Q&A for How to Be a Spy Kid

If you're a girl, a purse or backpack should work; not to big though. If you're a boy, a backpack that is not too big to be noticed is ideal. Equipment should be small, such as a phone or video recorder that can be put in your pocket, a small journal, a mini pencil, and a walkie talkie that can be clipped to a bracelet, shoe, or pants.

Try to find kids you think would really like to be a spy. Test them (or test your spy skills by spying on them) to find out if they're trustworthy, and that you can work comfortably with them. They'll take it seriously enough.

You can read How to Make Spy Gear for details. If you don't want to make it, there are online stores and toy stores that will sell spy gear for kids, such as walkie talkies, spy goggles, etc.

You can make great spy gear at home out of cheap materials. Take a pen apart and hide messages inside the case, or learn to write in secret code. If you're up for a larger project, search our site for instructions on making periscopes and hollow books.

You can do any mission at all. Maybe find out what your parents are up to. Maybe you "overhear" your parents saying something and find out about it! Beware though, it might be something you wish you never knew.

wikiHow has quite a few more articles on being a spy, such as How to Spy , How to Be a Spy and How to Spy on People . You can also borrow books on spying and spies from the library (check out biographies on spies) and even buy your own books about spying.

You can have anything! It can be as simple as some pens and paper, or as advanced as a robocam.

Keep your bedroom door locked. Write your information on a sheet of paper and hide it somewhere nobody knows. For example, behind your bedside table or the back of inside the cupboard. Go one better and write in code. If you catch her snooping, make her a spy too, as she's clearly good at it and it's better to have her on your side than against you.

Just make up a fake name. Learn it off by heart and when someone asks you, you won't hesitate to say it.

You can still be a spy without gadgets. All you need are teams, backup plans and some paper and a pencil. Have a backpack for snacks and your plans.

Either tell them that this is top secret, or if you don't trust them by themselves, watch them closely but do it so they don't know. You could even get them on board with your spy group, to watch them even more closely. Or, tell them they're right and laugh it off, so that they're not sure what's up at all.

Certainly, a 9 year old can be a spy kid. Just be careful about who you choose to pair up with, as siblings can be noisy and younger ones may not know when to be quiet or careful.

You can still do missions around the house on your family and friends, just try not get caught.

Look for secret hidden stuff, find information about what people are doing, spy on another sibling, find a lost item or animal, etc. Don't snoop though; it's unpleasant to have a family member going through your private things and you can get into trouble.

You never run! You must have a back-up plan or something to say if someone catches you!

You can be any age. If you are younger than five, you will get smaller missions like finding something that has been lost, or following your siblings around to find out what they are doing.

There are many ways to still be a spy without using code. While using code will keep your gathered info safe, it is not required. If you don't code your info, be more careful with where you put it and who sees it. There are less complicated codes you can use to hide data; for example, Caeser's shift is an easy one to learn. Here is a good article to learn codes with: How to Create Secret Codes and Ciphers .

Yes, as long as the pet is well-trained. For example, a spy dog should be trained to not bark at passerby and to remain hidden until given the command to come out.

Sure thing! Check out: How to Make a Periscope and How to Make a Hollow Book .

Spy kids should know how to pay attention to details, move around quietly and keep a secret.

Make up an excuse, such as, "I'm going to buy a candy bar at the drugstore." Or, maybe: " I just got a call from one of my friends and I've got to go ASAP."

No, you do not. Wear a coat on cold spy missions, and don't for warm weathered ones.

Say that you're playing a spy game with your friends, and if they don't believe that, then say that you are studying the natural behavior of an organism.

Unless you are traveling with parents or family, worldwide missions are going to be somewhat hard for a kid. However, you could look for mysteries online that are in other parts of the world. There are also plenty of "citizen science" projects that need help with piecing things together from old annals to space travel and maybe these are something of interest to you––not quite spying but definitely good puzzle and detecting work.

Pick the biggest toy you have and try to sneak it across a room full of people with no one noticing. Invent a code that lets you talk to your brother or sister without adults understanding. If these missions get boring, make them more fun with code names and disguises.