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Table of Contents
When waiting for a friend to come or waiting for the bus or train to get home, a person can get bored. They usually spend these idle times solving puzzles and playing board games. Nowadays, these games are easily accessible through gadgets.
See the fact file below for more information on Word Games or alternatively, you can download our 36-page Word Games worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
Introduction
- Besides being for leisure, word games are also considered educational.
- It helps develop skills, such as language and social skills, and improves concentration, focus, reading, and writing.
- It also develops vocabulary and has a lot of benefits for the brain.
- Playing word games can be through pen and paper, board games, and gadgets.
Brief History
- “Game”, originally “gamen”, was a word from Old English that was coined around 1200 CE.
- Gamen was used as a word to describe joy and fun.
- During this time, the term “games” was connected to contests, chess, backgammon, and sports.
- Sports during this time involved hunting wild animals, fishing, and fowling.
- In the 1500s, “game” was used to classify a play or a sport that people joined.
- Puzzle, which formerly means “a perplexing question”, first emerged during the 1590s.
- The word puzzle had developed its meaning during the 1800s as “a toy contrived to test one’s ingenuity”.
- Crossword puzzles were one of the first word games to be invented.
- It was also considered the most popular type of word game.
- The first person to ever publish a crossword puzzle was a journalist named Arthur Wayne.
- It was issued in New York World on December 21, 1913.
- It was a diamond-shaped puzzle with no shaded black squares.
- In the 1920s, puzzles appeared in newspapers, and within a decade, they were in most American newspapers.
- In February 1922, the first British publication to feature a crossword was Pearson’s Magazine.
- Eight years after, the first crossword in Times was published.
- British puzzles had rapidly developed and were even harder to solve than the puzzles by Americans.
- Over time, word games evolved, but it is not far different from the earliest games made.
Types of Word Games
- There are various types of word games that can be played.
- Here are some of the most common examples:
Pen and Paper | Board Games | Applications |
Crossword Word Search Anagrams Semantics Jumbled Letters Rebus Puzzles | Scrabble Boggle | Text Twist Wordscapes |
Other Importance of Word Games
- Word games boost self-esteem and generate happiness.
- They are also stress-relievers.
- It improves memory and reduces the risks of dementia.
- Word games also develop strategic thinking and problem-solving.
- It provides new learning.
Word Games Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about Word Games across 36 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Word games which are not only a great way to pass the time, they are also educational and can help sharpen vocabulary skills.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- Word Games Facts
- How Many Can You Tell?
- Haaamburgerrr!
- Trip To Space
- Under The Sea
- What’s In The Pic?
- Twist and Tell
- Hey, It’s Bingo!
- Sudoku
- X-O-X
- Playing With The Alphabet
- Addition of Pictures
- Please Save Me
- What Did You Say?
- Think Deeper
- Double Time
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the word game known as doublet?
Created by Oxford mathematician Lewis Carroll, doublet challenges players to transform one word into another of the same length. The catch is that you can only change one letter at a time, and all the linking steps in between also have to be legitimate words.
What do word games do?
If you make playing word games part of your daily routine, it will do more than just help improve your vocabulary. It will also help improve focus and attention span in an age where people are pulled in many directions at once.
What do word games do for your brain?
According to research, doing word puzzles and games can help improve how your brain works. A study found that these activities can help with memory, attention, and executive brain function. This means that puzzles and games can help you understand information better.
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Link will appear as Word Games Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, March 24, 2022
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.