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Word Searches for 1st Graders

13 free PDFsUS Letter or A4Answer key includedNo login

Themed word search puzzles with picture word banks and answer keys: seasons, animals, school, food, weather, community helpers and transportation.

Download the word searches worksheets

Seasons word searches

Fall, winter, spring and summer puzzles.

Animal word searches

Farm animals, ocean animals, pets and insects.

Everyday word searches

School, food and weather.

Challenge word searches

Words go across, down and on a slant.

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these word searches worksheets

Word searches are a fun way for first graders to look closely at how words are spelled. Finding a word in a grid means holding its letters in mind in order, which supports spelling and reading.

These word searches for 1st graders use a 10 by 10 grid of lowercase letters. The word bank has a picture for every word, so children can read the words on their own, and a box to check off each word they find. Most puzzles have words going across and down. Two challenge puzzles add words on a slant.

Themes include the four seasons, farm animals, ocean animals, pets, insects, school, food, weather, community helpers and transportation. Each puzzle has an answer key on page 2.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.2.DUse conventional spelling for words with common spelling patterns and for frequently occurring irregular words.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.5.ASort words into categories (e.g., colors, clothing) to gain a sense of the concepts the categories represent.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.4Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

How to use them

  1. Read the word bank together first and point to each picture.
  2. Show your child how to find the first letter of a word, then check the letters next to it.
  3. Have your child check the box beside each word as they find it.
  4. Start with an across-and-down puzzle. Save the slant puzzles for later.
  5. After the puzzle, have your child write two of the words from memory.

Teaching tips

  • Use a highlighter or a crayon to color each word when found.
  • If a child is stuck, tell them the row the word starts in.
  • Words never share a letter, so each letter in the grid belongs to at most one word.
  • Seasonal puzzles make good morning work or early finisher activities.
  • Pair word searches with spelling practice of the same theme words.

Questions teachers and parents ask

How big are these word searches?

Each puzzle is a 10 by 10 grid with 7 to 10 words, a good size for first graders.

Do words go backward or diagonally?

No words go backward. Most puzzles go only across and down. The two challenge puzzles also have words on a slant.

Are there answer keys?

Yes, each word search has an answer key on page 2 with every word circled.

Can first graders do word searches on their own?

Yes. The picture word bank helps them read each word, and the across and down puzzles are made for independent work.