A lot happened in the world last week. Some of it was important and some of it was just silly. Most of it is worth knowing about. I hope this week's crossword prompts discussions that start with 'Why...' The US president went to Belgium and ate lots of chocolates and the Belgian royal family disapproved of a Burger King advertisement. Diesel cars are still being sold despite emitting 18 times the legal level of pollution. So much for the Paris Agreement on climate change, speaking of which, more than 90 people were killed and over a hundred more are missing in Sri Lanka after huge rainfall caused flooding and landslides. In Sicily the US First Lady wore a coat that retails for more than $50,000. More than 150 children under 5 die every day in Myanmar because of fighting and poverty. Sailing in the America's Cup began and Arsenal won the FA Cup. In Australia a teenager ran across the horse racing track because someone dared him. Also in Australia, a Jetstar plane revved up ready for taxiing while a ground crew member was still attached to the plane's nose, but in London, BA cancelled all flights because their computer system crashed. Construction work began on a huge telescope in Chile and a Brazilian mother who stole an Easter egg for her kids was given a harsher prison sentence than the politicians who stole millions of dollars of public money. This week there are THREE bonus puzzles - Climate change, European countries, US states... It's a pdf document. It's quick and easy to download / save to a flash drive on your keyring. Then you have a simple and very worthwhile lesson activity in your pocket. Brilliant!!

Where on Earth? (Book 1) TEN crossword puzzles (and few extras as freebies). Download them and put them onto a flash drive on your keyring. That's TEN very cool and interesting and educational lessons in your pocket. An excellent small group activity, homework, or even for the speedy kids who finish an activity early. Very very good for the kids with messy handwriting. Or those with concentration issues. A simple pdf booklet with some simple and fun crosswords about the world's countries, capitals, well known landmarks (and food). It's quick to download. Store it on a flash drive and have some simple, easy to administer resources at hand in case you have a substitute lesson or a bunch of rowdy kids in your classroom at lunchtime or you're near the end of a unit and waiting for that other class to catch up or a bazillion other situations where you want to occupy the students with a good, simple learning activity. Where do they eat haggis? Where's Vienna? What's the capital of South Africa? Who said Rabat? That's Morocco. Is it one r or two? Morocco... I was on holiday there once and... oh, the food. Food? Who said Lebanon? Baklava? Sushi? That's from Vietnam, right? Where's Vietnam? Is there a map in the room? A globe? What's Uluru? Is it a mountain in New Zealand? Oops, that might start an argument in the staffroom. Can we get back to the food? Tiramisu and pain au raisin - at the same time? Where to in the next holiday? Hvar? Dubrovnik? Mauritius? Banff National Park? Christchurch? Koh Samui? Colombo? There are a few extra puzzles just for fun too. Nonsense Rhymes Crosswords... if you like Dr Seuss, you'll love these. They're just fun to do on the bus on the way home from school.

Climate Change Crosswords is a pdf document containing 5 crosswords that focus on the greenhouse effect, global warming, and climate change - and what we can do about it. There isa bonus puzzle about the Amazon Basin - perhaps the most significant region in terms of climate change. There's another crossword on The Might Mi__i__i__i River. (And then some more on Africa, Asia and Europe - for a rainy day.) Climate change is real, it’s here, and it’s getting worse, but there’s hope. That’s the message of these crosswords. Climate change is happening because of global warming which is happening because humans burn too much fossil fuel, cut down way too many trees, use cars instead of bicycles, throw away too much food, and farm too many animals. The glaciers are retreating. The ocean is warming. The polar ice masses are melting. The sea level is rising. More extreme weather events are occuring. And the worst affected are the poorest people because they tend to live near the edges of rivers and the sea. What can we do about it? Each puzzle includes suggestions. Hopefully these crosswords educate students about what is happening to the earth’s climate and its people. Hopefully they’ll learn why it’s happening and how climate change can be stopped, or mitigated. There’s something a little sneaky and tricky about crosswords. Kids feel compelled to finish them. Try them.

The World News Crossword (May 21st 2017) is a simple crossword based on last week's news events. This week there are THREE BONUS puzzles (The Mighty Mississippi, USA's states, and a puzzle all about Climate Change). These puzzles are engaging and interesting learning activities. The World News Crossword enthuses students to discuss news events around the world. The US president met Turkey's president and it didn't go so well. The US president then flew to Saudi Arabia where he'll attend a meeting also attended by a leader wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes. Why did North Korea's leader fire another missile? The leader in the Philippines banned cigarette smoking in public. France inaugurated its president and he flew first to meet Germany's chancellor and then to meet French troops in Africa. And Ukraine's president banned the country's two most popular social media sites. The News puzzle can be used with young or old students, individually or in small groups, in class or for homework. The three bonus puzzles can be used when substituting for absent colleagues or during rainy lunch times.

