English and Language Arts
This page features free and low-cost English and Language Arts resources. From reading and writing to grammar, spelling, phonics, and vocabulary, everything is organized by topic for easy browsing. Whether you’re building lesson plans or looking for supplemental materials, these tools and printables are here to help. Use the table of contents below to jump to a section, and check out the related pages at the bottom for even more ideas.
Table of Contents
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Children’s Book Awards
- Caldecott Medal Honors the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
- Coretta Scott King Award Recognizes outstanding African American authors and illustrators of children’s and young adult books.
- Governor General’s Literary Awards Canada’s national literary awards, including categories for children’s and young adult literature.
- Mark Twain Award Voted on by Missouri students in grades 4–6, this award highlights their favorite recently published novels.
- Michael L. Printz Award Honors excellence in literature written for young adults.
- Newbery Medal Awarded to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
- Pura Belpré Award Recognizes Latino/Latina authors and illustrators whose work best portrays the Latino cultural experience.
- Theodor Seuss Geisel Award Given to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished book for beginning readers.
- Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal Honors authors and illustrators whose books have made a lasting contribution to children’s literature.
- Young Reader’s Choice Award Sponsored by the Pacific Northwest Library Association, this is the oldest children’s choice award in North America. Students in grades 4–12 from the U.S. and Canada vote for their favorite books in three age categories.
Dolch Sight Words
- Mrs. Perkins’ Dolch Word Resources A comprehensive site offering Dolch word lists, flashcards, phrases, printable worksheets, and classroom activities.
- Jan Brett – Dolch Word Lists Free Dolch word lists accompanied by Jan Brett’s beautiful illustrations. Printables perfect for early readers.
- Personal Educational Press Create custom Dolch word activities and flashcards. Includes word lists by level: pre-primer, primer, first, second, and third grade.
Fonts
- PreCursive Fonts – BJU Press Free TrueType fonts designed to help young learners practice handwriting. Includes PreCursive New Dashed for tracing and PreCursive New Arrow with directional strokes. Compatible with both PC and Mac.
- Free Handwriting Fonts – FontSpace Browse free downloadable fonts including styles similar to D’Nealian and Zaner-Bloser. Great for creating your own worksheets or handwriting aids.
Grammar
- Daily Grammar Free grammar lessons delivered by email. Learn parts of speech, sentence structure, and punctuation in short daily chunks. Visit the archive for 400+ lessons and quizzes.
- Helping Verbs – Gallaudet University Explains how helping verbs work in verb phrases to express tense, voice, and questions. Includes examples and definitions.
This is something I used when I was young to learn them.
Handwriting
- ESL Writing Wizard Create free, printable handwriting worksheets customized with your own words. Options for print, cursive, D’Nealian, and more.
- Canva Handwriting Worksheet Templates Browse pre-designed handwriting worksheet templates you can edit and print. Great for customizing practice by skill level or theme.
Idioms
- Self-Study Idiom Quizzes Practice English idioms through interactive quizzes, crossword puzzles, and other activities. Great for ESL learners or students looking to expand their figurative language skills.
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Language
- Stapleless Book – ReadWriteThink A creative, hands-on language arts activity for PreK–8 students. Kids can write and illustrate their own books, then fold and assemble them—no staples required! Great for story writing, vocabulary practice, or mini-reports.
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Language Arts Games
- Word Plays A collection of online interactive word games like Boggle, crosswords, and English-to–Pig Latin. Great for vocabulary and spelling practice.
Phonics
- ABC’s – Printable Activities (KizClub) Offers a wide range of printable phonics and language arts activities for preschool and elementary-aged children. Includes alphabet practice, beginning sounds, and early reading support.
Printable Worksheets & Curriculum Tools
- Enchanted Learning Huge archive of printable worksheets and themed learning materials for PreK–8, including reading and writing support.
- TLS Books Free printable English worksheets for PreK–5. Topics include grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, and phonics.
- Mr. Donn’s Language Arts Ready-to-use language arts lesson plans, interactive games, and printable resources.
Reading & Writing
- BrainPOP – English Animated videos and quizzes covering grammar, writing process, figurative language, and literary elements.
- BrainPOP Jr. – Reading & Writing For K–3 learners: comprehension, story elements, genres, author studies, phonics, and early writing.
- Stone Soup A magazine by and for young writers and artists. Read published stories and submit your own. Includes sample issue download.
- The Growler Tapes Audio adventures with rich storytelling for ages 4–12. A great tool for listening comprehension and inspiring creative writing.
- National Postal Museum – Curriculum Guides Learn about letter writing, stamp history, and famous letters through downloadable lessons and activities.
Reading Lists
- Monroe-Woodbury Central School District Reading List A curated reading list for high school students (Grades 9–12), available via the Internet Archive. A helpful reference for classic and contemporary literature selections.
- NEA Read Across America – Find Your Book Search by reading level, age, or genre. Great for discovering inclusive, age-appropriate books to match your child’s interests.
Reading Skills
- Learn to Read Naturally Firsthand accounts from unschooling families about how children learned to read without formal instruction—an encouraging perspective for relaxed or interest-led homeschoolers.
