What is a kid friendly definition of echolocation?

Imagine you're playing hide-and-seek in a dark room. You can't see, but you can still find your friends! That's because you can hear their voices and tell where they are coming from.

Echolocation is like a superpower that lets animals do the same thing, but with sound waves. Instead of making noises with their mouths, they use special sounds like clicks, whistles, or squeaks. These sounds bounce off objects around them, and the animal hears the echoes. By listening carefully to the echoes, they can "see" what's around them, even in the dark!

It's like sending out invisible little sound messengers that come back with information about what's in the way. Bats use echolocation to fly at night and catch bugs. Dolphins use it to find fish in the ocean. It's a super cool way to use sound to explore the world!