Character Trait Interactive Crossword Puzzle

Character Trait Interactive

Crossword Puzzle

Objective

• Students will be able to create an interactive crossword puzzle using Microsoft Excel that is based on researched information about their positive character traits.

• Students will be able to identify and define positive character traits.

METS

• CI.2- Create a project using a variety of applications and formats

• RI.1- Use a variety of digital resources to locate information.

What Are Character Traits?

Character traits are all the aspects of a person’s behavior and attitudes that make up that person’s personality. Everyone has character traits, both good and bad. Even characters in books have character traits. Character traits are often shown with descriptive adjectives, like patient, unfaithful, or jealous. For this assignment we are going to focus solely focus on our positive character traits.

Step 1

Identify 15 character traits that describe you and your personality (Who you are). Use the list below to identify 15 Character Traits that describe you and your personality (feel free to research other traits that you feel would describe your personality).

Sample List of Character Traits

Create a new Google Drive Document and list each of your 15 traits (Do Not number them). Once your 15 traits are listed, use the internet to define each one of your 15 character traits in your Google Drive document. **Do not use a dash to separate your trait from your definition (see example below). Each definition should be written in your own words and will be referred as the clues to your crossword puzzle from here on out.

Happy Feeling or showing pleasure or contentment

Step 2

Once you have your 15 words and clues typed out in Google Drive, go to Puzzle Maker to format your puzzle.

Follow the directions for creating the format or skeleton of your crossword puzzle. Make sure you include your name in step 1, as the title. This will distinguish your crossword from the other student's crossword when they are printed out.

Print out your crossword skeleton.

Once you print out your crossword puzzle skeleton, you will need to actually complete it with a pencil. This should be very simple as you already have all of the clues and answers typed out in your Google Drive.

Step 3

Open up a new Excel spreadsheet.

You will now enter all 15 of your words into your spreadsheet. You want a blank column to appear on both the left and right side of your crossword as well as a blank row above and below your crossword.

You will type in one letter for each state in each cell, recreating the exact crossword puzzle you just printed off from Puzzle Maker.

The How to Video below shows two words entered.

Entering Words in Your Excel Worksheet How to Video

Follow the directions below to format your crossword puzzle/ spreadsheet.

Place all borders around all your words in the puzzle and center align text in cells both vertically and horizontally. Do not add borders to any of the blank cells. Click on Borders tab on the Formatting toolbar

Vertically and Horizontally align your text in the cells. Select the cells with the text and click the vertical and horizontal alignment buttons on the Home tab.

Add Borders and Vertically and Center Align Text How to Video

Change the Size of the Cells.

Select all the cells in your worksheet by clicking the box above the number 1 and to the left of the A column.

· Click on Format -> Column-> Width

· Set the column width to 5 at the Column Width dialog box.

• Click again the Format again and select Row -> Height and set the row height to 20.

Add a Solid Fill to the Empty Cells That Do Not Contain Text

·Select the empty cells by holding down the left mouse and dragging over them. Click on the fill paint can and select a color. The fill color will then be applied to the empty cells. You will have to do this in sections so that you don't select the cells that contain text.

Adding Clues By Inserting Comments To Your Puzzle.

· Make sure you have your crossword you generated using Puzzle Maker that contains your clues. Right click on the first letter of the word of one of your words and select Insert Comment. Make sure you include Across and Down in your comment box. You can change the font color or fill color of your comment.

·Add all 15 clues to your interactive crossword. The How to Video demonstrates how to insert one comment but you will add all ten comments to your puzzle.

·Format each comment using the buttons on the formatting toolbar.

Adding Comments and Formatting How to Video

Step 4

Adding Conditional Formatting

The next step is to add conditional formatting to the cell so that when the correct letters are placed in the cell the cell will turn green and green text will appear in the cell. If the text is incorrect the letter will appear red.

Click in one of the letters in the puzzle. Click Format -> Conditional Formatting and select Highlight Cells Rules then select Text that Contains. To select more than one cell that contains the same letter hold the Control key down while selecting.

The letter that appears in the cell that you have selected should appear in Format cells that contain the text box. Select Green Fill with Dark Green Text and Click OK to apply the conditional formatting to the cell.

Now we need to add the incorrect response conditional formatting, turning the text red if it is incorrect to the same text cell.

With the same Conditional Formatting box open, Click Add.

At the New Formatting Rule Type, select Format only cells that contain, Edit the rule description and select Cell Value > Not Equal To> F and then click the Format button.

Select font color red.

Click Ok to close the format cells dialog box and click OK to apply the conditional formatting to your cell. Check it out by deleting the letter in the cell and typing the correct response then type in an incorrect response. Continue adding conditional formatting to the rest of your cells.