I love doing escape rooms with my kids and I enjoy creating them for parents and educators to use in their homes and classrooms. Over the years, I have created different escape rooms to be done in different rooms around the house, as well as, different escape room puzzle ideas. Today, I am very excited about my latest escape room for kids because it is designed specifically for educators to use in a school setting.

If you are looking for an activity to do with students that is engaging, educational and also gets kids up and moving, you’re going to love this classroom escape room.

One of my favorite things to do while teaching is to plan lessons and activities that involve moving around and learning beyond the four walls of a classroom. Simply moving and being in a different space can help engage children and get them excited about school and learning.

One of the best parts of this escape room is that you won’t have to spend your whole prep period setting it up. Simply print the pages, place them in the different locations around the school and you’re ready to go!

School Escape Room

This classroom escape room for kids is a great activity for any celebration you are doing at school. Whether it’s the last day of school, the days before a vacation or if you’re simply looking for an exciting activity that gets kids outside of your classroom without actually leaving the school, this escape room is for you.

This escape room for kids was created to use in a school, but the clues are still fun for children to solve in other settings. Some ideas of how to use it in other locations are included at the bottom of this post.

Printable Escape Room

A printable escape room is a great option if you want to be able to set up an escape room quickly or use it several times. A printable escape room is often inexpensive because you don’t need any special materials, such as keys or locks, that are often used in other escape rooms.

The instructions below explain some ideas on how to best use the classroom escape room for kids. You will see the clues and some of the solutions. It is intended to give you an idea of how easy it is to do the escape room at school. However, the full descriptions on how to set the escape room up and all of the solutions are included in the product.

The story behind “The Great Classroom Escape”:

Oh no! The school day is about to be extended by about 6 hours and holidays and days off are going to be added as days children have to go to school… Unless your class can solve these puzzles to prove that they don’t need extra school and the school day is perfect the way it is.

Getting Started

I typically give children one hour to solve the escape room. However, decide on a time that you think works best for your group of children. Keep in mind that you will be moving through the school to different locations. This could take some time depending on the school.

I suggest giving extra time because in the end you want children to feel successful. For even younger children, you may choose to not set a time limit at all. For older children I find that the extra pressure of the timer builds excitement and engagement.

I recommend the game for below grade 6. Young children may need extra help, but it is still a great learning activity for them and they will definitely take something away from the experience. It is a great way to introduce children to escape rooms in a fun and safe environment. It also teaches teamwork and problem solving!

Make sure to always supervise children when doing escape rooms.  Use puzzles that are age appropriate, safe and placed in a location that is safe for the children doing the escape room. 

Escape Room Puzzle #1

To start the escape room, simply print off each of the clues, either in black and white or color. Another option, if you have an interactive board or projector screen, is to have the puzzles on your computer to put on the board for children to solve together.

You can start the escape room by simply giving children the first puzzle or read it aloud to everyone.

Some children may immediately notice on the puzzle that some of the letters are in a black square. Children can then work together to solve what the letters say when put together.

The letters spell out “Check the library”. As soon as children solve this puzzle, the search is on for the next clue – somewhere in the library!

Escape Room for Kids Clue #2

When you place each of the escape room puzzles around the different locations in the school, you can choose to hide the paper or place it somewhere easy to find. Keep in mind the harder you hide it the longer the escape room will take.

If you want to move the game along quickly, you can simply tape the clue to the door of the location, such as the library doors.

If you want to make it a bit more challenging and make finding the puzzles a bigger part of the game, then you can hide it somewhere in the room and have children search for it.

Once the clue has been found, ideally put it up on a projection board for all children see and solve together. If you have access to do this in the library and the different places for each clue, that’s great.

Otherwise, either solve the puzzle on the spot together or take it back to your classroom to work out.

For this second puzzle, children have to eliminate a collection of pictures based on different descriptions. When done correctly, children are left with one picture with a corresponding school location which holds the next puzzle.

If some of the clues, like this one, have a few possible locations to look, such as the school library and classroom library, that’s okay! Part of an escape room is trying out different things and looking in different places to find the next clue.

