember all season.
This page is the public web guide for the Five Trees Challenge, Week 22 of Outside's 52-week family quest calendar published by Outside, the family adventure app. The quest asks families to identify five trees or plants near their home or a local park in about 60 minutes. It is rated Easy, earns 250 XP and the Tree Tracker badge, and is completed through the Outside app. The page covers how to run the quest well, age-specific tips for children ages 4 to 14, and what observational skills families build along the way.
| Cost | Free |
|---|---|
| Time | 60 minutes |
| Week | 22 of 52 |
| Badge | Tree Tracker |
| Difficulty | Easy |
Why this quest is worth your Saturday afternoon
Most families walk past dozens of trees every single week without ever really seeing them. The Five Trees Challenge fixes that in the best possible way: one hour, no special gear, and a goal simple enough that a four-year-old can own it completely.
Tree identification is one of those skills that quietly compounds. Once your kid knows a white oak, they spot it everywhere — at the trailhead, in the schoolyard, in the background of old photographs. That recognition builds a relationship with the natural world that no screen can replicate. This quest is the starting point for that relationship, and it begins the moment you step outside together.
How to run the quest well
Start before you leave the house. The Outside app opens with a prompt to talk together about what you hope to discover. Take it seriously. Ask your kids which tree they think will be hardest to name. Ask what they already know. That conversation primes everyone to look more carefully once you are outdoors.
Once outside, slow down. The instinct is to cover ground; resist it. Walk a single block or one loop of your local park and stop often. Look at bark, not just leaves. Notice shape, height, and what grows nearby. When someone spots something interesting, say it out loud before you reach for any identification tool. Train the eye first, then confirm. The app will walk you through four guided steps, and the whole sequence fits comfortably inside an hour.
Making it work for every age in the group
**Ages 4 to 6.** Give younger kids one clear job: find a leaf they have never touched before. Texture and color will hold their attention longer than names will. Celebrate every find loudly.
**Ages 7 to 10.** This group is ready to make a simple field sketch. Bring a small notebook and have them draw the shape of one leaf or the pattern of one piece of bark. Drawing forces a level of observation that looking alone does not.
**Ages 11 to 14.** Older kids can take on the identification role for the whole family. Let them lead the research, cross-reference what they see with a field guide or identification app, and present their findings to younger siblings. That teaching moment sticks with everyone.
What your family actually takes away
The Tree Tracker badge is the official reward, earned inside the Outside app when you complete the quest and log your reflection. But the real takeaway is harder to see in the moment.
Families who do this quest consistently report that their kids start noticing plants on their own, unprompted, weeks later. The observation habit built here, the practice of pausing and actually looking, carries into other quests and into ordinary life. Nature ID is listed as an ambient skill for this challenge, but so are curiosity and the confidence that comes from knowing something real about the world around you. That confidence does not announce itself; it just shows up the next time your kid says, with total certainty, "That one is a red maple."
Before you head out: a short supply check
This quest requires almost nothing, which is part of the point. Comfortable shoes and water are the only true essentials. A small notebook is useful but optional. The Outside app runs on any smartphone and guides you through each step in sequence, from the opening conversation to the closing photo or reflection.
If you want to go deeper, a regional tree field guide from your local library adds real texture to the experience. Many libraries stock guides organized by state or region, and browsing one the night before can get kids curious before they ever step outside. But do not let preparation become a reason to delay. The trees are already out there.
Write down the name of one tree you identified today and describe exactly where you found it. What did the bark feel like, and what was growing near its roots? Come back to this spot in a different season and see what has changed.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need to know anything about trees before we start?
Not at all. The quest is designed for families starting from zero. The Outside app guides you through each step, and the goal is observation first, identification second. You will learn as you go, which is exactly the point.
What if we cannot identify all five trees?
That is a perfectly good outcome. Name what you can and describe the rest by what you notice: the rough gray bark, the leaves shaped like a hand, the one that smells faintly sweet. Observation is the skill being built here, not memorization. You can always look up an ID after you get home.
Where is the best place to do this quest?
Anywhere works. Your own block, a neighborhood park, a greenway, or the edge of a schoolyard all hold more tree variety than most families expect. You do not need a forest or a nature preserve. Five trees are almost always within easy walking distance of wherever you already are.
How does the Outside app fit into this quest?
The Five Trees Challenge is completed inside the Outside app, which is where you will find the four in-app steps, the reflection prompt, and the Tree Tracker badge once you finish. The app keeps the quest organized and connects this week's adventure to the full 52-week family calendar. You can download Outside and find this quest listed as quest-22.