English Language Arts Teaching Resources
Explore English Language Arts (ELA) activities, worksheets, games and more teaching resources created by teachers for teachers just like you! You'll find ELA resources aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and ELAR resources that align to TEKS.
This collection of teacher-created resources for elementary and middle school teachers was designed with students and teachers in mind, including differentiated activities and worksheets ready to print and add to your lesson plan.
Each game, activity and more have undergone a careful review by a member of our ELA teaching team to ensure it's classroom — and student — ready.
What Is ELA in Education?
In most educational instances, ELA stands for English Language Arts, the subject that encompasses reading, writing, speaking, listening and language skills development in American schools.
ELA curriculum standards vary from state to state and even school district to school district, but they typically include instruction in the following areas:
1. Reading
In ELA classes, students learn to read, understand and interpret a variety of texts, including fiction and non-fiction. They develop reading comprehension skills such as identifying main ideas and making inferences while building their understanding of vocabulary.
2. Writing
As they progress through elementary and middle school, students learn the skills they need for effective written communication by learning to create types of texts — such as narratives and persuasive essays, research papers, and descriptive pieces.
They also learn to organize their ideas, use proper grammar and punctuation and refine their writing through revision and editing.
3. Speaking and Listening
While English instruction in the US was once heavily focused on grammar and reading comprehension, education experts saw a call to move toward a more student-centered means of teaching that paved the way to today's ELA curriculum ... and to the inclusion of oral communication as a focus in the curriculum.
Through speaking and listening activities, kids learn to express themselves clearly, listen actively, ask questions, participate in discussions and deliver presentations. They also learn to articulate their thoughts and understand different perspectives while developing their critical thinking abilities.
4. Language
Finally, students study grammar, vocabulary and syntax to enhance their understanding of English and how it should be used.
The curriculum includes proper sentence structure, word choice, spelling and punctuation rules. Language instruction also includes figurative language, idioms and understanding context.
ELA as English Language Acquisition
You may have noticed that we said ELA stands for English Language Arts in most educational instances. So, what else can it stand for?
In some schools, ELA is the abbreviation used for English Language Acquisition, and it's the name given to programs created to help English language learners as they tackle the language.
This form of ELA has marked similarities with the ELA described above, as it focuses on helping students build oral, reading and writing skills. However, there are distinct differences as one focuses on educating native speakers and the other on ELL students.
English vs. Language Arts — Why Is English Called Language Arts?
Some of your students may have parents who remember attending English classes as children but are unfamiliar with the concept of English language arts.
How do you explain the difference to them?
The fact is, some districts may well use the term English for what another district terms "English language arts." In other places, the two refer to very different concepts. In many areas, English is the name for courses taught on a high school level, while English language arts applies to elementary level work.
To explain why their children are enrolled in language arts coursework, it may be helpful to break down the various components of language arts — as we have done above — and their role in students' literacy growth.
What Is ELAR?
ELAR stands for English Language Arts and Reading. While much of the country's schools follow an ELA curriculum, ELAR is unique to Texas, where ELAR is an integrated subject that combines the study of language arts skills with the development of reading abilities.
This collection includes hundreds of ELAR activities, aligned directly with TEKS standards to ensure Texas teachers have everything they need for their lesson plans.
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Diphthong Vowel Team Sound Wall Cards
Use these diphthong vowel team cards as visuals on a sound wall or as flashcards during your phonics lessons.
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Vowel Teams Sort OA, OW, and OE
Decode words with "oa", "oe", or "ow" long "o" vowel teams using 18 picture cards with sorting mats.
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Vowel Team Dominoes - OA, OW, and OE
Decode words with oa, ow, and oe vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds using this set of 28 dominoes.
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Movie Day Activity Menu
Turn a movie day into a learning experience with our printable Movie Day Comprehension menu.
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Weathering and Erosion – RACES Writing Strategy Worksheets
Combine reading, writing and science with two worksheets about weathering and erosion using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence.
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How to Make a Sundae - Informational Writing Craftivity
Inspire students to write informational text with a fun, summer-themed end-of-year writing assignment and craft.
