Worksheets for Teachers
Did someone say printable worksheets? From year 1 maths worksheets to reading comprehension worksheets to printables for kindergarten and beyond, our collection of teacher-created teaching tools is ready to make learning fun and engaging for your students in all subject areas and on all primary year levels.
Explore printable activities, free worksheets, homework sheets and more — all aligned to the Australian curriculum and all created by teachers, for teachers just like you!
Teach Starter worksheets undergo a careful review process by our expert teacher team to ensure they're ready for your lesson plans ... and your students! Best of all, you know each printable is designed with the goal of turning on that lightbulb over your students' heads and producing more of those 'aha!' moments in the classroom!
Curious about how to make worksheets more engaging? Or maybe you're just wondering how worksheets became a tool used in schools? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
Why Do Teachers Use Worksheets?
Worksheets are an important part of any teacher's toolkit — and yes, we say part because we believe in the importance of hands-on learning too (explore our full collection for plenty of student-led activities!) — but do you ever wonder how they ended up being so ubiquitous?
It was back in the mid-20th century that worksheets started to take hold in education.
The concept of individualised instruction was gaining traction, and educators recognised the need to tailor learning experiences to students' unique abilities, interests and learning styles.
Worksheets started to emerge because they were a means to provide students with both individualised practice and reinforcement of skills. Psychologists like Jean Piaget (you may know him best for his theories on children's cognitive development?) played a role here. The Swiss psychologist suggested teachers should be providing their students with materials that would advance their thinking, and worksheets offer a means for students to assess their own learning.
The real win for worksheets, however, was the invention of the photocopy machine! It made it easy for this supplemental tool to spread like wildfire!
How Do You Make Worksheets Engaging?
You already know educational printables are a beneficial learning tool. They enable students to work independently, practising and applying the concepts they've been learning in your classroom.
So how do you keep them from putting your students in boxes?
At Teach Starter, our worksheets aren't 'just worksheets.' Our expert teacher team works every day to create the tools you need to create impactful classroom experiences. That means our teacher team creates our school worksheets specifically to engage students with eye-catching graphics and creative formats. Here are some of their tips to ensure worksheets are used effectively in the classroom — and truly help engage your students!
- Use worksheets as just part of your toolbox. These are great tools to support classroom instruction and provide independent practise, and they should be balanced with a mix of other teaching tools!
- Mix up your worksheet types. Teach Starter's cut-and-paste worksheets, for example, add an interactive element to help hold students' attention.
- Encourage students to doodle. Doodle notes have taken education by storm in recent years as the visual note-taking method has been proven to improve students' focus and memory. Apply those benefits to your worksheets, and you may be surprised by how it pulls kids' attention to the page!
- Add plastic sleeves. Slipping worksheets into plastic sleeves and allow students to use wipe-away pens on the sleeves is a good way to extend the life of a worksheet — and it adds and element of fun for kids who love the chance to use pens!
- Use digital worksheets. Allow students to fill out their worksheets on classroom tablets as a means to add an extra level of engagement.
It's Not Just a Worksheet
The key to effective worksheets comes down to how you use them — a balanced approach to education combines worksheets with other instructional strategies — from hands-on activities to group work to project-based learning.
So what can you get from worksheets?
Consider this — early years students can work on their fine motor skills with our mini books, cut-and-paste worksheets and more while their upper years peers get pulled into the fun of vocabulary fun with word searches and crossword puzzle worksheets. Printable puzzles that engage students in the form of a brain game and colour by worksheets that bring art elements into maths and reading.
Worksheets also provide the opportunity for formative assessment and give your students a chance to practice problem-solving while they work independently.
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Noun Groups Worksheet Pack
Teach noun groups to your students with this set of 7 activity worksheets that help them use adjectives to build more descriptive and accurate sentences.
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Year 3 NAPLAN Test Practice - Language Conventions - Spelling
Get ready for the test with Year 3 NAPLAN Test Practice Sheets.
