Historical Event Narrative Vocabulary word search, scramble and crossw

Historical Event Narrative Vocabulary word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this historical event narrative vocabulary puzzle set for my 4th graders during our social studies and writing unit. The kids could tell me about things that happened in the past but had no idea what words like timeline, event, or primary source meant when we talked about writing about history. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like timeline, event, primary source, secondary source, fact, date, cause, effect, witness, and historian. Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help the historical narrative 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 or indoor recess. The scramble gets them talking because they argue about whether a primary source is always more reliable than a secondary source. The crossword I use for partners or as a review. I added a couple simple clock, scroll, and book drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 4th through 5th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers write one historical event they would like to know more about on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.