Solar system word search, free printable with pictures
The eight planets and the Moon hidden in a 12 by 12 grid, with a drawing of each to colour. Page two has the answers and one short fact for every drawing, the Sun included, each with the page it comes from.
Two pages in each file: A4 61 kB, US Letter 61 kB. Free, with no account and no email address.
The words
The Sun, the planets and the Moon, with a fact for each.
The Sunon the answer page, not in the grid
The Sun holds about 99.86% of all the mass in the Solar System.
MERCURY
Mercury is the smallest planet and the closest to the Sun; one lap takes about 88 Earth days.
VENUS
Venus is the hottest planet, and it spins the opposite way to most planets, Earth included.
EARTH
Earth is the only world known to harbour life, and its ocean covers about 71% of the crust.
MOONThe Moon
The Moon always turns the same side to Earth, from an average distance of about 384,400 km.
MARS
Mars looks red because its surface is rich in iron oxide.
JUPITER
Jupiter has nearly 2.5 times the mass of all the other planets put together.
SATURN
Saturn is the only planet less dense than water, and its rings are mostly water ice.
URANUS
Uranus was the first planet found with the help of a telescope, by William Herschel in 1781.
NEPTUNE
Neptune has the strongest winds of any planet, up to about 2,100 km/h.
For teachers and parents
What is on the sheet, and how to use it.
- Grid
- 12 by 12 letters
- Names
- Nine to find, 4 to 7 letters long
- Directions
- across, down and diagonally, always forwards
- Pages
- the puzzle, then the answers with ten facts
- Paper
- A4 or US Letter; page 1 is line art and needs no colour printer
Who it suits. Our suggestion is children who already read short words on their own, roughly ages 7 to 11. Younger children can colour the drawings while an adult reads the names aloud. This is our suggestion, not a tested reading level.
How long it takes. We have not timed it with a class. The grid on its own is a short activity; the colouring and the facts on page 2 can stretch it to fill a lesson.
The Sun is on the answer page with its fact, but it is not one of the names to find: the letters S, U, N already sit inside URANUS and VENUS read backwards, so a SUN in the grid could be found more than once.
The grid has one word per name; where the full name is longer, the list on the sheet shows it under the word, for example MOON for the Moon.
In class or at home
- Print page 1 for each child, and page 2 once, for yourself or to share at the end.
- Read the names aloud and look at the drawings together before starting.
- Each child ticks a name in the list when it is found, then colours the drawings.
- Finish with page 2: read a fact or two aloud. Each fact names its Wikipedia page, so older children can look it up and read more.
Questions
Questions about this word search.
Is this solar system word search free to print?
Yes. Both PDF files, A4 and US Letter, are free to download and print, with no account and no email address.
Where are the answers?
On page 2 of the same PDF: the grid with every name circled, the drawings in colour, and one short fact for each drawing with the Wikipedia page it comes from. Print only page 1 if you want to keep the answers for later.
Which way do the words go?
Across, down and diagonally, always forwards, never backwards. Each of the nine names is in the grid exactly once; our program checks that before the file is made, and also checks that no rude word turns up among the filler letters.
Should I print A4 or US Letter?
Pick the paper in your printer: US Letter in the United States and Canada, A4 in most other countries. In the print dialog choose actual size or 100%.
More printables
Eight more word searches with pictures.
Ocean animals word search
Musical instruments word search
Vegetables word search
Birds word search
Trees word search
Mountains word search
Inventions word search
Minerals and gems word search
All nine on one page: free printable word searches. Or play Field Notes online, with the same drawings and facts in the browser and a new page every day.