Crack the Christmas Code!

Objective & content

This activity sheet turns spelling into a Christmas code game. At the top, a code of sixteen shapes gives sixteen letters (a star is A, a heart is B, a circle is C, and so on). Pupils decode five Christmas words (star, bell, tree, card, snowman) and one Christmas message, "Merry Christmas", then find the picture of each word. By the end, pupils spell five Christmas words and read Merry Christmas.

Pedagogical guide

Pupils have to look at every letter: they find each shape in the code and write its letter in the box under it. The shapes have colours too, but on the black and white copy the shape alone is enough, so every word decodes one way only. Lines 1 to 5 are the five Christmas words; line 6 is the message, "Merry Christmas", in two words. Under the code, five pictures (a snowman, a card, a star, a tree, a bell) come in a different order from the words, so the decoding still has to be done: pupils write the number of each word in the circle under its picture. Page 2 gives the answer key (the six lines and the picture numbers: snowman 5, card 4, star 1, tree 3, bell 2) and the teacher notes.

Suggested procedure

1. (5 min) Say the five Christmas words with the pictures at the bottom of the sheet.
2. (5 min) Show the code at the top and do line 1 together: find each shape, write its letter, read the word (star), then write 1 in the circle under the star.
3. (15 min) Pupils decode lines 2 to 6 alone and number the pictures.
4. (5 min) Check together with the answer key; the class reads the message aloud: "Merry Christmas!"

Adaptations

[S] Give the first letter of each word.

[A] Pupils write a Christmas word in shapes for a partner on the back of the sheet, and the partner cracks it.

Materials & prerequisites

One copy per pupil of page 1, in colour or black and white. Pupils need only a pencil. Page 2 is the answer key with teacher notes: keep it. Pupils should know the letters of the alphabet and have met a few Christmas words.