Word puzzle games are a great way to reinforce specific Spanish words which were naturally learned by listening to or reading one of our bilingual stories.

You can use these word search games after reading or listening to part of a story or the entire story.

Keep it fun and light. Depending on your child's age and attention level, you can let them search for 1 to 3 words at a time. Around 10 minutes of word searching is typically enough for one session.

Each word puzzle features 20 words from the relevant story.

When you pick 1 to 3 words to search for that day, remind your child where they heard that word in the story. If the word is cat, remind them about the cat in the story. Ask them what the cat looked like and what it did. Chat casually about the cat while they search for the word. Use both the English and Spanish word to link the two languages in their mind and reduce confusion.

By searching for a word in the puzzle and seeing it written in both English and Spanish, it becomes a powerful form of vocabulary practice. This strengthens memory and helps reinforce how the word looks and is spelled correctly, without stress, pressure, tests, or vocabulary drills that many kids dislike.

If your child can't find a word, it's perfectly fine to let them pick a different one or help them find it. Sometimes, trying the harder word again later, after circling other words, makes it much easier to spot among the remaining letters.

If your child isn't in the mood for a word game, try a coloring activity or a play-based activity instead (see the game and play ideas at the bottom of each story's page). Don't force it. Some kids love puzzles and word games more than others. If your child enjoys them, let them do as many puzzles as they like. You don't have to limit it to 1 to 3 words. If they're focused and having fun, they can find all 20 words.

Always celebrate their successes and praise them when they find a word.

While they search for the word, casually say it several times in Spanish and English. Hearing and seeing the word together helps strengthen the memory.

All of these word puzzle games are available as PDFs that you can download and print.