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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The French and Indian War - Passage and Graphic Organizer
Reveal another chapter in American History with a reading passage and graphic organizer worksheet on the French and Indian War.
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Checks and Balances - RACES Writing Prompt Worksheet
Practice using the RACES writing strategy and unravel the mysteries of the U.S. Government system of checks and balances with a passage, organizer, and prompt.
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Goods and Services Mini Book
Read, write, and draw to learn about goods and services with a printable mini-book.
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Rounding Decimals – Worksheet for 5th Grade
Practice rounding decimals to the nearest tenths and hundredths place with this worksheet.
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The Pony Express Worksheet- Comprehension Passage
Teach your students how to write a constructed response paragraph and integrate grade level Social studies concepts with a free Pony Express worksheet and ten-question comprehension assessment.
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Free Map Skills Worksheet- Using Cardinal Directions
A worksheet to practice using cardinal directions.
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Using Words with Prefixes - Worksheet Pack
Practice using the prefixes Un-, Re-, Mis-, Pre-, Dis-, and In- with a pair of printable prefix worksheets.
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Argumentative Texts Worksheet
A worksheet for students to practice identifying a claim and supporting evidence in an argumentative text.
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2-D Shape Match
A fun match-up activity to consolidate your students’ knowledge of 2-D shapes and their attributes.
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Capitalization Worksheet - Beginning of Sentences, Names, and Pronoun I
Identify and write correct capitalization in sentences with our capitalization practice worksheet.
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Flip, Draw, Expand! – Place Value Worksheet (5-Digit Numbers)
Build and expand 5-digit numbers using base-10 blocks to strengthen place value skills.
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Adjectives: Articles Worksheet
A worksheet to practice working with articles.
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2-Digit by 1-Digit Multiplication Worksheet
A worksheet for students to practice multiplying 2-digit numbers by 1-digit.
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Decodable Text Worksheets – Set 1
A set of 10 decodable text worksheets for early readers.
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New Year's Goals Worksheet
Use this goal-setting worksheet to get your students excited for the new year.
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Sweet Sight Words Worksheet - DOES
Practice reading, writing, and identifying the high-frequency word “does” from the Second Grade Dolch sight words list.
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Sweet Sight Words Worksheet - IS
Practice reading, writing, and identifying the high-frequency word “is” from the Pre-Primer Dolch sight words list.
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Goldilocks and The Three Bears - Finish the Story Writing Prompt
Finish the Goldilocks and the Three Bears story in your own words.
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Order of Operations Worksheet
Tackle PEMDAS with an order of operations worksheet for 6th grade.
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Differentiated Prefix Practice Worksheets - Re- Prefixes
Build students' understanding of the prefix re-.with a printable prefix worksheet.
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Readers' Theater Script - The Lion and the Mouse
A readers’ theater script that can be used for reading fluency and expressive reading.
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Readers' Theater Script - The Three Little Pigs
A readers’ theater script that can be used for reading fluency and expressive reading.
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Count the Syllables - Worksheets
Count syllables in words with this set of 5 worksheets.
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Exploring Poetry Worksheet - Alliteration
A worksheet to help students understand alliteration in poetry.
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Cause and Effect - Scenario Worksheet
A worksheet and answer sheet to use when teaching students the about the cause and effect text structure.
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Step by Step Introductory Worksheet for Coding - Pirate Adventure
A worksheet for students to use when learning how to write a simple code.
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Decimals and Percentages Assessment
Assess students' knowledge of various decimals and percentages concepts with this four-page worksheet.
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Letter Recognition Worksheet Pack
Use this set of Alphabet Letter Recognition Worksheets to help students recognize, name, and identify both uppercase and lowercase.
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Do I Have a Shadow? Activity (K-1)
Explore light and shadow while practicing science inquiry skills with an engaging Predict and Observe Shadow Experiment for early learners.
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Finding & Storing Earth’s Natural Resources Worksheet
Review the properties of rocks that allow for natural resource storage with a printable Finding Fossil Fuels Cut and Paste Worksheet.
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Sentence Editing - Thanksgiving ELA Worksheets
Edit and correct capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and spacing errors with a set of Thanksgiving ELA worksheets.
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Thanksgiving Reading Comprehension Practice (3rd Grade)
Use this Thanksgiving reading comprehension pack to support students in learning about the history of Thanksgiving.