Tides and Ocean Currents word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

Tides and Ocean Currents word search, scramble and crossword puzzle

I made this tides and ocean currents puzzle set for my 3rd and 4th graders during our Earth science unit. The kids knew the ocean had waves but had no idea why tides go in and out or what moves water around the planet. So I put together a word search, a word scramble, and a crossword using words like tide, high tide, low tide, gravity, moon, sun, current, ocean current, surface current, deep current, temperature, wind, Coriolis, and gyre. Nothing fancy — just puzzles to help these tricky ideas make sense.

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 over whether the moon or sun causes tides. The crossword I use for partners. I added a couple simple wave and moon drawings but nothing too busy.

Works for 3rd through 5th grade. Print and go. Sometimes I have early finishers draw a beach with high tide and low tide lines on the back. The kids actually ask for these now.