Celebrate the Festival of Lights
This puzzle hides 14 words connected to Hanukkah on a 14 × 14 grid: menorah, dreidel, latkes, gelt, shamash, Maccabees and sufganiyot (the jam doughnuts eaten during the holiday). It works well in classrooms learning about winter celebrations around the world, and as a quiet activity at home during the eight nights.
Learning while searching
Before starting, talk through what each word means. Why are there eight candles plus the shamash? Why are fried foods traditional? Once the puzzle is done, children can pick three words and write a sentence explaining each one. That turns the search into a short vocabulary lesson.
Adjusting it
- Younger children: Easy difficulty and short words: oil, gelt, eight, lights.
- Older children: Hard difficulty with backwards words.
- Families: add the names of relatives you'll celebrate with.
Spelling notes
Hebrew words are spelled several ways in English, for example Hanukkah and Chanukah, or latkes and latkas. Use the spelling your community prefers by editing the list. The grid regenerates instantly, and the theme's candle and dreidel decorations stay in place.