First off, I know what you’re thinking:

• I don’t have the time to create my own worksheets.
• I already give my students too many worksheets.
• I don’t want to grade more worksheets.
• Our school has a Basal program with all the worksheets I need.

And you’re right! Teachers have far too little time! We give students too many worksheets! We often have too much to grade! And Basal programs offer a ton of resources when it comes to worksheets.

So why take the time to create our own?

I’m going to split this post up into 4 sections:

1. The Secret about Worksheets
2. CCSS and Worksheets
3. Basal Curriculum and Worksheets
4. How Much is too Much?

1. The Secret About Worksheets

I know many teachers who give out worksheets just because they don’t know what else to do.

Let me suggest that there are only two reasons to use worksheets. Period.

• Reason One: To take a measure of your students’ understanding of the material.
• Reason Two: To build student understanding through practice.

That’s it.

If a worksheet is assigned with any other purpose in mind (or worse, without a purpose in mind), it will only lead to more busywork for both your students and for you, the teacher.

And no one likes busywork…except maybe the bees.

That’s the secret about worksheets. Each time you assign a worksheet, ask yourself:

• Will this help me measure student understanding?
• Will this help my students practice the material in a meaningful way?

Unless you can say YES! to either of those questions, just don’t assign a worksheet.

2. CCSS (Common Core State Standards)

Often, a worksheet will align with a Common Core State Standard. For example, imagine you are teaching a 4th grade lesson on fractions.

The standard you centered your lesson plan around is:

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NF.A.2
Compare two fractions with different numerators and different denominators, e.g., by creating common denominators or numerators, or by comparing to a benchmark fraction such as 1/2. Recognize that comparisons are valid only when the two fractions refer to the same whole. Record the results of comparisons with symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by using a visual fraction model.

http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/4/NF/

You’ll want to create or use a worksheet that both allows the students to practice comparing the sizes of fractions with unlike denominators and allows you to see if they are meeting that standard.

Of course, at the end of the fraction unit, you’ll want to give a more formal assessment, but for now, you just want to see if there’s anything you need to cover more fully.

And that is perfectly fine. Formative assessments are just as necessary as summative ones. And don’t feel that you need to grade every single worksheet you assign. A simple indication of whether or not the student is meeting the standard will usually suffice.

3. Basal Curriculum and Worksheets

I haven’t been to a single school that doesn’t use a Basal curriculum, either for math or language arts.

A Basal Curriculum is a textbook curriculum that has been formulated by big companies and is then sold to districts and schools.

In Math, it usually comes in the form of two books given to the student:

1. The textbook that explains the content in the lesson.
2. The workbook with tear-out pages for the student to complete and turn in.

For language arts, the curriculum usually comes in the form of a Basal Reader, a textbook with dozens of short stories for you and your students to read as a class. The teacher’s edition also comes with a variety of worksheets to go along with each story.

Now, this might sound like a great resource. And honestly, I thought it was.

But as I spent time on the classroom front lines, I realized that there are some big problems with them.

Story time!

I began planning my own fractions unit for my fourth grade class, and thought that I should start by planning the outcomes. What did I want the end result to be? I began planning my unit by looking first at the standards, and then putting them in a logical order, so that learning would build naturally as we progressed through the lessons.

Once I had done everything except for the actual lesson planning, I opened up my Basal Math book, teacher’s edition, and discovered that nothing was even remotely similar.

True, both the Basal and my unit plan were about fractions. But the order of the Basal seemed illogical (teaching adding and subtracting improper fractions and mixed fractions before teaching what a mixed or improper fraction was, for example).

But what really got me going was that the Basal wasn’t only teaching or testing 4th grade fractions. Instead, it was focused primarily on 5^th grade level fractions.

And while I know that sounds like a good thing (some might say, “It’s preparing them!”), I believe that it’s a terrible thing to do! Imagine how difficult it must be for those teachers with at least half the class performing below grade level!

So, what did I do? I abandoned the Basal almost entirely. I feel bad, because someone had to pay for that resource. But I knew that I would only be wasting my time and discouraging students’ morale if I used it and its worksheets.

4. How Much Is Too Much?

Anything more than what’s necessary is too much. When it comes to worksheets, you only want to use what gets the job done.

After all, worksheets can be good–they can improve our students’ understanding and they can help us know if there’s a concept we should reteach or teach better.

But when we don’t see a purpose for the assignment, other than, “Well, they should take something home for homework,” or, “They need to do a worksheet for everything I teach, just in case,” that is when we are assigning too much.

Another question that gets asked here, because there’s just so many worksheets that can get assigned in a given day, is this:

Should I grade every worksheet?

And the answer is no.

When students begin studying something new, keep the worksheet short and keep it simple.

But allow it to be substantial enough so that it can help you determine if they are getting it or not.

Bringing it all together.

I know that creating your own worksheets seems like a time-consuming task, and honestly, it might be at the beginning. Creating your own patterns can take a bit to get used to, as well as the formatting.

But in the end, you were hired as a teacher because you are a professional. You have a degree in this. You of all people know what you’re doing.

Most importantly, you’re the only one who knows your students and what they need.

Creating your own worksheets is all about making sure those needs are met in the best possible way. That’s your job. It’s what you were hired to do.

Thoughts? Comment Below!

• Do you believe that writing your own worksheets is worth it?
• Are there any worksheets that you’ve come across for your own grade level that have just been golden for you?
• What tips would you give to new teachers to help them create or select an effective worksheet?

Like what you’re reading? Get new content delivered straight to your inbox!