The worksheet titled "Word Puzzles: Building Words by Using Different Letter Combinations" supports spelling and vocabulary skills in a fun and engaging way that encourages critical thinking.

Puzzles invite students to build words in four different ways. At the top of each page, they are asked to spell different words using groups of one, two, or three letters in a word search-style puzzle. Another puzzle asks students to draw one line in any direction to finish a word that has already been started. There's one that lists different letter combinations and asks students to use them to spell some words. Another set of letters are arranged in a ring. Students find the right starting letter and move left or right to discover the word.

Practicing spelling and vocabulary skills with traditional activities like repeatedly writing and looking up words in a dictionary is effective, but they can also be dull if that's the only practice your students get. You can make learning spelling and vocabulary skills more fun by incorporating different puzzles into your daily lesson plans.

Word searches can be an especially effective way to practice spelling and help students build their vocabulary. Crosswords, anagrams, and letter arrangement puzzles are effective too. You can make these activities a little easier by practicing them together as a class, allowing students to work on them together, or giving them hints, like filling in certain letters and asking students to complete the puzzle. Activities like these help students think about spelling and vocabulary in new ways, which supports interdisciplinary learning and problem-solving.