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Find the Spelling Errors Worksheets (3-4)
Build spelling and editing skills with printable ‘Find the Spelling Errors’ Worksheets
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Printable SMART Goals Template
Start the school year by having your students use a printable template to set their own S.M.A.R.T. goals.
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Editing for Incomplete Sentences Worksheet
Use this complete and incomplete sentences worksheet to fine tune your students' editing skills.
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Editing Sentences – Year 4 Worksheets
Download these Year 4 editing worksheets to get your students identifying and fixing errors in sentences.
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Understanding States of Matter - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Engage your students with an interactive activity where they cut and paste to match the properties of solids, liquids, and gases.
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Number Handwriting Practise Worksheets
Provide number handwriting practise to your students with this set of worksheets for the numbers 0 through 20.
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Persuasive Letter Writing Task - Year 2-3
Improve student composition with an engaging persuasive letter-writing task.
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Famous Scientists Reading Comprehension Worksheets
Introduce your students to the groundbreaking work of Louis Pasteur and Jonas Salk with a comparative reading passage and comprehension questions.
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Using Speech Marks in Direct Speech Task Cards
Practise adding double quotation marks to direct speech with printable quotation mark task cards.
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Changing Direct Speech to Indirect Speech – Differentiated Worksheets
Convert direct speech to indirect speech with differentiated quotation mark worksheets.
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Build a Calendar - Following Instructions Worksheets
Practise following directions and using a calendar with a pack of 12 printable calendar worksheets.
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Adding Fractions With Like Denominators Worksheets
Download this set of adding fractions with like denominators worksheets to help your students practise this important maths skill.
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Unit Fraction Spin and Colour Activity
Read and colour unit fractions in this fun spin and colour activity with your students.
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Unit Fraction Roll and Colour Activity
Create a fun learning environment with this roll and colour unit fractions printable activity sheet.
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12/24 Hour Time Conversions - Practice Sheets
Review how to convert between 12 and 24-hour times with a set of printable Year 5 Maths worksheets.
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Telling 24 Hour Time - Clock Worksheet
Download a free Year 5 Telling Time worksheet to practise telling time on a 24-hour clock.
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Order the Planets Worksheet
Help students remember the order of the planets with this cut-and-paste style worksheet.
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Relating Decimals and Fractions Worksheet
Practise matching fractions with a denominator of 10 and 100 to decimals and vice versa.
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Division Dragon – Worksheet
Division doesn't have to be boring! Let your students practise with our fun differentiated dragon practice sheets.
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Paired Passage Worksheets-Mammals vs. Reptiles
Compare mammals vs. reptiles and add to your reading instruction with leveled nonfiction, compare and contrast passages, and worksheets.
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Cut and Paste Array Worksheets
Guide your students to match arrays and multiplication facts with these cut-and-paste worksheets.
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Halloween Shapes - Colour By 2D Shapes Worksheet
Don’t get too spooked while trying to identify 2D shapes with a printable Halloween Shapes Colour by Code worksheet!
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My Feelings Volcano Worksheet
Prevent students from being overcome by strong emotions with this volcano-themed coping skills worksheet.
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Rotational Symmetry of Shapes Grade 4 Worksheet
Use this two-page rotational symmetry worksheet consolidate student understanding of this geometry (space) concept.
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Subtraction Across Zero - Colour By Number Worksheet
Practise subtraction across zeros with a fun colour-by-number worksheet.
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Think Addition - Fact Family Worksheets
Use addition to solve subtraction problems with this worksheet.
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Real-World 3D Objects - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Explore three-dimensional objects in the real world with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Shapes and Symmetry — Year 2 Worksheet
Assess year 2 students' understanding of 2D shape symmetry with this set of two worksheets.
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Save the Planet - Kids Mini Book
Teach your students to reduce, reuse, and recycle with a printable Save the Planet kid's book.
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Ordering Decimals on a Number Line — Year 4 Worksheet
Practice ordering decimals on a number line with this worksheet.