Grade 2 Neighborhoods and Maps word search, scramble and crossword puz

Grade 2 Neighborhoods and Maps word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this neighborhoods and maps puzzle set for my 2nd graders during our social studies unit. The kids could point to their house and their school on a simple map, but they had no idea about the vocabulary words that describe a neighborhood—like street, block, or community—or what symbols and legends were for when we started reading maps. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like neighborhood, map, street, road, block, community, building, house, school, park, store, library, and symbols . I also made sure to include "legend" and "compass rose" because they kept coming up when we learned how to read a map . Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the 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, and the scramble gets them talking because they argue about the spelling of "compass" or whether a "legend" is the same as a "key" . The crossword I use for partners or as a review, and I usually have a sample neighborhood map nearby for the kids who need the visual support to see how the words connect to the map . I added a couple simple house, school, and park drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 2nd through 3rd grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers draw their own simple map on the back and label it with three words from the puzzle. The kids actually ask for these now.