Suitable for Key Stage 3 Geography, GCSE/IGCSE, or A Levels/IB Diploma. Bonus puzzles: European capitals, African capitals, Asian capitals. Each crossword makes an excellent group or individual activity and can be used as a revision/reinforcement activity. In-class or for homework. These puzzles are great for stashing away to be used when colleagues are absent. Answers included.

Geography: Map skills A set of TWO crosswords: Map skills 1 and Map skills 2 and TWO bonus puzzles: The India Region and the Australasia Region Suitable for Key Stage 3 Geography, GCSE/IGCSE, or A Levels/IB Diploma. Each crossword makes an excellent group or individual activity and can be used as a revision/reinforcement activity. In-class or for homework. These puzzles are great for stashing away to be used when colleagues are absent. Answers included.

Geography: Tectonic Processes Crosswords The Earth, Boundaries, Volcanoes, Eathquakes and 3 bonus puzzles (USA & Canada, Central America, South America). Suitable for Key Stage 3 Geography, GCSE/IGCSE, or A Levels/IB Diploma. Each crossword makes an excellent group or individual activity and can be used as a revision/reinforcement activity. In-class or for homework. These puzzles are great for stashing away to be used when colleagues are absent. Answers included.

Geography: Weather & Climate Crosswords A set of TEN crosswords: The Water Cycle, Weather, Rain, Anti-cyclones and Depressions, Climate, and Micro-climates. And Climate Change. Suitable for Key Stage 3 Geography, GCSE/IGCSE, or A Levels/IB Diploma. Each crossword makes an excellent group or individual activity and can be used as a revision/reinforcement activity. In-class or for homework. These puzzles are great for stashing away to be used when colleagues are absent. Answers included.

Simple to download and print and use. Develops phonemic awareness, reading skills, spelling, logic/reasoning skills, and handwriting.

A set of 5 crosswords supporting the KS3 Geography Geomorpholgical Processes topic (Rocks, Weathering, Erosion, Rivers, and Coastlines). It's a pdf document so it's quick and simple to download and print. An excellent group or individual activity, revision/reinforcement, in-class or for homework. Answers included. (3 bonus puzzles included that are ideal for substitution lessons.)

The World News Crossword is a simple PDF that can be downloaded and printed in just a few minutes. It's a simple activity suitable for PSHE, English, Geography, Economics... Crosswords are good for supporting language learning, for research skills, for handwriting, for logic and thinking, for collaboration and team work... And students will learn about what happened around the world last week... Somalia requested an arms embargo be lifted but at the same time about 6 million Somalian people are facing food and water shortages because of a drought. The US is close to finalising a $US100 million arms deal with Saudi Arabia. Rory McIlroy signed a $US100 million equipment deal and Sergio Garcia hit a hole in one in the same tournament that another golfer hit three tee shots into the water for a sextuple-bogey. The DRC announced an Ebola outbreak and Brazil announced the end of its Zika virus crisis. There was a worldwide cyber-attack on hospitals. The Russian Foreign Minister visited the White House and the president sacked the FBI’s director. Russian police arrested 11 people for reading the Russian constitution aloud in Red Square. They also arrested a man for filming himself playing Pokemon Go inside a church. Germany’s economy grew significantly in the last quarter. China announced a $US100 billion infrastructure plan to boost economic growth in Asia. Solar power is at a record low price in India and Dutch officials opened a new wind farm in the North Sea. The US will definitely lose all of its glaciers in the next few decades (not counting Alaska’s glaciers of course). The US secretary of state signed a commitment to protect the Arctic and to support scientific research into climate change. Paris’ Gare du Nord was evacuated and small bomb exploded in Rome. Emmanuel Macron won France’s presidential election. A mathematician and a bullfighter are candidates for his party’s general election. The US Air Force secret unmanned space plane landed after more than 700 days in space. (Shhh, don’t tell anyone because it’s a secret.) Of course, this activity is less about what happened and more about why... Why is China aiming to boost the region's economies? Why did Emmanuel Macron win with such a large majority? Why will the US' glaciers all be gone soon? Let the students chat about the puzzle's clues and see where the discussion goes. As always there are some bonus puzzles for the students who finish early, for students in a lesson that you have to substitute for, or just for fun during a rainy lunchtime... This week the bonus puzzles are about the Pacific countries, Europe, and well-known world landmarks.

