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25 Printable Cryptogram Puzzles for Kids
Unlock hours of fun with our free printable cryptogram puzzles for kids! These intriguing puzzles offer a delightful challenge that stimulates children’s inquisitive minds while enhancing their problem-solving skills. Each cryptogram is designed to engage young learners and encourage critical thinking, making them fantastic for both entertainment and education. Kids will love the thrill of decoding messages and discovering hidden words, all while having a blast.
Whether at home or in the classroom, these cryptograms provide a creative way for kids to practice their decoding abilities and discover the joy of solving puzzles. They are perfect for rainy days, family game nights, or as a fun classroom activity. Plus, parents and teachers can use these puzzles to foster a love for learning in a playful and interactive way. Get ready for an exciting adventure in learning with our printable cryptograms!
What is a Cryptogram?
A cryptogram is a type of puzzle where letters are replaced by numbers or symbols. To solve the puzzle, a cipher (special code) is provided. Each symbol represents a different letter of the alphabet in the final solution.
Each time a symbol or picture appears in the clue, it always represents the same letter. For example, if a sunflower represents the letter ‘E’, then every time you see an ‘E’ in the coded message you replace it with an E. Once you have completed the code for each letter, a full sentence or message will be revealed.
Cryptograms are thought to have existed for thousands of years. They first appeared carved into monuments in Egypt’s Old Kingdom more than 4500 years ago, where they were intended to cause amusement and intrigue! Monks in the Middle Ages used cryptograms as fun puzzles for entertainment, but later in history these clever codes were used for military purposes as a way to pass on top-secret messages and were used throughout both World Wars.
Did You Know?
During the Second World War, a cipher machine called The Enigma Machine was used by Nazi Germany to protect top secret communications. English mathematician Alan Turing and other codebreakers managed to crack these messages at the famous code-breaking station at Bletchley Park. This helped save millions of lives and shortened the length of the war.
Today, cryptograms are mostly used for entertainment and can be found in newspapers and magazines including the New York Times.
What’s Included in our 25 Printable Cryptogram Puzzles With Answers For Kids?
We’ve created 25 wonderful cryptogram puzzles to keep the kids entertained for hours. Each cryptogram puzzle has a theme, and the symbols and pictures in the code match the theme of the cryptogram. We’ve covered a huge range of topics, from Hollywood and Disney, to music and the garden, and lots more.
Our themed cryptogram puzzles are a fun activity if you’re introducing a new topic into the classroom such as professions or healthy eating. We’ve also got a great selection of seasonal cryptogram puzzles to use for holidays, different seasons and more throughout the year, including Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter.
To get started, click to download the cryptogram puzzle of your choice onto your computer then print as many copies as you need.
The children need to use the key code to fill in the words in the spaces provided. These puzzles can be tricky, so we’ve included the answers in case they need a little help or if they’d like to mark their own answers.
Benefits of Solving Cryptograms
Cryptograms are an entertaining way to keep the kids occupied for a few hours, whether it’s a rainy day, the end of term at school, or you’re going on a long journey. These fantastic puzzles are also great for helping kids develop a variety of skills, including:
Language and Vocabulary Skills
When kids decipher a cryptogram, they are exposed to words and phrases that they might not have seen before. This not only helps to expand their vocabulary, but also practises their knowledge of sentence structure and understanding.
Critical Thinking Skills
When we decipher codes, we need to think logically and critically. As kids work through a cryptogram, they are developing critical thinking methods such as deductive reasoning to solve a problem. Practising these skills can help kids later in subjects such as science and maths.
Cognitive skills
Completing any kind of puzzle is a great way to help kids develop fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness.
Concentration Skills
Cryptograms are perfect for encouraging focus and concentration in children, as they need to pay close attention to the puzzle to get it completed.
Helpful Tips for Completing Cryptograms
Here are a few useful hints to help you get started with your code cracking!
- Starting with one of the most common letters is a good way to solve a cryptogram quickly. Studies show that the most common letter is E, followed by A, O, I, N, S, H, R, D, and L. Letters such as X, K, J, Z and Q are a lot less common, so look for these towards the end of the puzzle.
- Be extra careful to write each letter in the correct boxes. It’s easy to get mixed up and then the end message won’t make any sense. Concentration is important!
- Be patient! It might seem to take a while before any of the words or a sentence appears, but keep going and you will crack the code! Take a break if you need to and come back later.
- Looking for patterns can help you crack the code quicker. Once you have found a few letters, the rest of puzzle will often get easier.
- Practice makes perfect! The more cryptograms you try to solve, the better you become at deciphering them!
Summary
Cryptograms are entertaining puzzles that are perfect for keeping kids occupied for a while, and they’re also a fantastic way to boost their critical thinking skills, expand their vocabulary and much more. They’re free and easy to print off and take anywhere, so you’ve always got a fun activity on hand when you need one.
We hope you’ve had fun trying out our 25 free printable cryptograms for kids. Now you’ve cracked our cryptograms, why not explore some of our other exciting brain teasers and entertaining puzzles here at Just Family Fun? We’ve got something for everyone, and the great news is that all our puzzles are free to download and print.
Our Printable Rebus Puzzles for All Ages use a clever combination of symbols, letters and pictures to form a word or simple phrases. We’ve got a huge collection to choose from, including easy rebus puzzles for beginners and younger children, and trickier brain teasers for expert puzzle solvers!
Happy puzzling!