Literary Terms Crossword Puzzle for Grade 7

Grade 7 Literary Analysis Terms word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this literary analysis terms puzzle set for my 7th graders during our reading and writing unit. The kids could identify basic elements like plot and character, but they kept mixing up the more advanced terms like motif, foil, and allegory when we started analyzing texts more deeply. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like theme, motif, symbolism, allegory, imagery, tone, mood, voice, perspective, point of view, irony, diction, syntax, foil, and archetype . I also included a few like "parallelism" and "juxtaposition" because they kept coming up in our class discussions . Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the terms 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 independent practice. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about the spelling of "juxtaposition" (it's a tricky one) or whether a motif and a theme are the same thing (they're not—they always have opinions about it) . The crossword I use for partners or as a review, and I usually have a literary terms anchor chart nearby for the kids who need the visual support to see the definitions and examples . I added a couple simple book and magnifying glass drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 7th through 8th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers write a sentence using a literary term and an example from a book they've read on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.