Christmas Word Search and December Puzzles: Early Finishers Packet for Grades 3–6

Description

December is the month when early finishers need something real to do, and this packet gives them 57 pages of it. Built for grades 3–6, it is a puzzle packet for the three weeks before the holiday break: word searches, crosswords, codes, mazes, logic puzzles, sudoku, symmetry, directed drawing and coloring, across six winter themes. Everything is black and white, print-and-go, and every puzzle has a complete answer key.

The core is 12 winter word searches at two difficulty levels, across six themes: Cocoa Café, Gingerbread Bakery, Snow Day, Winter Animals, Holiday Lights and Winter Celebrations. Level 1 uses a 12×12 grid with 10 hidden words, across and down only. Level 2 uses a 15×15 grid with 15 hidden words in all eight directions. Category hunts for Cozy Kitchen, Winter Closet and Snowy Forest ask children to find words that fit each category with no word bank at all.

Beyond the word searches, the packet covers crosswords (Winter Science and Holiday Fun) with student-friendly word banks, picture cipher puzzles and decoding six winter jokes, two unscramble activities with hidden mystery words, three progressive mazes from small to large, I Spy activities at two levels, logic puzzles called Cocoa Toppings and The Big Sled Race, and letter sudoku with SNOW on a 4×4 grid and WINTER on a 6×6 grid.

Math and art join the puzzles: a Gingerbread Word Builder, Color by Number Holiday Tree and Color by Product Ornament with multiplication facts, symmetry pages for finishing a holiday tree and a cookie, and directed drawing for a snowman and a penguin, each with step-by-step directions and drawing space. Three coloring pages give fast finishers a calm landing, and a choice board, tracker and star ratings help students run the packet themselves.

Featured in: Last Week Before Winter Break: Low-Prep Activities That Still Teach

What's included

Planning and student organization

• A 3-week December puzzle plan with a 15-day activity schedule
• Teacher notes, a difficulty level guide and ways to use the pages
• Holiday theme information, a materials list and printing tips
• An early finisher choice board, a 'My Puzzle Tracker' and a difficulty star rating system

Word searches, crosswords and codes

• 12 winter word searches at two difficulty levels across six themes: Cocoa Café, Gingerbread Bakery, Snow Day, Winter Animals, Holiday Lights, Winter Celebrations
• Level 1: 12×12 grid, 10 hidden words, across and down only; Level 2: 15×15 grid, 15 hidden words, all 8 directions
• Category hunts (Cozy Kitchen, Winter Closet, Snowy Forest) with no word bank
• Crosswords: Winter Science and Holiday Fun, with student-friendly word banks
• Crack-the-code picture cipher puzzles and decoding six winter jokes, plus two unscramble activities with hidden mystery words

Mazes, logic, math and art

• Three progressive mazes (small, medium, large), each with one correct path
• I Spy activities at Levels 1 and 2
• Logic puzzles: Cocoa Toppings and The Big Sled Race
• Letter Sudoku: SNOW (4×4) and WINTER (6×6)
• Gingerbread Word Builder, Color by Number Holiday Tree and Color by Product Ornament (multiplication facts)
• Symmetry: Finish the Holiday Tree and Finish the Cookie; directed drawing: Draw a Snowman and Draw a Penguin
• Coloring pages: Warm Wishes, Snow Day!, Happy Holidays; a Puzzle Pro Certificate and complete answer keys for every puzzle

Ways to use it

• Early finisher work during the three weeks before the break
• December morning work from the choice board
• Indoor recess puzzles on cold or wet days
• A holiday center rotation
• Sub plans with answer keys ready
• Quiet independent work while you conference with students

Why it works

The packet works because students choose their own puzzles and check their own answers. Two difficulty levels keep a third grader and a sixth grader on the same themes, and the choice board, tracker and star ratings turn a stack of puzzles into a routine that runs without the teacher.

Questions & answers