Used in over 1,700 districts.

Arizona ELA Standard: 2.RF.3

Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding one-syllable or two-syllable words.

Valentine’s Day Codes
Valentine’s Day Codes
Teach your students about basic cryptography and code making.
Gr 1-5
Word Ladder: Fly to Bee (6-steps)
Word Ladder: Fly to Bee (6-steps)
COLD to COOL. BAND to SING. Change one letter at a time — can you find the path?
Gr 1-8
Psycholunaphase (Greek and Latin)
Psycholunaphase (Greek and Latin)
What on earth is a Psycholunaphase? Break apart the Greek and Latin roots, figure out what it should mean, then invent the creature, device, or spell it describes.
Gr 1-8
Path Cipher (Codes Part 4)
Path Cipher (Codes Part 4)
Now let’s try the Path Cipher – a cipher that mixes things up even more than Zig Zag did.
Gr 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8
Zig Zag Cipher (Codes Part 3)
Zig Zag Cipher (Codes Part 3)
Let’s try a cipher that doesn’t substitute new letters or shapes. We just mix things up.
Gr 1-8
Pig Pen Cipher (Codes Part 2)
Pig Pen Cipher (Codes Part 2)
Let’s encode some secret messages with a cipher that was actually used during the American Civil War!
Gr 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8
Shift Cipher (Codes Part 1)
Shift Cipher (Codes Part 1)
Let’s encode and decode secret messages like Julius Caesar!
Gr 1-5
Words Within Words: Intro (SOLDIER)
Words Within Words: Intro (SOLDIER)
How many words can you find within SOLDIER? 20? 35? 50? Even more!?
Gr 1-5
Words Within Words: AIRPLANE
Words Within Words: AIRPLANE
How many words can you find within airplane?
Gr 1-5
Word Pyramid: P to PLAINS
Word Pyramid: P to PLAINS
Add a letter at each step to form a new word. Can you connect the starting point and ending point?
Gr 1-4
Word Pyramid: O to Stones
Word Pyramid: O to Stones
Add a letter at each step to form a new word. Can you connect the starting point and ending point?
Gr 1-5
Word Ladder: Two to Six (6-steps)
Word Ladder: Two to Six (6-steps)
COLD to COOL. BAND to SING. Change one letter at a time — can you find the path?
Gr 1-5
Word Ladder: Fast to Race (4 step)
Word Ladder: Fast to Race (4 step)
COLD to COOL. BAND to SING. Change one letter at a time — can you find the path?
Gr 1-8
Word Ladder: Sky to Red (5-steps)
Word Ladder: Sky to Red (5-steps)
COLD to COOL. BAND to SING. Change one letter at a time — can you find the path?
Gr 1-5
Word Ladder: Band to Sing (4 Steps)
Word Ladder: Band to Sing (4 Steps)
COLD to COOL. BAND to SING. Change one letter at a time — can you find the path?
Gr 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8
Jotto
Jotto
Who can guess the codeword first?
Gr 1-5
Bulls and Cows
Bulls and Cows
How quickly can you break the numeric code?
Gr 1-8
Ghost
Ghost
Ghost is a word-building game for two players. The first person to create an actual word loses.
Gr 1-5