How the Decoder Works
Once you’ve used the instructions on the PDF Download to assemble your decoder you can either share that decoder with a friend or have them make an identical one. To use it, simply line up a letter on the outer band with one on the inner band and ensure only your friend has that two letter code. For instance if you line up the letter ‘T’ on the outer band with the letter ‘M’ on the inner band your key would be TM and once your decoder dials were lined up on those two letters you can begin coding and deciphering your own messages! You can just translate words into your own secret message by using your secret code letters on the inner dial in the place of the real spellings of words on the outer dial. As long as you and you friend keep your wheels aligned to the key you can read and write your own secret messages forever!
We’ve provided the templates to make two other decoder wheels, one with more complex symbols and one that is blank so that you can use colors, symbols, letters or whatever you like to form your secret code!
Learning to code and decode between sets of letters or symbols can be a valuable step for an early learner. By having the realization that some objects can represent other objects and then using a framework of rules to reveal that relationship, a child can be well on their way to success in STEM areas like Math and Programming.
Download Printable PDF
Related Worksheets
Complete the Mirror Image Picture
Within the realm of children’s education there is so much of a focus on the core curriculum of math, reading and spelling that we sometimes overlook the skills necessary to actually develop that core. Practice with finding existing patterns at
Spy Decoder Wheel – Random Alphabet Version
How the Decoder Works Once you’ve used the instructions on the PDF Download to assemble your decoder you can either share that decoder with a friend or have them make an identical one. To use it, simply line up a
World’s Hardest Puzzle? World’s Hardest Maze?
Probably not but you better pack a lunch because this one might take you a while! Enjoy this super-hard maze and note, the second page of the PDF is the solution so try not to peek! Solving mazes is a
Alphabet Maze Worksheet – The Letter Y
Y is the letter of the day! Download our free, printable alphabet maze activity sheets. Mazes are not only fun for children but help to develop executive functioning processes. These decision-making processes include organizing, planning, time management skills, memory and
Pattern Recognition Matching
Whether our children are facing a career in accounting, medicine, science or art, they will be faced with a tremendous amount of data – an amount of data that could never have been predicted when our educational curriculum were developed
Spy Decoder Wheel – Custom Code Version
This template is the customizable version of our Random Alphabet Decoder Wheel. There are three decoder wheels in all allowing for the coding and decoding of secret messages using random alphabet letters, symbols or your very own code! See the