Summer ESCAPE ROOM: 9 Challenges, Student Workbook, Resources, Answer Key

Using an Escape Room to develop curriculum knowledge is an exciting activity that will inspire learners from 2nd Grade to 5th Grade.

The curriculum content of this Escape Room is linked to:

• Summer Vacations and Funfairs
• Problem Solving
• Math and Language skills

The aim of the Escape Room is to provide jeopardy for the children to work under pressure to solve 9 clues to save them being trapped in the Fun Fair Escape Room.

Before beginning, you will need to prepare the following:

• A copy of the Pupil Workbook for each group
• A set of table activities for every group – prepared beforehand and given to each group after they have all completed each Code Key activity
• IT sources and research materials
• Initial Starting Script sharing the problem to the children
• Completion Script celebrating the completion of the challenge

Children do not need prior knowledge of the topic above to complete this Escape Room, as the research will support the answers and each Code Key is supported with several clues. This Escape Room is ideal as a celebration of Summer breaks and Fun Fair traditions.

The activity begins by the teacher reader the Initial Message received. It clearly tells the children that they are visiting a funfair which has an unusual sign on the front gate: “WARNING! Dare you enter the Summer Funfair?” The expectation is for the children to want to undertake the tasks in this Escape Room as all children love an Escape Room! The first challenge is a code breaking challenge which, once completed, tells the children what they must do in order to escape the room, as well as give them their first Code Key. After each challenge successfully completed, the children will have revealed a Code Key to move onto the next challenge. Only when they complete the challenge can they move on and finally escape the Fun Fair.

What follows are 9 activities:

The 9 activities are based on the following outcomes:

• Solving a secret message using a Coded Alphabet
• Coconut Shy: Math Problem Solving – finding ways to make the number 4 using limited digits and operations
• Haunted House: Making 12 words from limited letters
• Burger Stall: Sequencing Ingredients in different ways
• Fortune Teller: Magic Squares
• Hook a Duck: Sequencing numbers from math problems
• The Dodgems: Properties of numbers (multiples and prime)
• Fun Fair Maths: Problem solving algebra
• Ferris Wheel: Word Problems

When all 9 activities are completed, and the children have gained the correct Code Keys from each activity, the teacher can read the final communication detailing how the children have been successful and can therefore leave the Escape Room.

Setting up the Escape Room

1. Children should be split into groups of no more than four and be placed in their own work space.

2. Access to IT and research materials can be provided to allow children to research answers to questions if they need them and review their own knowledge, as well as checking answers.

3. Each group should have a Code Key Booklet and decide on a team name

4. Read the Initial Message to the children to set the challenge in context. Discuss what this means, and what the activity entails. Children will be told that all the are trapped in the Funfair. The only way they can escape is to solve 9 challenges, collect the Code Keys and leave!

5. There are two ways to run this Escape room:

A) Each group starts on one of the 9 tables with one of the 9 Challenges. Determine a time limit with your children – during that time, the children must try and complete the challenge to reveal a Code Key. All answers can be found in the Teacher Answer Booklet.

B) Each of the groups conduct the same challenge at the same time – making the Escape Room much more competitive. It saves on preparation and also keeps the children together. Our children much prefer this method as it feels like a real “shared” experience competing against one another.

6. At the end of the time, children should have filled in the Code Key in their booklet. At this point, the groups move to the next Challenge sequentially. For example, if they were working on Challenge 5, they would then move to Challenge 6, then 7, 8, 9, 1 and so on until all 9 were completed.

7. The same time limit should be applied to all Challenges to ensure it is fair for all groups. Some Challenges will be faster than others – but this allows children to go back and complete others which were not finished or not successful in!

8. For those groups who have been successful, they are then able to read the completed statement where they find out if they have escaped the Summer Fun Fair Challenge!

The Escape Room should last for at least 2 hours

Best wishes

INSPIReducation