Engineering Crossword Puzzle for Career Vocabulary

Engineering Careers word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this engineering careers puzzle set for my 4th graders during our career exploration unit. The kids could name a few engineering jobs like civil and mechanical, but they had no idea about the incredible range of engineering specialties—or what words like prototype, design, or solve meant when we talked about what engineers actually do. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like civil, mechanical, electrical, chemical, software, aerospace, environmental, design, build, test, and bridge. I also made sure to include "prototype" and "solution" because they came up in every career video we watched.

The PDF is four pages. Three puzzles plus one answer key page. The word search works well for quiet time after recess or independent practice. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about whether an aerospace engineer works on planes or spaceships (both, actually). The crossword I use for partners or as a review after we've watched short career videos. I added a couple simple bridge, rocket, and gear drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 4th through 6th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers pick one engineering career from the puzzles and write what they do on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.