Word search maker for teachers

Tips for a great word search maker for teachers

Teachers make more word searches than anyone else, usually late in the evening and usually for thirty students at once. This page opens the maker with a unit-vocabulary list and adds the things a classroom needs: presets for common lessons, one-click versions of the same list at three difficulty levels, and a routine for printing a class set without wasting paper.

A word search is most useful when it is tied to a lesson goal. Use it before a unit to pre-teach vocabulary (students meet the spelling of "precipitation" before they need to write it), during a unit as a calm settling task, and after a unit as a review where students must define each word they find. As pure busy work it is forgettable; as a vocabulary hook it works.

Everything runs in your browser, so no student data or class lists are uploaded. A shared link stores the word list after the # in the address, which is handy for posting a puzzle to your learning platform: students open the link and can play the exact same puzzle online.

Recommended settings

• Load a preset, then edit the words
• Same list at three levels
• New layout = version B
• Untick the answer key for student copies

Classroom presets

Click a preset to load it into the maker above, then change the words to match your class. Each one is a starting point we use often: weekly spelling, unit vocabulary, a first-day icebreaker and a challenge for early finishers.

• Weekly spelling list2nd–3rd grade · Easy · lowercase · 10 words
• Math vocabulary4th–6th grade · Medium · 12 words
• History unitMiddle school · Hard · 14 words
• First-day name huntAny grade · Medium · add your class · 14 words
• Early-finisher challengeUpper grades · Expert · 14 words
• Sub plan: library skillsElementary · Medium · 12 words

Differentiation: one word list, three levels

The fastest way to differentiate a word search is to keep the vocabulary and change the difficulty. These links load the water-cycle list above at each level — print one stack of each and hand them out by reading group.

Printing a class set without waste

1. Untick the answer key. Under More options, clear "Print the answer key on page 2" so each student copy is one page.
2. Save as PDF first. Print / Save PDF → Save as PDF gives you a master file for the copier, your learning platform or next year.
3. Check the scale. Print at 100% ("Actual size"); "fit to page" can shrink the letters on some printers.
4. Print the key once. Tick the answer key again, preview the Answer key tab and print a single copy for your desk or for student self-checking.
5. Black and white is fine. The puzzle and key are designed to read clearly in greyscale, which is cheaper on school copiers.

Versions A, B and C

Every layout comes from a numbered seed. Use these links to load three different arrangements of the same list — the words and difficulty stay identical, only the positions change, so neighbouring students cannot simply copy circles.

• Version ASame 12 words, layout 1
• Version BSame 12 words, layout 2
• Version CSame 12 words, layout 3

When to use a word search in class

For more ideas see 15 ways to use word searches in the classroom, the printable word searches by age and the spelling word search generator. For an end-of-unit twist, add a hidden message such as the date of the test.

How to make a word search

1. Type your words. Enter a title and your word list — one word or phrase per line, or separated by commas. Up to 60 words.
2. Choose the difficulty. Easy hides words across and down, Medium adds diagonals, Hard adds backwards words and Expert also uses decoy letters. Pick a grid size or leave it on Auto.
3. Check the answer key. Switch to the Answer key tab to see every word circled. Click New layout for a different arrangement of the same words.
4. Print, save or play. Click Print / Save PDF for the puzzle on page 1 and the answer key on page 2, download a PNG, or click Play online.

FAQ