Students, teachers, and Northern Virginia and D.C. residents alike put on their game faces and filled up their water bottles in preparation for the annual Washington Post Magazine Hunt which took place on June 3. The Hunt was comprised of a map published in the weekly Washington Post magazine and vague clues given to the participants, leading hunters on a quest around the D.C. area to amass the numbers needed to win the final endgame, and the ultimate prize of $2,000. While many where in the scavenger hunt for a chance to win the money, the IB English I students had a different motive. IB English I teachers decided to give 50 points of extra credit to all students who partook in the event. Though it may seem an odd choice for an English extra credit assignment (essays and extra projects are usually the norm of extra credit opportunities) the teachers, who also participated in the race, did have a reason for giving such an out of the box assignment.

“The Hunt has a very similar thinking system to the IB program, “ English teacher Julia Hanneman said. who has done the hunt for the past three years.

“It requires students to think and use their brain in a different way. It also gets students to get out of the Northern Virginia area and into the big city, out of their comfort zones,” English teacher Nikki Holmes said, also a veteran hunter.

Some found the game involved a little too much higher level thinking as students and teachers came across giant bowling pins and people dressed as chickens and squirrels.

“I had just taken the SAT the previous day, and my brain was dead which made it more difficult, but it was still a good learning experience,” junior Errol Arcienega said.

This year’s hunt was deemed exceptionally difficult by Hunters. One of the clues given out was printed incorrectly adding to participants confusion, and the dreaded red number clue left everyone guessing. “I really enjoyed the Hunt because it was a great chance to run around and explore D.C. with my friends,” junior Sameen Yusuf said. The scope of the Hunt was also dissatisfactory to many.

“I didn’t like how spread out the clues were. It took away time to solve the puzzles and we literally had to walk across D.C.,” Hanneman said.

Despite the difficulty and huge layout of the hunt, which unfortunately no AHS students and teachers won, participants still gained an experience to remember and those 50 extra credit points.