Grades 2–3
Fall Word Search
Leaves, acorns, scarecrows and squirrels: twelve fall words in a 12 by 12 grid.
Classroom activity · Word search puzzles
At the Beach Word Search
Buckets, shovels, seagulls and sandcastles: twelve beach words across, down and diagonally.
- Grade level
- Grades 2–3
- Time
- About 20 minutes
- Topic
- Word search puzzles
- Answer key
- Yes, page 2 of the PDF
- Kids practice
- Word recognition, Spelling, Visual scanning, Topic vocabulary
What kids do
“Find the 12 beach words. Words go across, down or diagonally down.”
Printed on the sheet:
- Find these 12 words · Words go across →, down ↓ or diagonally ↘. Never backwards.
Words on this sheet
bucketcrabsandseagullshellshovelsurftowelwaves
Teacher tip
Show how diagonal words can run up or down.
How to use it
- Read the word list aloud together before kids start searching.
- Show kids how to look for the first letter, then check the next one.
- Let kids work with a partner so they talk through their thinking.
Watch for
Kids circling random letters to finish fast. Ask them to read each word as they find it.
Talk about it
- Which of these words can you use in a sentence?
- What was the trickiest part? How did you get past it?
Take it further
Have kids make their own word search on grid paper for a partner.
US Letter, prints well in black and white. Free for home and classroom use: print as many copies as you need.
More word search puzzles
Grades 3–4
Rainforest Animals Word Search
Sloths, toucans, piranhas and capybaras: fourteen rainforest animals with some backwards words.
Grades 3–4
Birds Word Search
Fourteen birds, from the tiny hummingbird to the ostrich, in a 13 by 13 grid with backwards words.
Grades 4–5
Inventions Word Search
Lightbulbs, telescopes, zippers and thermometers: fourteen inventions hidden in all eight directions.
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