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happened in their world during the last week or so. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events... India launched a communications satellite that may be able to find some rats that drank the banned alcohol. Mark Selby won the world snooker championships and Always Dreaming won the Kentucky Derby and Eliud Kipchoge didn't quite break the 2 hours for the marathon. An Argentinean was rescued from Canadian mountain and an 85 year old Nepali man died on Mount Everest. Wolves returned to Denmark and rhinos returned to Rwanda. The Pope doesn't approve of a bomb being called the mother of all bombs. Bombs were defused in Hannover. France held presidential elections and also passed a law requiring fashion models to produce a medical certificate to prove they're healthy. Schoolgirls were hospitalised after a gas leak in India and some of the more than 200 kidnapped schoolgirls were returned by Boko Haram in Nigeria. Of course, this puzzle activity is not about getting the crossword completed correctly. The real goal os to get the students asking about the stories in the news. Why did Nike sponsor the sub 2 hour mile attempt? Why were there bombs in Hannover?Why did Venice ban new fast food outlets? Download and then print the simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. This week, there are 2 BONUS crossword puzzles: one is about Asia's countries and capitals and the other is about Africa. These are handy to print and have ready for emergencies.

Nonsense Rhymes Crosswords 2 is made up of fun rhymes, for example ‘A koala’s no failure, at home in... [Australia]’, ‘I knew a banker, from Sri... [Lanka]’, and ‘The can-can is a dance, performed in... [France]’. These crosswords are perfect for reinforcing phonemic awareness. Crosswords only work when we spell the words correctly (and neatly). Students learn something rather old- fashioned - spelling. They’ll spend time reading very carefully and thinking about correct spellings - and they’ll want to get it right because there’s something in our psychology that compels us to start them and then finish them. Crosswords also require neat handwriting. These puzzles have also been very effective with students who struggle to concentrate. It’s normal for students to compete with each other and it’s normal for them to beg for the answer to 23 Across before they leave for home. Best of all, students ask for more of them. And when they do that, they’re really asking for more reading and writing and spelling time. And how much more beautiful can a teaching day get than that? This is resource is made up of 5 nonsense rhymes crosswords (and two extra crosswords that will be fun and useful to store away in your back pocket for a substitute lesson). It's a simple PDF document so it's quick and easy to download and then print.

Nonsense Rhymes Crosswords are all made up of fun rhymes, for example ‘If your car starts to splutter, feed it peanut... [butter], and ‘But that’s absurd, you’re not a... [bird], and ‘I like to have mustard, with my chocolate... [custard] and ‘Does a tuna wish, to swim like a...’ [fish]. These crosswords are perfect for reinforcing phonemic awareness. Crosswords only work when we spell the words correctly (and neatly). Students learn something rather old-fashioned - spelling. They’ll spend time reading very carefully and thinking about correct spellings - and they’ll want to get it right because there’s something in our psychology that compels us to start them and then finish them. Crosswords also require neat handwriting. These puzzles have also been very effective with students who struggle to concentrate. It’s normal for students to compete with each other and it’s normal for them to beg for the answer to 23 Across before they leave for home. Best of all, students ask for more of them. And when they do that, they’re really asking for more reading and writing and spelling time. And how much more beautiful can a teaching day get than that? This resource is made up of 5 Nonsense Rhymes Crosswords (and a few more just for fun). It's a PDF document so it's quick to download and print.

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happening in their world. Download and then print this simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. In this week's puzzle... protest marches in Venezuela against economic failure and all around the world in support of science. No blue lights on cars in India, no food stalls on Bangkok streets and no dogs and cats to be eaten in Taiwan. Presidential elections in France and an early election in Britain. A national strike in French Guiana and a murder in the Maldives and very disrespectful behaviour at the tennis. And North Korea created a lot of news last week too. It was an interesting week. The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. There are 2 BONUS puzzles: one is about Asia's countries and capitals and the other is about Africa.

