Puzzles for Teachers
Browse an extensive collection of printable puzzles, brain teasers, mazes, crosswords, digital activities and a whole lot more to challenge your elementary students in fresh and fun ways!
This teaching resource collection is teacher-created, with curriculum-aligned and editable resources available for both lesson planning and adding to your fast finisher activity box or sub binder!
Curious about using puzzles in your classroom or looking for fresh ideas? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
Types of Puzzles
There's a whole host of puzzles out there you can use to get your students more engaged in learning, develop problem-solving skills, and reinforce the concepts you're teaching! Here are a few favorites from our teacher team (and you'll find printable versions of many of these in this collection)!
- Picture puzzles — Picture puzzles are a great teaching tool that require kids to use visual perception and problem-solving skills to identify patterns or differences in a set of pictures.
- Crossword puzzles — Often used by adults, these puzzles are kid-friendly too! They offer up written clues and require students to fill in a grid with words that intersect with each other.
- Tangram puzzles — These challenging puzzles for kids involve using a set of geometric shapes to create a larger picture or design.
- Logic puzzles — This learning tool requires kids to use reasoning and deduction to solve a problem. They usually involve a set of clues that need to be used to figure out the solution.
- Word searches — In this type of puzzle, a grid of letters is given with a list of words to find hidden within it. Students are challenged to go on the hunt for the word, often reading up, down, diagonally, and sometimes even backward!
- Spot the difference — A popular feature in kids' magazines, these require our students to find the differences between two nearly identical pictures.
- Sequence puzzles — Sequence puzzles involve arranging a series of objects or symbols in a particular order, based on a set of rules or patterns. For example, students may practice skip counting as they place puzzle pieces in order based on the numbers displayed on each piece.
- Maze puzzles — Yes, mazes count as puzzles! They challenge kids to find their way through a maze to reach a goal or endpoint.
- Matching games — This is another type of puzzle you may not think of as a puzzle per se, but it is! Matching games involve finding pairs of matching items, such as shapes, colors, or numbers, in a set of cards or objects.
- Tarsia puzzles — Similar to jigsaw puzzles, tarsia puzzles are made up of irregularly shaped pieces that fit together in a specific way to form a larger picture or pattern. This type of puzzle has a twist, however! In a Tarsia puzzle, each piece contains a problem or question related to a particular topic or subject area. The students must match the pieces together by finding the correct answer or solution to each problem or question. Once all the pieces have been matched, they form a larger picture or pattern that provides a visual representation of the topic or concept being studied.
How Do You Use Puzzles in the Classroom?
Whether you're using mazes to teach math or crossword puzzles in your reading centers, this is a versatile learning tool! Here are a few of the times they can come in handy:
- Introducing new concepts
- Reviewing concepts students have learned
- Reinforcing problem-solving skills
- Collaborative learning
- Learning through play
- Differentiated instruction
- Free Plan
Search and Find – Gingerbread House
Gingerbread house search and find activity.
- Plus Plan
Christmas Activity Sheets Workbook
Have a blast completing the fun activities in this printable Christmas activity book for upper grades.
- Free Plan
Christmas Math Puzzle - Counting to 10
Count groups up to 10 with a printable Christmas math puzzle.
- Free Plan
OW and OU Words - Word Search
Explore "ou" and "ow" words with this set of differentiated word searches.
- Plus Plan
Christmas Word Search
Help spread holiday cheer with our Christmas word search.
- Plus Plan
Kindergarten Math Activity - Christmas Addition Facts Up to 10 Puzzle
Review addition facts up to 10 with a printable Christmas math activity for Kindergarten.
- Free Plan
Energy and Electricity Crossword Puzzle
Reinforce science vocabulary with an energy and electricity crossword puzzle.
- Free Plan
Thanksgiving Word Search
Stretch your upper elementary students’ vocabulary and reading skills with a delicious Thanksgiving word search.
- Free Plan
Math Mazes (Equivalent Fractions, Decimals, and Percentages)
Determine equivalent fractions, decimals, and percentages with this puzzling math maze.
- Plus Plan
Math Mazes - Addition and Subtraction
A set of puzzling mazes that require addition and subtraction skills to solve.
- Free Plan
Math Mazes - Two-digit Addition
Practice adding two-digit numbers with this set of differentiated math mazes.
- Free Plan
I Spy Oral Language Activity
Encourage the development of oral language with this fun "I Spy" activity.
- Plus Plan
Math Mazes (Multiplication and Division)
Solve these mazes by manipulating numbers using multiplication and division skills.
- Plus Plan
Addition to 20 Activity - Winter Math Puzzle for 1st Grade
Practice addition facts up to 20 with a printable winter math puzzle for kindergarten and first-grade students.
- Free Plan
Soil Vocabulary Word Search
Immerse your students in the subject-specific vocabulary related to soil with this word search perfect for elementary students.
- Free Plan
Empathy Word Search
Introduce or review vocabulary terms related to empathy with this free word search worksheet.
- Free Plan
Expanded Notation Puzzles - Decimals
Practice expanded notation using decimals and whole numbers with this set of 28 puzzle pieces.
- Plus Plan
Christmas Math Worksheets - Addition and Subtraction Mazes
Navigate these Christmas math mazes with addition and subtraction facts to keep those minds active!
- Plus Plan
Christmas Printables - Math Skip Counting Puzzles
Grab a set of 10 printable Christmas puzzles to help students skip count in the classroom.
- Plus Plan
Holiday Mini-Mystery – Who Put Up Their Holiday Decorations Too Early?
Read clues to solve a mystery with this fun, logic-based Christmas-themed activity.
- Free Plan
Missing Part Path - Find the Missing Number Worksheet
Practice using various subtraction strategies with a fun dice-roll math maze.
- Free Plan
Synonym and Antonym Crossword Puzzle
Review vocabulary skills and boost your students’ knowledge of synonyms and antonyms with a crossword puzzle worksheet.
- Free Plan
Recycling Word Search
Build your students’ vocabulary around the topic of recycling with this recycling-themed word search.
- Plus Plan
Holiday Mini-Mystery – Whose Present Is the One with Plain Brown Paper?
A fun, logic-based holiday activity where students read clues to solve the mystery.
- Plus Plan
Number Matching Puzzle - Double Digit Subtraction
A hands-on game to play when practicing double-digit subtraction.
- Plus Plan
Decimal Patterns – Math Mazes
Find your way through this set of math mazes by determining the addition or subtraction pattern in a sequence of decimal numbers.
- Free Plan
Complex Dot-to-dot Worksheet – Ordering Fractions and Decimals (Cat)
Practice ordering fractions and decimals with this complex dot-to-dot worksheet.
- Free Plan
Mini-Mystery – Who Stole the Cookie?
A fun, logic puzzle activity where students read clues to solve a mystery.
- Plus Plan
Uppercase and Lowercase Letter Maze - 'Vv'
A fun maze to use when learning how to identify uppercase and lowercase letters.
- Free Plan
2D and 3D Shapes Crossword with Solution
A crossword with clues for both 2D and 3D shapes.
- Plus Plan
Santa's Reindeer - Christmas Word Search
Help Santa find his reindeer in time for the holidays with our Christmas word search.
- Plus Plan
Skip Counting Number Puzzles
A fun and engaging set of 10 number puzzles to help students skip count in the classroom.