Passamaquoddy Legends Puzzle Book takes readers on a journey through a mix of puzzles, crosswords, mazes, cryptograms, coloring pages, and storytelling, featuring Master Rabbit as he navigates trials and encounters with the Passamaquoddy people. What was your creative process for developing the activities in your puzzle book?

While researching and writing “Passamaquoddy Legends (Annotated Edition): Glooskap, Lox, Master Rabbit and other tales”, I was looking for an activity book like this. Although this puzzle book series is based upon my “Passamaquoddy Legends (Annotated Edition)”, the reader can ascertain the answers by contextual clues. This series provides hours of intellectual stimulation while learning about their culture as you solve puzzles. It contains word searches, fill-in-the-blanks, cryptograms, hidden messages, crosswords, coloring, hand-drawn mazes, fallen phrases, double puzzles, escape mazes, tic tac toe, connect the dots, and Sudoku. Because this is a book series, I incorporated reader feedback regarding some of the puzzle complexity into future volumes. 

What were some educational aspects that were important for you to include in this children’s book?

The study of knowledge (or epistemology) for an activity book designed to learn cultures and basic language is grounded in constructivist and socio-cultural epistemologies. How this knowledge is taught (or pedagogy) is presented through experiential, inquiry-based, and play-based pedagogies. It’s important to me that cultural learning is interactive, socially relevant, engaging, and enjoyable. For instance, a crossword, cryptogram, or word search promotes inquiry-based learning by encouraging the reader to deduce answers from contextual clues and decode cultural phrases. Similarly, a simple coloring page engages experiential learning through artistic expression. Likewise, a maze is a play-based activity that utilizes motor skills while providing a fun and engaging experience. A straightforward fill-in-the-blank activity supports constructivist learning because it prompts the reader to recall and apply story details, which reinforces cultural understanding. This applies to children and adult readers.

I hope the series continues in other books. If so, where will the story take readers? 

I think there’s material for another three puzzle books. I’m currently working on Passamaquoddy Legends Puzzle Book Volume 4 – Chenoo Legends and Thunder Stories. Unlike the previous three volumes, which mirrored the first three chapters, Volume 4 consolidates chapters four and five. I have drafted the first four puzzles, and I limit each puzzle book to 100 pages. Because these chapters are shorter, I may incorporate At-o-sis the Serpent chapter as well. I’m in the dissertation phase of my doctoral program and working on another book, so I don’t anticipate the next puzzle book installment until next year.

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