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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Multiplying Fractions Worksheet
A worksheet to practice multiplying and simplifying fractions.
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Life Without Tacos – Comprehension Passage Task
A reading passage about cultural diffusion paired with a comprehension worksheet.
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Our Solar System - Interactive and Printable Cloze Reading Activity
Practice and review concepts associated with the solar system using a cloze passage.
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Short Vowel Worksheets (Middle Sounds Practice)
Identify medial or middle vowel sounds with this set of three worksheets.
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Addition and Subtraction Within 20 – Worksheet
Use this worksheet with your students when exploring addition and subtraction within 20.
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Greek and Latin Roots Practice Worksheet Bundle
Practice using vocabulary containing Greek roots and Latin roots with 24 weekly root word practice worksheets.
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Algebraic Expressions & Equations – Worksheet
Write algebraic expressions and equations for 6 different word problems with this worksheet.
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New Year, New Fun! Activity Sheet
Keep students' minds and hands busy during your mid-school-year lull with four fun activities on one handy worksheet!
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Subtracting 2-Digit Numbers Worksheet
Practice 2-digit subtraction with regrouping with this drill and practice worksheet.
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Color by Number – Multiplication Fact Practice (Mixed)
Practice multiplication facts through 12 with this fun color by number worksheet.
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Division with Models Worksheet
Complete 8 division word problems by representing dividends as numbers, pictures, and number sentences.
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Skipping Through 120 - Worksheet
A worksheet to practice skip counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s.
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Leisure Land - Map Skills Worksheet
Practice using cardinal directions with this carnival map and worksheet.
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Parts of a Book Worksheets
Use these parts of a book worksheets for students to identify the various parts of a book.
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Natural or Man-made? - Worksheet
Distinguish between natural and man-made resources with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Student Interest Survey - Upper Grades
Learn your students' interests on Day 1 of a new school year with this student interest survey for the upper grades.
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Prefix Worksheet - Words With the Pre- Prefix
Boost students' understanding of the prefix pre- with a printable prefix worksheet.
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Amphibians vs Reptiles Worksheet Pack
Compare Amphibians vs. Reptiles and their characteristics with our printable animal comparison worksheets.
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Identifying Parts of Speech (Nouns, Adjectives, Verbs and Adverbs) Worksheet Pack
Practice identifying nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs in text with this set of worksheets.
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The Three Little Pigs – Comprehension Worksheet
Develop your students' reading comprehension skills with a well-known fairy tale.
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Summer Santa – Christmas Story Writing Pack
Bring creativity to your classroom with Christmas story writing activities that inspire students to craft hilarious holiday narratives about Santa’s summer adventures.
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Thanksgiving I Spy Worksheet
Have a bit of counting and coloring fun with a free Thanksgiving I Spy Worksheet for Kindergarten.
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Sentence Fluency Reading Cards Set
Make fluency practice engaging with our Sentence Fluency Reading Cards Set.
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Synonyms Are the Same! - Vocabulary Worksheets
Practice identifying and using synonyms in sentences with a synonyms worksheet.
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Slow & Fast Land Changes Worksheet - Cut and Paste
Use a Slow & Fast Land Changes worksheet to discover events that cause changes to the Earth’s surface.
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Matching Fossils Worksheet Pack
Use a Matching Fossils Worksheet Pack to help your students learn about animals from long ago.
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2nd Grade Hurricane Worksheets - Reading Comprehension
Read and learn about hurricanes with our 2nd Grade Hurricane Worksheets resource pack.
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Combining Sentences With "And" Worksheets (2 - 4)
Use these printable Combining Sentences With ‘And’ Worksheets to help your students practice using the conjunction ‘and’ to form compound sentences.
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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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Editing for Capitalization Worksheets
Show mastery of capitalization rules by reviewing 3 short pieces of text and editing all words with missing capital letters.
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Capitalization Practice Worksheet - Abbreviations, Initials, Acronyms, and Organizations (5-6)
Use our 5th grade & 6th Grade Capitalization practice worksheet to practice capitalizing abbreviations, initials, acrony
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Attributes of Shapes Templates
Teach your students attributes of shapes by having them complete these 2D shape profiles that have many uses.