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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Comic Strip Templates
Download a comic strip template pack to inspire creative writing in your classroom!
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Writing Out Loud: Dialogue Punctuation Teaching Presentation
Teach your students how to write dialogue correctly with an interactive teaching presentation.
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4th Grade Spelling Homework Worksheets
Print your own 4th Grade Spelling Homework sheets with 36 weeks of printable, phonics-based spelling worksheets.
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Direct and Indirect Speech in Comics – Worksheet
Practice writing direct and indirect speech using a set of printable Direct Speech Comic Book worksheets.
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R.A.C.E.S Writing Strategy Checklists & More
Help your students write quality constructed responses with printable R.A.C.E.S. writing checklists.
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Grade Level Goal Grids (K-2)
Inform students and parents of their grade level goals with standards-based grade level goal grids for Kindergarten through 2nd grade.
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R.A.C.E.S. & R.A.C.E. Poster and Bulletin Board Display
Help your students write quality constructed responses by displaying your printable R.A.C.E.S. / R.A.C.E. Poster and Writing Strategy bulletin board display.
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Report Writing Poster With Annotations
Display this report writing poster to help students when learning how to write this type of text.
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Constructed Response Rubrics - RACE & RACES Writing
Make scoring constructed response writings easy with printable constructed response rubrics.
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Contraction Worksheets
Help students learn more about contractions with this contraction worksheet pack.
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How to Grow A Sunflower – Procedural Writing Craftivity
Use this printable sunflower craft template to teach your students all they need to know about procedural writing!
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Apostrophe Review Worksheet
Practice using apostrophes with contractions and possessive nouns in this double-sided worksheet.
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Apostrophe of Contraction Worksheets
Learn about the apostrophe of contractions with this set of worksheets.
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Contraction Bubbles Worksheet
Practice matching words to create contractions with this fun bubble-themed worksheet.
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How to Make a Salad – Procedural Writing Craftivity
Use this engaging craft activity on making a salad to teach your students all they need to know about procedural writing!
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Bumblebee Contraction Worksheets
Practice creating contractions from two words using this set of cute bumblebee worksheets.
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3rd Grade ELA Standards Checklist - CCSS
Use a printable 3rd-grade Common Core Standards checklist to track your ELA standards.
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2nd Grade Common Core Standards Checklist - ELA
Keep track of standards covered and content mastered with a handy 2nd-grade ELA Common Core Standards Tracker.
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Imaginative, Persuasive and Informative Paragraphs PowerPoint
Learn about the different structures of imaginative, persuasive and informative paragraphs.
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Visual Daily Schedule - Classroom English/Spanish Labels
Keep your dual language students on track by choosing from 60 editable English & Spanish schedule cards to display in your classroom.
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Writing with Compound Words Worksheet Pack
Practice using compound words in context with a pack of printable Writing With Compound Words Worksheets.
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Combining Words - Compound Word Worksheets for Kids
Combine word parts to build compound nouns with a printable compound word worksheet.
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Compound Word Quiz
Assess your students’ abilities to read, spell, and use compound words with a Compound Word Quiz.
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1st Grade Spelling Words - Weekly Lists
Create successful spellers with printable weekly spelling word lists for 1st grade.
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Fluency Reading Passages - 5th Grade
Assess student fluency with a printable pack of reading fluency passages for 5th grade.
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Dual Language Labels - Spanish Classroom Objects
Label objects in the classroom in Spanish and English with printable classroom equipment labels.
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How to Make a Pizza Interactive Activity
Use this “How to Make a Pizza” procedural writing interactive activity to model the purpose, structural elements and language features of procedure texts.
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Compound Words List Resource Pack
Introduce your students to different levels and types of compound words with a pack of printable compound words list.
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Fluency Reading Passage Pack - Grade 1
Assess student fluency with a printable pack of reading fluency passages for 1st grade.
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Comprehension Task Cards Summarizing
Practice summarizing text with this set of event-specific task cards.
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Days of the Week Word Scramble
Unscramble the names of the days in a week with a printable word scramble worksheet!
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Packing in Meaning with Noun Groups Worksheet
Explore the concept of noun groups with this 2-page 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