The Maya Civilization Word Search, Scramble and Crossword Puzzle

I made this Maya civilization puzzle set for my Grade 4 students during our world history unit. The kids had heard of the Aztecs and Incas but knew very little about the Maya or their achievements. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like Kukulkan, Chichen Itza, Yucatan, pyramid, ballgame, ball court, calendar, glyph, codex, stela, maize, cacao, obsidian, jaguar, and jungle. Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the vocabulary finally stick.

The PDFs are six pages. Three puzzles plus an answer page for each. The word search works well for quiet time after recess. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about whether the Maya calendar predicted the end of the world. The crossword I use for partners. I added a couple simple pyramid and glyph drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for Grade 4 through Grade 5. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers write one Maya achievement on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.