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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Place Value Worksheets for 2nd Grade - Thanksgiving Math Mazes
Save the turkey and match numbers, words, and expanded forms of numbers with a fun set of printable 2nd-grade Thanksgiving Math maze worksheets.
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Thanksgiving Color By Number Worksheet - 2nd Grade Place Value
Have some Thanksgiving Math fun with a printable Thanksgiving Color By Number worksheet to practice standard, expanded, word, and base ten forms.
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Should Smartphones Be Allowed in Class? Comprehension Worksheets
Decide if cellphones should be allowed in class and boost comprehension skills with a reading passage and comprehension test.
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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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Thanksgiving Multiplication - Mystery Picture Worksheet
Have fun with your Thanksgiving Math practice with a multiplication mystery picture worksheet.
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Thanksgiving Symmetry Worksheets
Explore symmetry with these Thanksgiving drawing symmetry worksheets.
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Christmas Symmetry Worksheets - Mirrored Drawing Activity
Explore symmetry with these printable Christmas-themed symmetry worksheets.
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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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Addition Within 100 Bar Model Worksheet
Explore using the bar model to add numbers within 100 with this simple worksheet for your Year 2 students.
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Ordering Numbers Worksheets — Dot Day Caterpillar
Share these ordering numbers worksheets with your students to help them master sequencing numbers.
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Blend and Color Phoneme Blending Worksheets
Get your students blending simple CVC words with this set of blend and color worksheets.
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Printable SMART Goals Template
Start the school year by having your students use a printable template to set their own S.M.A.R.T. goals.
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Santa’s New Sleigh - Christmas STEM Activity
Design and build a new sleigh for Santa with a printable Christmas STEM project.
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How to Decorate a Christmas Tree - Year 1 Procedural Writing
Practice sequencing and writing procedural texts with an interactive ‘How to Decorate a Christmas Tree’ slide deck and differentiated writing prompts for 1st grade.
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Christmas Math Worksheets - Sums to 12 Activity
Practice finding number bonds and sums to 12 using printable Christmas Math worksheets for first grade.
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My Emotional Triggers Worksheet
Help your elementary students explore the situations that trigger them to experience certain emotional responses with this 2-page emotional triggers worksheet.
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Personal Identity Activity (My Identity Wheel)
Explore personal identity by completing this personal identity wheel.
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Add It In - Listen and Draw Active Listening Activity
Practice following directions to color and draw pictures with a printable listening activity worksheet pack.
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Prefix Fun! - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Cut and paste to build words with prefixes with an fun and free prefix worksheet.
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Moon Phases – Cut and Paste Activity
Create a diagram showing the different moon phases and their names with this cut-and-paste activity sheet.
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Christmas - Simple, Complex, and Compound Sentence Sort
Practice reading, identifying, and writing simple, compound, and complex sentences with a Christmas cut and paste worksheet.
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Christmas Color-By-Addition-Fact Worksheets
Boost addition skills and bring a bit of Christmas magic into the classroom with Christmas color-by-number addition worksheets.
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Labeling the Continents and Oceans Worksheets
Turn geography into a fun and educational learning experience by using our free Continents and Oceans worksheets!
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What's Missing? - Alphabet Worksheet
A set of worksheets to practice writing the letters of the alphabet in order.
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Fiction or Nonfiction? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Use this fiction and nonfiction worksheet when teaching your students about the differences between fiction and nonfiction texts.
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Representing Two-Digit Numbers - Place Value Worksheet
A set of worksheets for students to use when learning about place value and the different way two-digit numbers can be represented.
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2025 Goal Setting Worksheet
Inspire your students to reflect and set goals for the new year with a Goal Setting worksheet.
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Comparing Improper Fractions to Mixed Numbers Worksheet Set
Use our comparing improper fractions to mixed numbers worksheet set to give your students practice representing and comparing fractions.
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Sink or Float? Free Kindergarten Science Worksheet
Identify objects that sink and float with a printable cut-and-paste science worksheet for Kindergarten.
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Spin and Blend Onset and Rime Pack
Practice blending onset and rime words with this set of spin and blend worksheets.
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Unit Fraction Spin and Color Activity
Read and color unit fractions in this fun spin and color activity with your students.
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Build a Procedure Text – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Use these different examples of procedure writing to teach your students about the structural features of procedure texts.