Worksheets for Teachers
Did someone say printable worksheets? From 2nd-grade math worksheets and 4th-grade reading comprehension worksheets to Common Core worksheets 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 elementary grade levels.
Explore printable activities, free worksheets, homework sheets and more — 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 individualized instruction was gaining traction, and educators recognized 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 individualized 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, practicing 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 markers 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 markers!
- Use digital worksheets. Allow students to fill out their worksheets on classroom tablets as a means to add an extra level of engagement.
- Focus on rigor. It's important to differentiate instruction, and the worksheets assigned to students should be appropriate to their needs — but they should not just be busy work. Ensure there's a challenge at hand to hold kids' attention!
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 — primary-aged students can work on their fine motor skills with our mini book, cut and paste worksheets, and more while their older elementary peers get pulled into the fun of vocabulary fun with word searches and crossword puzzle worksheets.
Printable puzzles engage students in the form of a brain game, and color by worksheets bring art elements into math 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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Unusual Plant Adaptations (3rd Grade Science Worksheet)
Teach your 3rd graders about unusual plant adaptations with a printable adaptation worksheet.
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Classifying and Sorting 3D Shapes Worksheet
Practice classifying and sorting 3D shapes based on their attributes with this set of 3 worksheets.
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Water Sources Cut and Paste Sorting Worksheet
Explore the different water sources using this cut and paste worksheet pack.
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What Could Happen? - Environmental Changes Worksheet
Explore the effects of environmental change on plants and animals with a printable science worksheet.
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Three Little Pigs – Sequencing Worksheet
Identify the story beginning, series of events and ending with this narrative text sequencing activity.
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Adding within 1,000 Expanded Form Worksheet
Practice using the break apart strategy by working through this addition worksheet.
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Plant Journal Observation Worksheets
Observe and record information about the features of plants with a plant journal worksheet.
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What Is the Setting? - Worksheets
Encourage your students to identify the setting in short and simple texts with this set of six worksheets.
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Plant Life Cycle - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Help your students remember the life cycle of a plant with a cut and paste life cycle worksheet.
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Handwriting Practice Sheets - Colors, Numbers, Days and Months
Practice printing skills with a pack of printable handwriting worksheets.
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Water Cycle Worksheet Pack
Discover everything there is to know and learn about the water cycle with this collection of worksheets suitable for elementary school students.
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Spelling Words with -s, -es, and -ies Worksheets
Practice using the inflectional endings -s, -es, and -ies with a pack of English worksheets.
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Water Cycle in a Bag – Investigation Activity
Create a water cycle in a bag, make observations, and answer discussion questions with this printable science activity.
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Goal Getters- Rounding to the Nearest Ten Worksheets
Score a goal and master rounding numbers on a number line with a soccer-themed rounding to the nearest ten worksheet.
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All About Magnets Mini-Book
Learn about magnets, magnetic poles, magnetic fields, and more with this printable mini-book.
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Ordering Decimals Worksheet - Number Lines
Practice ordering decimals on a number line with this worksheet.
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Food Chains – Worksheet
Use this worksheet to identify and describe the flow of energy in a food chain.
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Reading a Map Worksheet
Develop elementary grade map skills with a map-reading worksheet.
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Where Do Natural Resources Come From? Differentiated Worksheet
Explore where natural resources are found with a pair of differentiated natural resource worksheets.
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Phases of the Moon – Worksheet
Label the phases of the moon as they appear in the northern hemisphere with this printable science worksheet.
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The Number Line Zoo - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Develop number sense by returning the zoo animals to their correct positions on the number line with a fun worksheet.
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Jump Strategy - Number Line Addition Worksheet
Practice adding two-digit numbers with regrouping using a number line and the jump strategy with a printable number line worksheet.
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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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Super Synonyms List
Boost your students’ vocabularies with a synonyms list to reference in their daily writing lessons.
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What Causes the Seasons? Mini-Book
Explore what causes the seasons on Earth to change with this printable mini-book.
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Environmental Awareness Flip Book - Earth Day Activity
Use this flip book to build awareness of actions that are good and bad for the environment.
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Coordinate Grids Mystery Pictures
Practice plotting on coordinate grids with this set of differentiated mystery pictures.
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Making 10 – Worksheet
Practice the addition strategy of making ten with this math worksheet.
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Positive & Negative Numbers – Worksheet
Use positive and negative numbers to represent quantities in real-world scenarios with this worksheet.
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Simplify to Multiply – Multiplying Fractions Worksheet
Practice how to simplify fractions before multiplying with this worksheet.
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Multiplying Mixed Numbers – Worksheet
Strengthen student understanding of fractional operations with this multiplying mixed numbers worksheet.
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Multiplying Mixed Numbers – Riddle Worksheets
Multiply mixed numbers to reveal the answer to a joke with this set of 3 riddle worksheets.