This is a simple crossword activity aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happening in our world. Download and then print this easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. (You might even give them colleagues to keep them happy during staff meetings - but don't let the bosses catch you!) In this week's puzzle... Obamacare survived. Somali pirates released a Sri Lankan ship and crew. An avalanche in Japan and a cyclone in Queensland. New Zealanders submitted a petition to protest against water being sold to China, India, and the Middle East. Britain was attacked by a lone terrorist. And Vladimir told Marine that Russia won't meddle in France's presidential election. Of course the real value of this crossword is the discussion it'll generate... Why did these things happen? Why, of all the things that happened in the world, were these the events reported in the news? The wording of these news events is interesting too; is there any bias in the wording? The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. There are two BONUS puzzles that focus on the United Kingdom's history and geography. Good for KS3 as well as older classes.

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happening in their world. Download and then print this simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. (You might even give them colleagues to keep them happy during staff meetings - but don't let the bosses catch you!) In this week's puzzle... The US made a verbal move against North Korea, the South Korea made a move without her dogs, and Nato made a move to Estonia. In Australia, because someone dared him, an 18 year old jumped into a stream and was attacked by a crocodile. In New Zealand the police shot a bomb sniffer dog at Auckland airport. And in India, a firebrand Hindu priest was appointed to govern the most populous state. And of course the real reason for these crosswords is to prompt the students to ask why... Why did Norway's Sami people get a large pension fund to sell off investments in a US company? Why did a Chinese court punish a policeman and why did the European Parliament punish that Policy MEP and why did France's far-right party expel one of its officials - and why did the Turkish president blame the Dutch for the 1985 Srebrenica massacre? (And was he right?) The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. There are three BONUS puzzles that focus on North America, Central America, and South America.

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happening in their world. Download and then print this simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. There's a BONUS puzzle that asks in which country or city a news event occurred.

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what's happening in their world. Download and then print this simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative home room period or even a substitution lesson when the ascent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. In this week's puzzle… Have you heard that if a butterfly flaps its wings in the South American rainforest....? Well, the number of monarch butterflies wintering in Mexico is 27% less than last year, Peru’s ex-president, Alejandro Toledo, was charged with bribery, and London’s mayor said that London’s air is so polluted that owners of diesel-powered cars should be aid not to drive them and there are no leaks from a nuclear power plant in France but lots of air pollution in UK. A French farmer and a Swedish reporter were both found guilty and given suspended sentences for helping refugees into their countries. Renewable energy made up 90% of all new electricity in the EU but there’s still too much coal being used. Extreme temperatures in the past weeks have resulted in many forest fires in New South Wales, about 400 pilot whales beached themselves in New Zealand, England beat Wales in the Six Nations rugby and 17 people died at a football match in Angola. Cannabis may be decriminalised in Ireland and some forms of domestic violence in Russia may also be decriminalised and a Russian millionaire negotiated to lease three uninhabited Kiribati islands to establish an alternative Russia. The Handmaid’s Tale rose on the bestseller lists because, the author Margaret Atwood says, of worries about women’s issues after the US election, the US commander in Afghanistan asked for 2000 more troops, North Korea launched a missile, and a Chinese man was reunited with his family after being stuck in India for 50 years. Whew!

This is a simple crossword aiming to encourage students to ask about what happened in their world last week. Download and then print this simple and easy to use PDF and save time preparing for the next English, Economics, Geography, Business, or PSHE lesson. The puzzles are excellent for a lively and informative homeroom period or even a substitution lesson when the absent colleague hasn't left enough work. You save your precious time and the students get to learn about last week's news events. The puzzles seem to work best when students work in pairs or groups of three, so they discuss the clues and therefore the events of their world. They work even better if the teacher does the puzzle with the students. It's less bout the puzzle's clues and answers and more about the questions and discussion that result from them. For example... What is match-fixing? Why would people protest against China building a port in Sri Lanka. Where is Ghana? Why kill the ducks in France? Why would Israel withhold money from its annual United Nations dues? Where is Fort Lauderdale? Where are Chad and Libya? What is the Turner Prize awarded for? Where is Cueta? Why is there a civil war in Syria? Where is Abuja? Why would parents allow their children to work in a brick kiln? What are bison? Could a palace in Sweden be haunted by a ghost? Really? Why replace workers with an AI system? What’s AI? Where is Guantánamo Bay? What does Germany have to do with Namibia? As a bonus, there are three more puzzles... European capitals, Asian capitals, and African capitals. Because it might be good if they know where these countries and their capital cities are. It's a bit of fun, and educational of course, but watch closely and you'll see how crosswords can help students improve their handwriting. There's a new puzzle created every week, so don't forget to come back every Monday morning for another simple and easy and very useful learning activity.