Outcome
You can choose what to inspect next without being told the technique name.
Intro copy
Real Sudoku does not announce the next technique.
This checkpoint is about choosing a useful search direction on your own.
Step 1 — Strategy reminder
Short card:
- Scan nearly complete units.
- Scan one digit at a time.
- Check cells for Naked Singles.
- Check units for Hidden Singles.
- After every placement, start the scan again.
Step 2 — Guided mini-puzzle
Required state: A short valid puzzle segment designed to resolve through a sequence of 5–8 beginner moves using a mix of last-missing-digit/scanning moves, Naked Singles, and Hidden Singles.
Prompt
Find the next forced move.
Hint 1
Contextual, not generic. Reveal a promising unit or digit only.
Hint 2
Name the technique family and highlight the relevant unit.
Correct feedback
Good. Now the grid has changed — scan the affected row, column, and box before looking elsewhere.
Incorrect feedback
That placement is not forced by the current state. Try to explain why your digit must go there before committing it.
Repeat until the mini-puzzle checkpoint is complete.
Step 3 — Mixed recognition
Six independent states. Do not label the technique in advance.
Possible correct actions:
- complete a nearly full unit;
- find a crosshatching placement;
- solve a Naked Single;
- solve a Hidden Single;
- choose “no placement yet” in one state where two possibilities remain.
Correct feedback should name the technique after the learner succeeds.
Step 4 — Practice
Optional endless practice can draw from a bank of engine-validated beginner states tagged by technique and obscured from the learner until completion.
Checkpoint
One guided Easy Sudoku or compact teaching puzzle with:
- no technique labels;
- optional escalating hints;
- explanation available after each move;
- no need for intermediate eliminations.
Completion
- guided mini-puzzle completed;
- at least 5/6 mixed recognition tasks correct;
- checkpoint completed without any guessed placement.
Next
Candidates — make the puzzle's remaining possibilities explicit so you can move beyond direct placements.
Reference
Read Beginner Sudoku Strategies for the full solving routine and troubleshooting advice.