Classroom Escape Room Puzzle #3

The second puzzle sends children to the school office! When I did an escape room with my students, I was lucky to have a principal who was happy to be involved and be a part of our escape room game. My students were also very excited to visit the principal’s office for such an exciting reason.

It is fun for students to feel that the escape room has been set up for them and other staff are involved and rooting for them. It can also be a great way to create community within the school.

For the puzzles that involve other staff, it is always a good idea to talk to staff ahead of time- especially if you are going to be taking your whole class into their room. Make sure to find a time that works for everyone.

If the timing does not work for other staff, you can place the escape room puzzle on the door of the office for students to quickly find.

This escape room puzzle is a word search that when completed sends children to the school gymnasium.

Escape Room for Kids Puzzle #4

Place your clue for the gym on the gym doors or somewhere inside for students to search for it. Keep in mind if other classes will be using the gym as you solve your puzzles. Make sure to put the printed escape room puzzle in a place that it will not get moved, or damaged.

Classroom Escape Room Puzzle #5

This is another puzzle that involves another staff member or class. The escape room puzzle directs children to check the class beside theirs. For many classes this could mean several different classrooms. You can choose which class you want this clue to send your students.

You can tape the clue to the door for your students to find quickly. Alternatively the class beside you could be involved in giving your students the clue. It could be hidden somewhere in their room, such as on their alphabet line (as pictured). Another student could also be responsible for giving your class their next clue when they come looking for it.

Puzzles like this that involve other students and staff are always the most exciting!

This puzzle includes 18 basic addition and subtraction math questions. However, a blank copy of this page is also included in the product. You can add in your own questions to either make it easier for students, or harder.

You can even choose questions that relate to any math unit you are currently working on. It’s an easy way to integrate a bit of your math period into the game!

Escape Room for Kids Puzzle #6

The final puzzle can be found outside at the playground. Get kids outside and some fresh air! As they search the playground, they will find their final clue.

Children can put the pictures together to solve the clue. This puzzle leads students to the main doors of the school.

You Escaped! Escape Room Certificates

You can choose to put the clue inside or outside of the main doors. Make sure to place it somewhere that you know it will not be disturbed.

The final puzzle leads children to the main entrance where they will find their escape room certificates. I suggest filling them out ahead of time if you are giving one to each student.

You can also choose to include a small prize or treat for children to find. If you use it before Valentine’s Day you could give some candy hearts, for example.

I love using activities like this before a holiday or celebration, such as Christmas or Halloween, because I know students are already going to be excited. This escape room allows them to stay excited, but focused, as they work to solve the puzzles.

That’s the escape room! I hope that you and your children enjoy doing it as much as I enjoyed creating it.

Alternative Ideas

If you are interested in using this escape room at home, but some of the puzzles lead you to places such as the gymnasium, that aren’t in your home, there are options!

I have done similar activities with my kids at home that were intended for a classroom setting. You can simply encourage children to think about where in your house is most similar to the place in the escape room.

For example, for the clue that sends children to the school gymnasium, they could instead search where any sporting equipment is stored in your house. For the clue that sends them to the main doors of the school, kids can go to the front doors of your house.

You can also put a sign in the different places around your house to help children find each location. For example, a bedroom door could be labelled with “GYM” and children can search the “gym”/ bedroom for their next clue.

You can also write down each of the locations of the clues (library, office, playground, gym, main doors, neighboring classroom) and write an alternative. For example, office = kitchen in your home.

Classroom Escape Room Printable

All of the pages featured in this escape room are available to download. The product comes in color pages, as well as black and white. Simple set up instructions and all of the solutions are included. Click here for more information.

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In the Free Resource Library you will also find a Free School Scavenger Hunt game. It is a fully printable game that can be played throughout the school. There are no hands-on parts of the game, but it is perfect for rainy days and an easy way to take learning beyond the classroom.

More Hands-On Teaching Ideas

There are lots of things you can do at home, or school to keep children learning and having fun. Below is a collection of my most popular and favorite activities. From another classroom escape room for kids and a collection of over 40 DIY escape room puzzles to science and STEM experiments and outdoor learning activities there is lots to keep kids busy and learning.

There is also a collection of some of my printable escape rooms that can be set up in minutes without any extra materials. Check out my shop to search through all of my educational learning activities, for parents and educators!