Contractions word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

Contractions word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this contractions puzzle set for my 2nd and 3rd graders during our grammar unit. The kids knew how to say "don't" and "can't" but had no idea which words they came from or where the apostrophe went. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like don't, doesn't, didn't, can't, couldn't, wouldn't, shouldn't, won't, isn't, aren't, wasn't, weren't, I'm, you're, he's, she's, it's, we're, they're, I'll, you'll, he'll, she'll, we'll, they'll, I've, you've, we've, they've, and let's. Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the contractions finally stick.

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 "won't" makes any sense from "will not." The crossword I use for partners. I added a couple simple apostrophe and smiley face drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 2nd through 4th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers write the two words for each contraction on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.