Compass Rose and Directions word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

Compass Rose and Directions word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this compass rose and directions puzzle set for my 2nd and 3rd graders during our map skills unit. The kids could point to north sometimes but got completely lost when I asked about northeast or southwest. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like north, south, east, west, northeast, northwest, southeast, southwest, compass rose, direction, cardinal, intermediate, map, navigate, and turn. Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the directions finally click.

The PDF is four pages. Three puzzles plus one answer key page. The word search works well for quiet time after recess. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about whether northeast is a real direction. The crossword I use for partners. I added a couple simple compass rose drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 1st through 4th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers write what direction their classroom faces on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.