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Haunted House Worksheets - Descriptive Writing Activity
Draw and write about scary Halloween houses with a printable Halloween descriptive writing activity pack.
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Retelling Stories Paper Chains Template
Get crafty with this fun retelling stories activity where students use paper chains to create a chain for a story they have read in class.
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The Day of the Dead for Kids - Reading Prose Comprehension Test
Read and learn about the Mexican holiday, Dia De Los Muertos, with printable 4th grade reading prose comprehension worksheets.
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Firefighter Report Writing – Fact File Activity Pack
Engage your class with firefighter report writing activities that combine expository writing practice with real-world learning about community helpers.
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Letters A–Z Printable ABC Worksheets
Learn the letters of the alphabet and their sounds with printable ABC worksheets
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Halloween Adjectives Word Search - Upper Grades
Bring in the Halloween spirit this year, starting with a printable upper grades Halloween word search filled with spooky adjectives!
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Empathy vs. Sympathy – 5th Grade Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Challenge your students to learn the differences between empathy and sympathy with this reading comprehension worksheet.
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OREO® Opinion Writing Poster
Help students remember the structure of opinion texts with this fun OREO® acronym.
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Famous Inventors - Dr. Warren and The Black Box Comprehension Worksheets
Discover the amazing inventor of the Black Box In-Flight voice recorder with a printable reading comprehension activity.
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The History of Electricity - Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Read to learn about the history of electricity with a pack of printable Reading Comprehension worksheets.
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Story Elements Cut and Paste Worksheets - The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Explore story characters, settings and main events with this set of cut-and-paste worksheets based on a well-known fable.
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Story Elements Cut and Paste Worksheets - Jack and the Beanstalk
Explore story characters, settings and main events with this set of cut-and-paste worksheets based on a well-known fairy tale.
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Summarizing Nonfiction Interactive Activity
Help your students easily summarize nonfiction text with this interactive activity.
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Story Elements Graphic Organizers – Landscape
Encourage your students to write and draw about various story elements with this set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Exploring Story Characters - Worksheets
Explore the defining features of story characters with this differentiated worksheet.
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Finding the Main Idea - Graphic Organizer Templates
Teach students how to find the main idea of a text using one of these one-page graphic organizers.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations - Comprehension Worksheets
Boost reading comprehension skills with a comprehension passage, with questions, about structural, behavioral and physiological adaptations.
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Prefixes and Suffixes Flipbook
Review and assess prefix and suffix knowledge with a printable vocabulary flipbook.
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Make It Plural Interactive Activity
Help children grasp the tricky concept of pluralizing nouns with an interactive Google Slides activity.
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Inflectional Endings - Spelling with Suffixes Worksheets
Spell words with the inflectional endings -ed, -ing, -s, -es and -ies with a pack of printable practice worksheets covering inflected endings.
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Beginning, Middle and End Mini-Book - The Three Bears
Teach your students about the beginning, middle and end of a story with this mini-book retell of The Three Bears.
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Suffix Worksheet: -less
Build vocabulary skills with a suffix worksheet featuring the suffix -less.
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Suffix Worksheet: -ment
Improve students' understanding of the suffix -ment with a printable suffix worksheet.
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Morphemic Word Families Teaching Slides
Teach students about base words, prefixes and suffixes and how these are used to create morphemic families in a clear and simple way.
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Prefix Word Wall - Words with Un, Re, Pre, Dis, In, and Mis
Build a vocabulary bulletin board of words with un-, re-, pre-, dis-, mis-, and in- with a printable prefix word wall display.
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Prefix Worksheet: Im- and Non-
Reinforce students' understanding of im- and non- prefixes with a printable prefix worksheet.
- English Language Arts Worksheets
- English Language Arts Games
- English Language Arts Templates
- English Language Arts Posters
- English Language Arts Flashcards
- English Language Arts Word Walls
- English Language Arts Projects
- English Language Arts for Pre-K
- English Language Arts for Kindergarten
- English Language Arts for 1st Grade
- English Language Arts for 2nd Grade
- English Language Arts for 3rd Grade
- English Language Arts for 4th Grade
- English Language Arts for 5th Grade
- English Language Arts for 6th Grade
- English Language Arts for 7th Grade