How To Picture Puzzles

Materials:
Digital Camera
Internet Access: www.puzzlemaker.com
Microsoft Word/Publisher or other similar program

Students are given a topic for discussion. For example in my Applied Science class it may be Using a bandsaw. They are told to pick out 15-20 operational procedures/safety facts/key parts of the machine etc. They provide clues and type them in to puzzlemaker to create cross words and word finds. Then, they take digital pictures of their clues to help students figure out the clue. They insert the pics into a desktop publishing program to demonstrate that they know what the procedure/part is. I also use this in small animal care for identification. This can be used across the curriculum to teach/assess understanding of concepts and bring alive the experience. I also plan on extending this to include videos!