A Christmas escape room, one note a day.

Name: The Clock Tower Star: Christmas escape room advent calendar for kids 6 to 10, printable
Brand: ARLing
Price: 11.90 EUR
Availability: InStock

Grandpa Tobias the hedgehog forgot where he put the golden star. His 24 notes, one a day from December 1 to 24, are puzzles, and every answer gives one letter of where the star is waiting.

11.90 € on Etsy

For children aged 6 to 10: 24 puzzle notes, a Star Map, a Star Board, the end of the story, hints, solutions and certificates. Two PDF files, A4 and US Letter, 36 pages each, to download from Etsy after your payment.

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Page 7 of the PDF, the note for December 1 from Grandpa Tobias. At the top a strip with the day number and the line Fold up to here. Below, a picture code: a key of seven pictures with letters, such as lantern G, apple K, cup N, snowman O, acorn S and moon T, and a note of four pictures with an empty box under each for one letter. — **Page 7, the note for December 1:** a picture code. Fold the page once at the dotted line and only the strip with the day shows. Open the picture for the whole page.

A new puzzle every day. Nine kinds: picture code, mazes, counting, picture sudoku, logic puzzles, story sums, number steps, word search and the lock.
No envelopes, no cutting to play. Each note is a whole page, folded once. Scissors are only for the certificates.
Checked by a computer, not yet by players. A program checked that each puzzle has exactly one answer and that the 24 letters make the sentence.

How it plays.

The children open one note a day. The Star Map on the table fills up letter by letter until December 24.

Open today’s note. Solve the puzzle on it. A grown-up can read it aloud for younger children.
Find the answer on the Star Board. Write the letter next to it in today’s box on the Star Map.
On a bell day, keep the number. On December 3, 6, 11 and 14 the answer is a number; it also goes into a bell box on the Star Map.
On December 24, open the lock. The four bell numbers open the little door in the clock tower, and the last note tells the end of the story.

Page 4 of the PDF, the Star Map: 24 empty letter boxes numbered 1 to 24 and grouped into words, four bell boxes for December 3, 6, 11 and 14, a large drawing of the snowy clock tower and a line for the names of the Star Helpers. — **Page 4, the Star Map.** The 24 letters make a sentence that tells where the star is waiting.

A wrong answer is often not on the Star Board, or it gives a letter that does not fit the sentence, so the sentence helps children spot some mistakes themselves. It cannot catch every one: the solutions pages explain every answer for the grown-up.

Nine kinds of puzzle, a little harder each week.

The kinds take turns, so two days in a row never look the same.

December 1 to 8: From age 6, with a grown-up reading aloud.
December 9 to 16: A little harder.
December 17 to 24: For ages 8 to 10, or younger children with help.
Every day: About 5 to 15 minutes, by our estimate. Every note has a hint to read aloud, and hints are always allowed.

Six real note pages under the title Nine kinds of puzzle, easier in week 1, harder by week 3: picture code, mazes, picture sudoku, word search, logic puzzles and counting. Below: also story sums, number steps and a lock with four numbers on December 24. — **Six real notes from the PDF.** Story sums, number steps and the lock on December 24 make nine.

A gentle story to read aloud.

Nobody is bad, nothing is stolen, and there is no countdown clock. A forgotten star, snow, cookies and singing.

Every year on Christmas Eve, the animals of Holly Hill put a big golden star on top of the village tree. Grandpa Tobias the hedgehog looks after the old clock tower, and he looks after the star too. In November he put it somewhere safe, so the winter wind could not blow it away, and then he could not remember where. Luckily he writes little notes.

The children are the Star Helpers. Along the way they meet Mila the mouse, Pip the robin, Finn the rabbit and Lotte the lamb, who turn up in the puzzles. The story page is page 3; the end of the story is a folded note of its own, opened only after the lock on December 24.

Page 3 of the PDF, The Clock Tower Star: the story in two columns, the five characters Grandpa Tobias, Mila, Pip, Finn and Lotte drawn in a row, a large drawing of the clock tower in the snow, and How to play in four short steps. — **Page 3, the story,** with the five characters and How to play in four short steps.

December 24: the door in the tower.

With the last letter the Star Map is full. The children read the whole sentence aloud, then open the lock.

The lock: Four numbers: the bell numbers from December 3, 6, 11 and 14, in that order.
The last note: The end of the story, folded like the others, opened when the children have the code.
A surprise, if you like: The last note says Grandpa Tobias left a little surprise and asks the children to ask you where to look. It can be anything small; if you do not want one, say that the surprise is the star back on the tree.
Certificates: Four Official Star Helper certificates to a page, to cut out and sign.

Page 30 of the PDF, the note for December 24, The door in the tower: a drawing of a wooden door with a lock of four number boxes, four bell boxes for December 3, 6, 11 and 14, and an answer box. The last line says: With this last letter the Star Map is full. Read the whole sentence aloud, then open the last note. — **Page 30, the note for December 24.** The code is the four bell numbers the children wrote down along the way.

Print, fold, play.

About 20 minutes once to print and fold, by our estimate. After that, nothing to prepare each evening.

