What's with Worksheets?!

When you think about worksheets, what comes to mind? Long tedious spreadsheets designed to fill time and keep students busy? Mad minute math evaluations? Take home assignments? There are as many different kinds of worksheets as there are opinions on them. I am of the opinion that when used wisely, worksheets can serve as a learning tool for students that can test their knowledge, enforce concepts and ideas and provide documentation of their progress. Whether or not you agree, you will encounter worksheets as a teacher!

Using worksheets in the classroom can be a great tool. However, like the blog Madly Learning suggests there is a right and wrong way to introduce them for use. If worksheets are being used as a learning tool to create scaffolding to enforce learning they can be beneficial. However, misuse of worksheets is common and using worksheets during the majority of the class or filling the bulk of student learning time with worksheets does not benefit student learning. In this case Madly Learning suggests that worksheets are being used as a teaching tool and not a learning tool.

Madly Learning also speaks about the benefits of worksheets in the classroom and how they can be beneficial in differentiating for students at various levels. I appreciate the perspective that worksheets can help students create their own learning and provide a record of thinking and learning. As a student myself, I can see value in building a “portfolio” of worksheets that I have done, these documents can help me prepare for future project and provide me with materials that I can review. They also serve as physical documentation of my progress. I also agree that in some cases, worksheets can help increase learning by providing me time to think through concepts at my own pace.

The article Top 10 Benefits of Using worksheets for Kids points out that worksheets can offer welcome engagement outside of the digital world while enhancing intellect, imagination and fine motor skills. While I certainly agree with the author that worksheets can present a magnitude of benefits, if employed successfully I do not agree with the stand that worksheets are an essential resource for teaching fundamental concepts, and for some student’s worksheets can have negative impacts on learning. Such is the case for students who struggle with literacy or comprehension.

All that said, designing a great work sheet takes some consideration. It’s important to think about the aesthetic components of a worksheet as well as its content. Worksheets should provide clear instructions in a way that is visually appealing and easy to follow. They also need to be designed in a way that allows space for student work. Whether students are drawing diagrams or writing detailed summaries, there needs to be space for them to include all of their thoughts and ideas. Designing good worksheets is not difficult, but it does take attention to detail and thoughtful insight to ensure. In my future as a teacher I suspect that I will employ the use of worksheets to aide in student learning. I am thankful that I now have insight into some of the important components of worksheet creation.

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