Codewords, sometimes called cipher crosswords and cipher word puzzles, are crossword-like grids with numbered squares.
How does it work?Each number represents a particular letter. Using logic and observations, figure out which letters match which numbers, and completely fill the grid with words. If, for example, the number 6 is replaced by the letter A in a given location, you can replace number 6 everywhere with the letter A. Only the correct words will complete the grid.
There are three types of
Codewords puzzles throughout the book:
Small (15x7 grid size)In the small puzzles, you are provided with a handful of given letters to help get you going. Substitute those letters in the grids and see which words you can form from that point.
Medium (15x15 grid size)In the medium puzzles, in addition to the handful of given letters to get you going, you are also provided with three words that appear somewhere in the grid. If you can identify where these words fit, that will give you a boost, as it will provide more number to letter matches.
Large (29x31 grid size with a hole in the middle)In the large puzzles, you are still given a handful of given letters, but you also get four anagrams of words that can be found somewhere in the grid. This is a bit of an extra challenge, as you must first resolve the anagram before you can work out where the resulting word is located in the grid.
The puzzles become progressively more challenging. As you progress through the book, you are provided with fewer and fewer letters to get you going, making it harder to get going.
The book is broken up into 6 major sections, each of which is separated by a couple of other puzzle pages. Each section is slightly more challenging that the previous. The first page in each section includes 4 small puzzles. These are actually quite tough, since there are no clues or hints of any kind provided - just a handful of letters to get you started. Then there are 8 pages of medium puzzles - 2 to a page. Finally, each section is terminated with a large full-page puzzle.
Oh, and bonus points if you can find - and solve - the hidden
Easter eggs!
After every 10 pages of
Codewords puzzles, there are a couple of different puzzles and games to make completing the book more interesting.
In addition to the 162 Codewords puzzles, there are dozens of other fun puzzles and games from Bounce Learning Kids included.
What's included?
- 126 Codewords puzzles (small, medium & large formats)
- 1 Hex Words puzzle - solve each clue to reveal the interconnecting 6-letter word solutions
- 1 Word Cross puzzle - solve each of the horizontal clues to reveal the vertical word down the middle
- 2 Word fill-in puzzles (1 large/full-page, and 1 small/half-page) - place every word into the grid
- 1 Crossword Jigsaw puzzle - reconstruct the completed crossword puzzle by arranging all the 2x2 blocks correctly
- 4 Logic puzzles (2x2 grids) - work out which numbers result in all the sums reading correctly in all directions
- 1 Crossword Numbers puzzle - place every number into the grid
- 1 Word Ladders puzzle (5-letters) - change 1 letter to make a new word
- 1 Anagrams puzzle (5-letters) - rearrange the letters to reveal all 10 anagrams, then find the mystery word using one letter from each solution
- 2 Number Search puzzles - locate the numbers in the grid
- Answers to all puzzles
Codewords is a wonderful way to build vocabulary and exercise the brain cells. You don't need any prior knowledge, like with a regular crossword - just observation skills and a little logic.
