The Puzzle Designer's Locked Studio
A B2 escape room in which adult learners solve seven reading-focused puzzles set in a puzzle designer's locked studio. Each puzzle rewards close reading, inference and careful attention to detail.
A free Escape Room for Adults at CEFR B2 level. Topic: 2. Design five English puzzles (Remix).
You have been invited to test a new escape room in the studio of Elena Ward, a famous puzzle designer who insists that most players fail because they read too quickly. Shortly after you arrive, the studio door locks behind you, and a note explains that it will only open for a team that proves it…
Solve all seven puzzles, collect one letter from each, and put the letters in order to find the 7-letter master code that unlocks the studio door.
Puzzles
- 🗒️ The Designer's First Note: Pinned to the door is a note from Elena: 'Although the first puzzle looks simple, it is the only one that every player must solve before they can move on.' What does the note suggest about the first puzzle?
- 🔤 The Scrambled Warning: Elena believes that this quality matters more than speed when you are solving a puzzle. A person with this quality checks every detail and avoids silly mistakes. Unscramble this word: LUFRACE
- ✏️ The Missed Footnote: Despite having read the instructions twice, Marta still ___ the key clue, which had been printed in tiny letters in a footnote at the bottom of the page. She only realised her mistake when her teammate, who had been reading more slowly, pointed it out. Fill in the gap with…
- 🧠 The Thinker's Shelf: On a shelf, four words are written on four books. Three of them describe ways of working something out from the information you have. Which word does not belong?
- 🔐 The Number Lock: A small safe has a strip of numbers on it, where A=1, B=2 and so on. A note beside it reads: 'A detective collects this before making an accusation, and a careful reader looks for it in a text before deciding what is true.' Decode the numbers to find the word.
- 🧩 Elena's Motto: rather patience puzzles speed. Good reward than
- 📰 The Interview: Read the interview summary carefully. Decide whether each statement is true or false according to the text.
Printable worksheet
This Escape Room comes with a free printable worksheet: 1 part for students to do after the game, and an answer key for the teacher. It prints at three levels (Support, Core and Challenge); this is the Challenge sheet. Sign in free to print the whole sheet.
What's on the worksheet
- Escape on paper · Open every lock. Fewer options to choose from this time.
Part 1: Escape on paper
Open every lock. Fewer options to choose from this time.
- 🗒️ The Designer's First Note Pinned to the door is a note from Elena: 'Although the first puzzle looks simple, it is the only one that every player must solve before they can move on.' What does the note suggest about the first puzzle?
- 🔤 The Scrambled Warning Elena believes that this quality matters more than speed when you are solving a puzzle. A person with this quality checks every detail and avoids silly mistakes. Unscramble this word: LUFRACE R E A L C U F
- ✏️ The Missed Footnote Despite having read the instructions twice, Marta still ___ the key clue, which had been printed in tiny letters in a footnote at the bottom of the page. She only realised her mistake when her teammate, who had been reading more slowly, pointed it out. Fill in the gap with…