Introduce the topic by discussing the subject of treasure and what students think they know about it. Share the five Treasure Traps in Chapter 2. Finally, read Chapter 1 to the students and ask them to take The Thomas Beale Treasure-Tracker Test (p. 21; it can be reproduced).

Writing/ research activities: One good activity is teaching students to construct ciphers, based on the Key Word Cipher (see pp. 143-150). Students can also be asked to collect and bury their own treasure (pp. 150-154) and write a description of what they are burying and why. Or they can be taught to draw a treasure map. Additionally, ask the public librarian for a photocopy of an old local newspaper. Go through the newspaper with students discussing the types of articles and advertisements that provide some clues for potential local treasure sites (see pp. 94-95).

How to Hunt Buried Treasure. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1992. Avon paperback edition, 1994.