Free Back to School Word Searches

These free back to school word searches are a great way to get kids ready to head back to the classroom or to jump-start the school year. Whether you’re using them at home or in the classroom, these word searches offer numerous benefits.

Whether you’re a parent getting ready to send the kids back to school or a teacher getting ready to face a full classroom, you don’t want to miss out on these back to school word searches.

A printable back to school word search is a fun way to get those little brains humming along after the summer break. Hunting for words will get the gears turning and knock loose any dust that may have accumulated. 🙃

Bonus: Each back to school word search listed below is totally free, which is great since you’ll already be shelling out a small fortune for school supplies.

What Are the Benefits of Word Searches?

Sure, a word search can be a fun way to pass the time, but they definitely aren’t just busy work. A word search puzzle offers multiple benefits for people of all ages. For instance, these back to school word searches can:

• Improve spelling.
• Enhance vocabulary.
• Build problem solving skills.
• Cultivate a deeper attention to detail.
• Enhance working memory.
• Promote focus and concentration.
• Reduce stress.
• Increase self-confidence.

Yep, really. A word search can do all of that.

Bonus: You can get add-on benefits out of these back to school word searches by making small tweaks, such as adding a team component. More on that in the “How to Make a Word Search More Fun” section!

Since many kids may be nervous or stressed about returning to school, let’s focus on the last two benefits for a moment.

How Can Word Searches Reduce Stress?

Puzzles, including these back to school word searches, can help reduce stress in a couple of ways.

1. Finding a word or completing a word search creates a sense of achievement and satisfaction. If you’ve ever completed other puzzles or, for example, beat a level in a game, you’ve probably experienced this. This feeling of “winning” may promote a temporary increase in dopamine in the brain, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward.
2. Similar to coloring, engaging with a word search can promote mindfulness. In other words, you’re focused on the task at hand—finding words—not on stressful events.

Bonus: As mentioned above, coloring can also reduce stress. If your child is nervous about heading back to school, add these back to school coloring pages to your to-print list in addition to the back to school word searches.

How Can Word Searches Increase Self-Confidence?

Successfully completing a word search, especially one that felt challenging, provides a sense of accomplishment. This seemingly small victory can, however, improve one’s self-image.

Tackling one of the back to school word searches may give your child an “I’ve got this” mentality as they head back into the classroom.

Download the Back to School Word Searches

1. School Supply Themed Back to School Word Search (Freebie Finding Mom) – This back to school word search is themed around common school supplies. It’s a great way to get the kids (and you) thinking about items you might want to stock up on.

2. Cyber Crayon Back to School Word Search – This printable back to school word search offers a mix of short and long words. The more complex words, such as “geometry” and “literature,” may make this a more challenging option.

3. Thrifty Mommas Tips Back to School Word Search – This back to school word search can be a great way for your child to practice spelling common school and school supply words.

4. Woo Jr Hidden Message Back to School Word Search – This back to school word search is two puzzles in one, so it’s twice the fun!

5. Education.com Back to School Word Search – Looking for more fun worksheets and puzzles to use in the classroom (or at home)? Be sure to explore this website, as they have many different free printables to choose from.

6. Puzzles to Print Back to School Word Search – Snag any of several fun (and free) back to school word searches here, including a general word search and a geometry-themed back to school word search.

Not sure which of these awesome back to school word searches to choose? Why not grab them all? You can use them at different points throughout the school year to keep your kids’ (or students’) minds sharp.

How to Make a Word Search More Fun

Looking for ways to make a back to school word search more fun? Look no further! Here are three ideas that will take any word search to the next level.

1. Remove the words – You can make each back to school word search more challenging by removing the list of words before handing the printable out. Tell kids how many words they should find and what the theme is (school), but don’t provide the actual words they should be looking for.
2. Provide clues – As with idea one, remove the words from the word search. However, instead of just letting kids guess at what words to look for, provide clues for each one. If you’re feeling extra creative, you could provide these clues in the form of riddles.
   • If you’re going to use riddles, consider turning this into a team activity. Kids can work together to solve the riddles and find the words. This will provide the added benefits of helping kids connect with their new classmates and improve team-building skills and cooperation.
3. Make it a race – For this idea, you can either stick with an individual activity or turn it into a team activity. Have kids (or teams) compete against each other to see who (or which team) can solve the back to school word search the fastest!

Can you think of other ways to make these back to school word searches even more exciting and engaging? Share your thoughts in the comments!