Crossword puzzles are an effective way to teach students. Teachers can include this activity in the classroom to beat boredom and help students enhance their creative thinking. A crossword puzzle is one of the ways to help students learn new definitions and terms, build their confidence, and improve team-building activities. If incorporated into the classroom curriculum, teachers and students can make the most out of this learning tool.
What are crossword puzzles?
If you are unsure about what are crossword puzzles, understand that these are a form of a jigsaw puzzle for words. These are designed horizontally or vertically with black and white shaded squares. The motive of these puzzles is to enhance the problem-solving skills of individuals. Moreover, people solving these puzzles spend their time finding the correct answer. As a result of this exercise, their brain muscles get stronger and sharper.
How do crossword puzzles help with learning?
Crossword puzzles can be used in the classroom to teach various new aspects to students. How do crossword puzzles help with learning? Understand this with the help of research studies. Many research studies have shown that these puzzles can enhance educational values. If you are a teacher, you can incorporate these puzzles in the following ways:
- Revision of concepts that are hard to understand
- Teaching-learning gap identification
- Feedback devices
- Encouragement of critical thinking abilities
- Alternative assessment options
The benefits of using crossword puzzles in the classroom do not stop here. You can use this measure to boost the confidence of your students. Most teachers believe that memorization is the best way to help students learn new concepts. However, it has been found that crosswords go a step beyond memorization techniques and help students realize their weaknesses. Moreover, it also helps students understand how they can use different aspects of the same concept. In the study, students also mentioned that crossword puzzles are a fun activity that helps them improve their learning process. Another study conducted in 2013 mentioned that these puzzles improve vocabulary. Also, it enhances the willingness to learn new concepts.
How to create crossword puzzles for students?
If you want to create a crossword puzzle for your students, you need to keep the basic points in your mind. It does not matter if you teach language, math, or other subjects; including crosswords in the course curriculum is a fun activity. A few forms of crosswords that you can use in the classroom are:
Language crosswords
It’s a no-brainer that crossword puzzles can be used in language classes. You can make your students learn to spell and enhance their word power through this fun activity. By using a classical crossword, you can give clues about words concerning a particular topic. Moreover, you can make your students learn different words in a foreign or native language. Creating crosswords for language classes is easy. You can design the crossword by taking a set of words you are teaching in the classroom. Use an online crossword tool to create crossword puzzles for students.
Science crosswords
Like language teachers, science teachers can also create crosswords to teach scientific terminologies and concepts to their students. You can make your students learn different elements of the periodic table through crossword puzzles.
Math crosswords
You can create crossword puzzles for students and help them understand different terminologies. For example, if you want to make your students learn arithmetic, you can create a crossword puzzle about the same. Help your students fill in the solution into the table.
Crosswords for kids
You can create easy and fun crossword puzzles for kids using emojis and other fun representations. You can make younger children learn about colors and other basic things through crosswords. Use this learning tool to draw students’ attention to studies.
Following the techniques mentioned above will help you design an interactive and knowledge-enhancing puzzle for your students.
Crosswords are not only a part of fun activities for students. Instead, they also serve as a self-assessment tool for students. The use of crosswords in the classroom can have a positive impact on exam performance. It has been noted that students who dedicate their time solving crossword puzzles are more likely to give a better performance in the exams. However, most researchers agree that these puzzles work best as a formative assessment instead of a summative assessment.
As a teacher, you should try and incorporate different learning techniques in your classroom. Adopting a multi-faceted approach will help students learn more effectively.
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