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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Boston Tea Party - RACES Writing Strategy Worksheet
Integrate reading, writing, and American history with a worksheet about the Boston Tea Party using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence.
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My Spelling Dictionary Booklet
Help young learners build their writing and spelling confidence with their very own Spelling Dictionary Booklet!
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Story Elements Graphic Organizers – Portrait
Encourage your students to write and draw about various story elements with this set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Main Idea Comprehension Task Cards and Worksheets
Download this set of comprehension task cards to help students find the main idea when reading.
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Halloween Word Search - Upper Grades
Stretch your upper elementary students’ vocabulary and reading skills with this devilishly-delightful Halloween word search.
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Narrative Plot Structure - Story Mountain Template
Use a story mountain template to help your students write narrative stories.
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Who Was Kiki Camarena? 3rd Grade Reading Comprehension Worksheets
Download these 3rd grade reading comprehension worksheets that explore the story of Kiki Camarena while helping students build essential literacy skills.
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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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Author’s Purpose Reading Passages Worksheet Set
Explore the Author's Purpose in these reading passages with this set of Author's Purpose worksheets.
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Image Detective Task Cards
Support young learners as they learn to combine text and images to build meaning with this engaging set of Image Detective task cards.
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Look, Say, Cover, Write and Check Sheet Templates
Use a Look, Say, Cover, Write, and Check sheet to encourage students to study and practice their weekly spelling words.
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Morpheme Match Up Game
Review concepts learned in your prefix and suffix lessons by ensuring students understand word parts with a matching activity.
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Recipe Text Features Scavenger Hunt
Explore recipe text features on a food packet, recipe book, short video clip and digital form and teach their shared purpose with this scavenger hunt.
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Sorting Text Features Cut and Paste
Build confidence and comprehension with this ready-to-use Text Features Cut and Paste Worksheet!
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Common Adjectives for Kids - Printable Adjective List
Print your students a list of adjectives to keep at hand when writing to help them use descriptive language.
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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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Text Features Flashcards
Teach students the definitions of text features such as headings, sidebars, captions and many more with this set of flashcards for elementary students.
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Literary Plot Elements - Graphic Organizer
Familiarize students with finding the 5 elements of plot in a literary text.
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Snakes and Ladders Game Board Template
Create a fun activity for any subject area with this black-and-white board game template.
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Free Author’s Purpose Handout
Use this Author’s Purpose Handout in the form of a brochure to explore the different reasons authors write.
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Caption Text Feature Matching Game
Teach your students about the caption text feature with this engaging and collaborative matching game.
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Nonfiction Text Features Cut and Paste Worksheets
Use this text features matching worksheet when exploring the features of nonfiction texts with your students.
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Roll to Create a Haunted House Halloween Activity
Have some spooky Halloween fun with a Roll-to-Create Halloween Art activity.
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Phases of the Moon – Comprehension Worksheet
Analyze different moon phases and how their visual appearances change over time with this reading comprehension worksheet.
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Lewis and Clark Worksheet - RACES Writing Strategy
Practice using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence with a Lewis and Clark Passage, graphic organizer, and worksheet.
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Multisyllable Word List Resource Pack
Print and use a multisyllable word list to introduce your students to more complex words and syllable patterns.
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Prefix Worksheet Pack - 2nd Grade
Use this Prefix Worksheet Pack as an engaging prefix activity for Grade 2 that teach students how to use the most common prefixes—un‑, re‑, mis‑, dis‑, and pre‑.
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Westward Expansion Reading Comprehension Worksheet Pack
Enhance your students' close reading strategies, vocabulary, and writing skills with a Westward Expansion reading comprehension worksheet pack.
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Finding the Main Idea Worksheet Set
Use these finding the main idea in text worksheets to allow your students to practice finding the main idea.
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Opinion Writing Prompts Pack
Download these opinion writing prompts to support students in planning and writing persuasive texts on a variety of age-appropriate topics.
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Non-Fiction Text Features Poster Set
Build your students’ confidence in navigating informational texts with this engaging Text Features of a Non-Fiction Book Poster Set.
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Comma Rules Breakout Game - Google Slides and PPT (5-6)
Escape from Comma Castle with an exciting ELA Breakout Game Google Slides Activity for upper elementary.
- 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
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- English Language Arts for 6th Grade
- English Language Arts for 7th Grade