Worksheets for Teachers
Did someone say printable worksheets? From year 1 maths worksheets to reading comprehension worksheets to printables 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 primary year levels.
Explore printable activities, free worksheets, homework sheets and more — all aligned to the Australian curriculum and 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 individualised instruction was gaining traction, and educators recognised 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 individualised 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, practising 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 pens 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 pens!
- Use digital worksheets. Allow students to fill out their worksheets on classroom tablets as a means to add an extra level of engagement.
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 — early years students can work on their fine motor skills with our mini books, cut-and-paste worksheets and more while their upper years peers get pulled into the fun of vocabulary fun with word searches and crossword puzzle worksheets. Printable puzzles that engage students in the form of a brain game and colour by worksheets that bring art elements into maths 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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Responsibilities of Australian Local Governments - Cloze Worksheet
Explore the roles and responsibilities of local governments around Australia with this differentiated cloze passage worksheet.
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Fractions on a Number Line Worksheets
Represent fractions greater than zero and less than or equal to one with a pack of fraction number line worksheets.
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Plotting Decimals Number Line Worksheet
Practise identifying decimals on number lines with a decimal number line worksheet.
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Identifying Fractions – Worksheet
Strengthen student understanding of fraction models, how to identify fractions on a number line and determine a fraction of a collection with this free worksheet.
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What Can We Recycle? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Remember what to recycle with a cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Comprehension Worksheets - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Read to learn about the Great Pacific Garbage patch with a printable reading comprehension worksheet pack.
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Types of Figurative Language - Worksheet
Practise identifying and creating examples of figurative language with this printable worksheet.
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NAPLAN Reading Magazine – Year 3
5 reading texts with multiple choice questions for NAPLAN Reading Year 3.
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Level 2 Decodable Readers - Worksheet Pack
A set of one-pager worksheet versions of the texts from our Level 2 decodable readers.
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Number Lines – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Cut and paste to complete the number lines with differentiated number line worksheets.
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Converting Decimals, Fractions and Percentages – Worksheet
Strengthen your students’ understanding of how to convert a percent to a decimal and a fraction with this worksheet.
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Identifying Dependent Clauses Worksheet
Practise identifying dependent clauses in complex sentences with a dependent clause worksheet.
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How to Make a Tessellation Artwork Worksheet
A comprehension worksheet for a magazine procedure article about making a tessellation artwork.
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Creating a Graph Using Digital Technologies
A worksheet that supports students when collecting initial data and creating a digital graph.
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Year 4 States of Matter - Nonfiction Reading Comprehension
Teach science and reading skills with a set of printable Year 4 Reading Worksheets about the three states of matter.
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Types of Graphs Posters and Worksheets
A collection of posters displaying the different types of graphs along with matching worksheets to assist students with laying out graphs on the page.
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How To Make A Sandwich – Procedural Writing Activity
Get your students writing a procedure for their favourite sandwich with this example procedure text and writing scaffold.
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Location and Transformation Worksheets - Year 4
4 location and transformation worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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Number Patterns - Worksheet
A place value worksheet to use when completing number patterns.
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Inference Real Estate Advertisements - Worksheet
A series of real estate advertisement worksheets to use when teaching your students how to infer information from written texts.
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Common Nouns and Proper Nouns - Sorting Task
A sorting task to help students learn the difference between common nouns and proper nouns.
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Making Predictions in Science - Worksheets (Differentiated)
Introduce your students to making predictions in science with a set of differentiated Scientific Prediction Worksheets.
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Beginning Sounds Phonics Worksheets
Use these beginning sounds phonics worksheets to explore single grapheme correspondence with your students.
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3 States of Matter - I Spy Worksheets
Recognise examples of solids, liquids, and gases with a pack of printable States of Matter I Spy Worksheets!
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Appropriate Units of Measurement Assessment
Assess your student's ability to determine appropriate units of measurement with a printable Metric Measurement Unit Test.
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Sequence an Information Report – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Use these information report examples to teach your students about sequencing facts in a logical order.
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Past, Present and Future Tense Worksheets
Provide students with additional verb tense practise with worksheets focusing on changing verbs into past, present and future tense.
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Measuring Length with Informal Units Worksheets
A worksheet to use when learning about measuring length using informal units.
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Counting to 20 Cut and Paste Worksheet
Count objects within 20 and match the total to its written number on this 2-page cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Time to the Minute - Colour by Code Worksheet
Practise how to tell time to the minute with a fun Colour in Maths worksheet.
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Multiplying with Decimals – Differentiated Worksheets
Strengthen computation skills with this set of decimal multiplication worksheets.
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Free Letter Tracing Worksheets - State Fonts
Use letter tracing worksheets to help your students develop their handwriting and fine motor skills.