The Danish bakery, in six words and one grid

Bakeries all over Denmark hang the same golden sign outside: a pretzel shape called a kringle. KRINGLE is in this grid, and the rest of the words keep it company — BOLLE (a bun), SMÅKAGE (a biscuit, literally a small cake), plus BAGUETTE, CROISSANT and DOUGHNUT, which most children can read with barely any help. Pictures sit beside the puzzle so every word is understood before it is hunted.

Three easy words and three that need a moment is a good balance for an early sheet. A child gets moving on BAGUETTE and DOUGHNUT, then has the patience left over for SMÅKAGE and its unfamiliar Å. Explaining that små means small and kage means cake hands a beginner two Danish words for the price of one, along with a small piece of how the language fits itself together.

Use it on a baking afternoon, or in a class looking at Denmark, where the kringle sign alone is worth five minutes of talk. Nothing on the page is timed and nothing is scored — a child works down the grid at whatever speed suits them. What they take away is six words they will recognise on a real bakery window, which is more than most first lessons manage.