- Magazines from Cricket Media High-quality literary magazines that build reading fluency and comprehension: • Ladybug (Grades 1–2) • Spider (Grades 2–3) • Cricket (Grades 4+) • Cicada (Grades 8+)
- Starfall A trusted site for K–2 emergent readers. Features interactive books, phonics games, and activities designed to build phonemic awareness, vocabulary, and comprehension skills. Visit their Download Center for printable worksheets and resources.
Spelling
- The Free Cozy Spelling Course A full 36-week, text-based spelling curriculum with audio supplements. Designed for 7th grade level, it teaches 600 words through structured Monday–Friday activities including pretests, exercises, dictation, spelling rules, final tests, and answer keys.
Vocabulary
- Vocabulary Cartoons A fun and effective vocabulary builder for kids or adults. Each word is paired with a humorous cartoon and mnemonic to help you understand and remember it.
Writing Skills
- Strunk & White – *The Elements of Style* A classic reference every writing student should own. Concise, direct, and timeless.
- Paradigm Online Writing Assistant Free, step-by-step instruction on writing essays, papers, arguments, and more. Great for teens and up.
- Infoplease – Homework Helper: Writing Skills Practical tips for writing essays, reports, biographies, and research papers. Easy to navigate for upper elementary and middle school.
- Writing Strands A structured series designed to build writing confidence step by step—especially useful for homeschoolers.
Reference & Planning
- ERIC – Education Resources Information Center A searchable database of academic and educational resources, including studies, lesson plans, and curriculum tools for ELA.
- World Book – Typical Course of Study View general curriculum outlines by grade to help guide planning and goal-setting for each year of homeschooling.
In a Pumpkin Shell and An Apple a Day by Jennifer Storey Gillis
Looking for hands-on, seasonal learning fun? Jennifer Storey Gillis offers two charming project books packed with crafts, science, art, and ...
The Door in the Wall Literature Unit Study
Introduce learners to life in medieval England through The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli. This unit study ...
Robin Hood Literature Unit Study
Learning Objectives Use the story of Robin Hood to learn about the life and times of the Middle Ages Use ...
Cranberry Thanksgiving mini unit study. Sites to help you supplement the book. What are your favorites? Cranberry Facts from Ocean ...
Pizza Hut’s BookIt Program Parents set monthly reading goals, and Pizza Hut provides special rewards to recognize children’s reading accomplishments ...
We stopped in the resale shop today and my dd came across the handheld games. They were inexpensive so I ...
About Testing For Reading Level
I have not tested my kid (she's 7). I did buy a book from McGraw Hill Spectrum Test Prep, Grade ...
Year and Unit Name Date of Unit Subject Aesop’s Fables 27-Jun-2004 literature American Girls 8-Aug-2004 literature C. S. Lewis 4-Sep-2005 ...
Fairy Tale Genre Poster https://www.teachersclubhouse.com/images/fairytale_poster.pdf Checklist for common elements of fairy tales https://web.archive.org/web/20120201023651/http://www.everydayteaching.com/worksheets/Fairy.Tale.checklist.pdf Fractured fairy tale worksheet https://web.archive.org/web/20120904064310/http://everydayteaching.com/Worksheets/Fractured.Fairytale.pdf Goldilocks and ...
Author Paul Zindel Literature Based Theme has free and low-cost activities, lesson plans, lapbooks, study guides, suggested additional materials, and ...
Author Maurice Sendak Answers.com: Who Was Maurice Sendak? http://www.answers.com/topic/maurice-sendak A short biography of Maurice Sendak http://web.archive.org/web/20071017032738/http:www.northern.edu/hastingw/sendak.htm A Trip Through The ...
Authors Bill Martin, Jr and John Archambault Illustrator Lois Ehlert Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Study Guide Weston Woods Study Guide ...
Author Leila Ahmed Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leila_Ahmed A Border Passage Literature and Study Guides https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/borderpassage/ ...
Author Betty Smith Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_Smith A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Literature Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/brooklyn/ ...
Author B. F. Skinner Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B._F._Skinner Walden Two https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/walden2/ ...
Author Sam Shepard Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Shepard Fool For Love https://www.sparknotes.com/drama/foollove/ https://www.sparknotes.com/drama/foollove/section1/ True West https://www.sparknotes.com/drama/truewest/section1/ ...
Author Sir Walter Scott Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Scott Ivanhoe Study Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/ivanhoe/ ...
Author Jack Schaefer Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Schaefer Shane Study Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/shane/ ...
Author Jean-Paul Sartre Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Paul_Sartre https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/1964/sartre/biographical/ The Flies Study Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/drama/theflies/ Nausea Study Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/nausea/ No Exit Study Guide ...
Author Mari Sandoz Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mari_Sandoz Winter Thunder and The Christmas of the Phonograph Records Study Guide https://web.archive.org/web/20090115030014/http://www.glencoe.com/sec/literature/litlibrary/christmasofrecords.html ...
Author J. D. Salinder Wikipedia Biography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._D._Salinger The Catcher in the Rye Study Guide https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/catcher/ Franny and Zooey Study Guide ...
Last Updated on May 26, 2025 by Jodi