African American History Vocabulary word search, scramble and crosswor

African American History Vocabulary word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this African American history vocabulary puzzle set for my 3rd and 4th graders during our Black History Month unit. The kids had heard some of the big names but didn't understand the words behind the stories—terms like freedom, justice, and courage that come up over and over when we talk about the struggle for equality. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like civil rights, equality, justice, freedom, courage, hero, segregation, integration, discrimination, protest, respect, and slavery. I also threw in a few like Emancipation Proclamation, NAACP, and Underground Railroad because they keep popping up in our read-alouds . Nothing fancy—just puzzles to help the key vocabulary finally stick.

The PDF is four pages. Three puzzles plus one answer key page. The word search works well for quiet time after recess or indoor recess. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about the difference between "segregation" and "discrimination" or whether "integration" means the same as "equality" . The crossword I use for partners or as a review before we start a new biography. I added a couple simple heart, handshake, and star drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 3rd through 5th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers pick one word and write a sentence about what it means to them on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.