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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NAPLAN - Language Conventions - Spelling PowerPoint (Year 3)
A 44 slide PowerPoint presentation displaying NAPLAN style spelling questions.
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Cartesian Planes Worksheets
Utilise this Cartesian plane worksheet set to give your students practise locating and plotting points on the Cartesian plane.
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The Olympic Games - Comprehension Task
Encourage students to apply a range of comprehension and writing skills when finding out interesting fun facts about the Olympics with a printable reading comprehension task.
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Year 2 Reading Comprehension Test - Being a Good Pet Parent
Build comprehension skills and learn about being a good pet parent by limiting pets' impact on ecosystems with a reading passage and comprehension questions.
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Emotive Language Cloze Passage Worksheet
Get students using emotive language examples in their persuasive writing with this differentiated cloze passage worksheet.
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Graph It! Worksheet (Many-to-One Graphs)
Draw a scaled picture graph and bar graph to represent data with this worksheet.
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Adding 2-Digit Numbers Worksheet
Practise 2-digit addition with regrouping with this drill and practice worksheet.
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Multiplication and Division Speed Drill Worksheets – Facts of 2
A set of worksheets to help students develop fast and accurate recall of the two times tables.
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Flip, Draw, Expand! - Place Value Worksheet (2-Digit Numbers)
A worksheet to use when consolidating understanding of 2-digit place value.
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Introduction to Hardware and Software Sorting Activity
Guide students in understanding the difference between hardware and software with this cut and sort activity.
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Split Class/Fast Finisher Booklet - Middle Years
A booklet to use when classes are split or as fast finisher activities.
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Parts of Speech Colouring Activity - Back to School
Use this Parts of Speech Colouring Activity as a back to school review activity with your students.
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NAPLAN - Language Conventions - Spelling PowerPoint (Year 5)
A 44 slide PowerPoint presentation displaying NAPLAN style spelling questions.
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Reading a Calendar – Worksheets
Practise locating information on a calendar with a printable Calendar Worksheet.
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Odd and Even Properties Worksheet
Predict and confirm if the product of adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing sums is odd or even.
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Create Your Own Map - Worksheet
Create simple maps of familiar places with this set of map templates and accompanying comprehension questions.
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Types of Figurative Language - Worksheet
Practise identifying and creating examples of figurative language with this printable worksheet.
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Tenths and Hundredths as Decimals Worksheet Pack
Get your students representing tenths and hundredths as decimals using concrete models, visual models and money with this set of Year 4 maths worksheets.
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Odd and Even Maze Worksheets
Explore odd and even numbers with your students with these fun maze activities.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations - Vocabulary Worksheets
Review key vocabulary associated with plant and animal adaptations with a pair of vocabulary worksheets.
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Metaphors Worksheet
Practise identifying and using metaphors with this differentiated metaphors worksheet.
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Plotting and Comparing Integers – Worksheet
Practise plotting integers on a number line and completing comparison statements with this worksheet.
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Place Value Worksheets (Platypus Theme)
Practise expanded notation and writing numbers in words with the Place Value Platypus.
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Advertisement Examples and Analysis Worksheets
Use these advertisement examples with accompanying analysis worksheets to teach your students about the purpose, structure and language features of product advertisements.
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Reading Comprehension With Pictures Worksheets
Download the Reading Comprehension with Picture Worksheets today and help your students become confident, visual readers!
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Helpful Honey Bees Worksheet Pack - Year 2 Comprehension
Read and learn about honey bees with a Printable Honey Bees Worksheet Pack for year 2.
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Number Patterns Year 3 Worksheet Set
Share our number patterns year 3 worksheet set with your students to give them practice with number patterns and algebraic relationships.
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Simple Sentence Picture Prompt Worksheet Pack
Support early writers with this Simple Sentence Picture Prompt Worksheet Pack, featuring 12 worksheets.
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Cartesian Plane Drawing Pack
Use this Cartesian Plane Drawing Pack to give your students practice plotting coordinates on the Cartesian plane.
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Differentiated Number Pattern Worksheets for Year 3
Use this differentiated year 3 maths worksheet to allow students to practise completing number patterns and determining their rules.
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Novel Study Worksheet Pack
Download this set of novel study worksheets that can be used with any text to support your students in exploring characters and events in literature.
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Types of Graphs Posters and Worksheets
A collection of posters displaying the different types of graphs along with matching worksheets to assist students with laying out graphs on the page.