Missing Link for teachers
A free five-minute word warm-up. Students get the first and last word of a seven-word chain and find the five in between, one compound word at a time.
Why it works in class
- Vocabulary in context. Every link is a compound word or common phrase, like CUP and CAKE (cupcake) or CAKE and WALK (cakewalk), so students think about how words combine and what they mean.
- Reasoning, not guessing. Each word shows its length and a starting letter. Only real words are accepted, and a wrong guess reveals another letter, so nobody stays stuck.
- One shared puzzle a day. The whole class works on the same chain, which makes it easy to talk about afterward.
- Standards. It supports Common Core L.2.4.d (use the meaning of individual words to predict the meaning of compound words) and the word relationships standards in L.3.5 through L.8.5.
Ways to use it
- Bell-ringer. Project today's chain as students come in. The class calls out guesses and one student types.
- Partners. Pairs solve on one device and compare how many misses they needed.
- Talk it through. Which link was hardest? Can you find another word that fits both neighbors? (Words that genuinely fit count too.)
- Make your own. Students write a seven-word chain for a classmate to solve.
- Challenge. Hard mode in Settings hides the starting letters.
Good to know
- Free, with no sign-up and no student accounts. It runs in the browser on Chromebooks, iPads, laptops and phones.
- We don't collect names or email addresses. Stats are saved on each device, and we count plays anonymously. See the privacy policy.
- Best for grades 6 to 12 on their own. Younger classes do well solving it together with the teacher. Puzzles use everyday words checked against a profanity list.
- Planning ahead? Today's hints give a clue for each word without the answer, past puzzles can be replayed from the game, and full answers are at /answers once a day is over everywhere.
Tell us how it goes
Using Missing Link with your class? We'd love to hear what worked and what didn't. We're also thinking about a classroom edition with easier chains for younger grades, so tell us if you'd use one. Email contact@missinglink.games.