Fun puzzles keep seniors entertained and exercise the mind
Keeping the mind active and engaged prevents boredom and helps keep the brain healthier.
Some studies have even shown that brain exercises can keep seniors sharper for up to 10 years longer.
A fun way to exercise the brain is to do Sudoku (sue-doh-coo) puzzles. These puzzles use numbers as markers but don’t have anything to do with math or calculations.
Looking for other kinds of puzzles? Printable crosswords, word search and jigsaw puzzles galore! And the prices are fantastic. Check out all the puzzles and games from GoodDay Puzzles.
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We share a fantastic website with hundreds of free printable Sudoku puzzles, explain how Sudoku works, and share a helpful tutorial.
Sudoku puzzles challenge the mind
Sudoku is a number puzzle – you can think of it a little like a crossword puzzle, except that it uses numbers.
It’s logic-based and doesn’t require any math. Numbers are only used because they’re well-recognized symbols.
In fact, it’s possible to make and solve a Sudoku puzzle with letters, colors, or other symbols.
Here’s an example of a traditional Sudoku puzzle:
A sample Sudoku puzzle
Get hundreds of free printable Sudoku puzzles
Puzzles.ca is a website with various free online and printable puzzles and games.
They have hundreds of free printable Sudoku puzzles in Easy, Medium, and Hard categories. New puzzles are added each month.
Simply click the clearly labeled links to see the puzzles and their solutions. Each link gives you two puzzles on the same page.
The easiest way to print a puzzle is to click on one of the puzzle links, then use the print function in your web browser – usually through a browser menu option or by typing Ctrl-P.
Sudoku basics
A true Sudoku puzzle has only one solution.
To solve a traditional puzzle, which uses the numbers 1 to 9, fill in empty spaces with numbers so that:
- Each row, column, and block/group of nine can contain each number exactly once.
- The sum of all the numbers in any row or column adds up to 45.
Watch a Sudoku Tutorial
To get started with Sudoku, we found an excellent free video tutorial.
This 8 minute tutorial explains basic Sudoku principles and terminology and walks through an “almost solved” example puzzle to demonstrate the solving technique.
Recommended for you:
- Free Crosswords for Seniors: Large Print Puzzles
- Jigsaw Puzzles for Seniors at All Ability Levels
- 9 Enjoyable Activities for Seniors with Limited Mobility
About the Author
Connie Chow
Connie was a hands-on caregiver for her grandmother for 20 years. (Grandma made it to 101 years old!) She knows how challenging, overwhelming, and all-consuming caring for an older adult can be. She also knows how important support is — especially in the form of practical solutions, valuable resources, and self-care tips.
the best
Thank you!
I would like to recommend another resource for seniors who are looking for sudoku puzzles. It is https://printablesudoku.com which you can generate any sudoku you want based on the difficulty you would like 🙂
Thank you for sharing! That’s a great resource for free printable sudoku puzzles!