Print all 36 pages. One sided, at 100 percent scale. Color is nice but not needed; all pages work in black and white too.
Fold pages 7 to 31 once. Only the strip with the day number shows; a paper clip keeps a note closed.
Keep the 25 folded notes in order. In a box, a bag or the pockets of an advent calendar, out of sight.
Put out the Star Map and the Star Board. On the table or the fridge for the whole month. Keep the hints and solutions away from the children.

Print, fold, play: three drawings show the whole page, the bottom folded up to the line, and only the day showing. Below: print one sided at home, fold each note once, ages 6 to 10, 1 to 4 children or a class, about 5 to 15 minutes a day, every puzzle checked by a computer, with the December 24 note beside it. At the bottom: ages and times are our estimate, nobody has played the game yet. — **How to fold a note.** The same three steps are on page 2, the page for grown-ups.

What you get.

The same game in two paper sizes. Plain PDF files, no ZIP, in your Etsy download after payment.

The-Clock-Tower-Star-Advent-Escape-Room-A4.pdf

From Purchases and reviews on Etsy.com, after Etsy confirms your payment

36 pages
A4
The-Clock-Tower-Star-Advent-Escape-Room-US-Letter.pdf

In the same download

36 pages
US Letter

1Start here: what is inside and what you need
2For grown-ups: how the Star Helpers play
3The story to read aloud, and how to play
4The Star Map
5, 6The Star Board
7 to 3024 notes, December 1 to 24, one whole page each
31The end of the story
32, 3324 hints to read aloud
34, 35Solutions, with the reason for every answer
36Certificates, 4 to a page

Download the files in a web browser; downloads are not available in the Etsy app. Guest buyers can use the download link in their Etsy receipt email. You may print as many copies as your own family, classroom or club needs; please do not share or resell the files. It is a digital download, and nothing is shipped.

Page 1 of the PDF, Start here: the title The Clock Tower Star, a drawing of the clock tower and the five characters, three steps for grown-ups (print, fold, start on December 1), a table of what is inside with page numbers, and You will need: a printer, a pencil, a box or bag for the 25 folded notes and a small surprise for December 24, if you like. — **Page 1, Start here,** with the page list and what you need.

Who it is for, and who it is not for.

A good pick if

you have children aged 6 to 10 who like puzzles, and you want an advent calendar without screens
1 to 4 siblings will solve together, or you teach a class (print a Star Map for each group)
you want a calm story with no villain and no countdown clock
you would rather print and fold once before December 1 than prepare something every evening

Not the right pick if

you want your children’s names on every card; that is a different product, our personalized advent treasure hunt
you want a printed calendar shipped to you; this is a printable PDF, and nothing is shipped
your children are younger than 6, or you want puzzles for teens and adults
you want a spooky or timed escape room; this one is gentle on purpose
you need another language; the text is in English
you want a game that families have already played and rated; nobody has played it yet, and the ages and times are our estimate

You need a printer, A4 or US Letter paper, a pencil, a box or bag for the folded notes, and a small surprise for December 24 if you like.

Before you buy.

When and where do I get my files?

After Etsy confirms your payment, download the two PDF files from Purchases and reviews on Etsy.com in a web browser; downloads are not available in the Etsy app. If you bought as a guest, use the download link in your Etsy receipt email. Nothing is shipped.

Can a 6 year old play it?

December 1 to 8 work from age 6 with a grown-up reading aloud. December 9 to 16 are a little harder, and December 17 to 24 are for ages 8 to 10 or younger children with help. Every note has a hint to read aloud, and hints are always allowed. Ages and times are our estimate: nobody has played the game yet.

What if the children get an answer wrong?

A wrong answer is often not on the Star Board, or it gives a letter that does not fit the sentence, so the sentence helps children spot some mistakes themselves. It cannot catch every one. The solutions pages explain every answer for the grown-up.

We missed a day. What now?

Do two notes the next day. The order of the letters only matters on the Star Map.

Can I use it with a class or several children?

Yes. 1 to 4 siblings can solve together with one Star Map. For a class, print a Star Map for each group; the notes can be read aloud to everyone. You may print as many copies as your own family, classroom or club needs; please do not share or resell the files.

Do I need a color printer?

No. All pages work in black and white too. Print one sided at 100 percent scale.

24 notes, one star to find.

A printable escape room advent calendar for ages 6 to 10, ready to download from Etsy after you pay.

11.90 € on Etsy

Buy on Etsy

In the EU, Etsy adds local VAT (23 percent in Slovakia), and elsewhere it may add local tax; Etsy shows the final total before you pay.

Want their names on every card? The personalized advent treasure hunt for ages 4 to 12.
Another escape room? The Dragon Who Slept on the Key, a winter escape room for kids 7 to 10.

Colophon

Publisher: ARLing s. r. o., Ivanská cesta 32E, 821 04 Bratislava, Slovakia. Company ID 56583486, VAT ID SK2122352100.
Who makes it: Andrej in Bratislava looks after the products and the support. Texts and puzzles were created with the help of AI tools. The drawings are simple shapes drawn in code; no AI images are used.
Where you buy: On Etsy, in our shop ARLingStudio. Etsy takes the payment and sends the receipt. The two PDF files are in your Etsy download after Etsy confirms the payment. Nothing is shipped.
Questions: Before you buy, write to support@arling.sk. After you buy, for a file or printing problem, send us an Etsy Message (ARLingStudio) with your order number, the file name and the error you see. Please do not send card or payment details.

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