ela
ela
English Language Arts (ELA)
Take your English Language Arts (ELA) instruction to the next level with these online resources. Learn more by exploring the links below.Resources for English Language Arts
Literacy
Between the Lions Early Reading | PBS - Segments selected from Between the Lions, the series that helps kids "Get Wild About Reading!" This special collection provides a set of early Reading/Language Arts resources, organized by early elementary and preschool literacy skills.
Clusive - Clusive® is a flexible, customizable learning environment that adapts to you.
Language and Literacy - Sesame Workshop - Language is a key part of early childhood education and helps lay the foundation for success in school.
Literal App - Literal makes reading books fun and engaging by putting it in a fun chat-fiction format. .Reading engagement app that turns over 500 books into text message group chats!
Oxford Owl for Home: help your child learn at home- An award-winning primary platform developed by Oxford University Press offering free online teaching, learning and assessment resources.
Phonics | Reading A-Z - Teach effective phonics using explicit, systematic instruction and practice. Students must learn to match a unit of sound (a phoneme) to the letter or letters that stand for the sound (a grapheme). Understanding letter-sound relationships and using them to decode words is the foundation of reading.
Reading Bear -Learn letter sounds, great videos to learn the alphabet and beginning sounds, by the same people who developed WatchKnowLearn.org. A great site for beginning readers.
Reading Topics A-Z Reading Rockets - Reading Rockets offers a rich library of classroom strategies, articles, parent tip sheets, FAQs, videos, research briefs and more — providing research-based and best-practice information for educators, parents, and others who work with young readers.
Starfall Education: K-5- Specializing in reading, phonics & math - educational games, books, songs, and more for children K-5. Children have fun while learning in an environment of collaboration, wonderment, and play. We teach through positive reinforcement to ensure children become confident, intrinsically motivated, and successful.
Start with a Book- Start with a Book offers parents, caregivers, summer program staff and librarians lots of engaging ideas for getting kids hooked on reading, exploring and learning all summer long — and beyond.
StoryNory - Free audio stories with human narration.
Supporting Your Child’s Literacy Development - This toolkit helps parents and families take part in literacy experiences at home to develop children’s reading and language skills.
Unite for Literacy - Free digital access to picture books, narrated in various languages.
Alternate & Adapted Formats
Adapted Literature & Lessons | Sherlock Center - Nearly 500 classic, popular, and/or educational works of literature adapted for students with special needs. The works include digital books, movies, videos, music, and PowerPoint presentations that aim to help students with visual and other disabilities.
Adapted Novels – Project Impact - These resources are provided for teachers to help students with severe disabilities participate in the general curriculum. Please limit the use and distribution of these materials accordingly.
Bookshare - Ignite learning with easy-to-read audiobooks and ebooks for learners of all abilities.
Graphic and Adapted Novels | LRC-South - Search the LRC-South’s library collection of graphic and adapted novels. Available in print and eBook formats.
Graphic History | OER Project - Reading comics is serious work! OER Project’s graphic biographies are small stories that challenge big historical narratives. Students develop new literacy skills as they learn to decode these graphic histories.
Graphic Novel Free Examples for Students & Project Ideas | Storybird That - This project is the perfect way for younger children and older kids to use their imaginations and write their own stories, summarize the plot of a novel that they have read, or to have students transfer their knowledge of another piece of literature into a different form. Many popular novels have been turned into graphic novels to meet a broader audience and introduce students of all abilities to classic works of literature.
Literal App - Literal makes reading books fun and engaging by putting it in a fun chat-fiction format. .Reading engagement app that turns over 500 books into text message group chats!
Modern English Shakespeare Translations | Shakescleare, by LitCharts - Every Shakespeare play, poem, and sonnet alongside a modern English translation everyone can understand.
Monarch Reader - Digital books for beginning readers of all ages.
myShakespeare | Love to learn it. - Free media-rich, full-text online editions of Shakespeare's plays with interactive content, videos, contemporary translations, study tools, and more.
National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS)- Free braille and talking book library service for people with temporary or permanent low vision, blindness, or a physical disability that prevents them from reading or holding the printed page. Through a national network of cooperating libraries, NLS circulates books and magazines in braille or audio formats, delivered by postage-free mail or instant downloads.
Shakespeare’s Plays Animated - Animated Shakespeare brings to life famous Shakespeare plays.
Story Time From Space - Story Time from Space is a project of the Global Space Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education foundation. We send children’s books to the International Space Station. While in space, astronauts videotape themselves reading these books to the children of Earth.
Talking Books and Reading Disabilities - National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) - A free program for individuals of all ages who have a disability that prevents them from reading regular print. We use human voice actors to record popular books found in public libraries or bookstores.
Teaching Comics « The Center for Cartoon Studies - Teaching resources from National Association of Comics Art Educators. In recent years the comics medium has flourished, generating much interest from the literary, art, and educational communities.
Audio Books
1,000 Free Audio Books: Download Great Books for Free - Download hundreds of free audio boKentucky - Free Library - Footsteps2Brillianceoks, mostly classics, to your computer. Find authors such as Twain, Tolstoy, Hemingway, Orwell, Vonnegut, Nietzsche, Austen, Shakespeare, Asimov, HG Wells & more.
Bookshare - Ignite learning with easy-to-read audiobooks and ebooks for learners of all abilities.
Epic - Thousands of books, audiobooks & learning videos.Inspire a lifetime of reading and discovery with this award-winning digital library
Footsteps2Brilliance - Free Library - Offers a number of bilingual (English/Spanish) “talking books” for early readers (and ELLs).
LibriVox | free public domain audiobooks- LibriVox audiobooks are free for anyone to listen to, on their computers, iPads, or other mobile device
Light Up Your Brain | Free Audio Stories for Children - Free, downloadable audio stories for children.
Loyal Books - Free pubic domain audiobooks & eBook downloads.
OverDrive/Libby - Borrow and read free ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines from your library using your phone or tablet.It’s easy to get started―all you need is a library card!
Project Gutenberg | Online Audio Book Catalog - Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution” of eBooks and audiobooks. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books.
Storyline Online - The SAG-AFTRA Foundation's Daytime Emmy nominated, Storyline Online, features celebrated actors including Viola Davis, Kristen Bell, and Chris Pine reading books for young readers.
Storytime From Space - A project of the Global Space Education Foundation, that sends children’s books to the International Space Station. While in space, astronauts videotape themselves reading these books to the children of Earth.
UDL Tech Toolkit | Audio Books - A collection of online audio book resources to make learning accessible to all students.
Vooks - A streaming library of ad-free, kid-safe animated read-aloud storybooks to provide children with 20 minutes a day of read-aloud time and activities.
eBooks
800 Free eBooks for iPad, Kindle & Other Devices - Download 800 free eBooks to your Kindle, iPad/iPhone, computer, smartphone or e-reader. The collection includes great works of fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
Bookshare - Ignite learning with easy-to-read audiobooks and ebooks for learners of all abilities.
Epic | The Leading Digital Library for Kids- Explore over 40,000 books, audiobooks & learning videos.
International Children's Digital Library: ICDL - Provides free access to high-quality children's books from around the world in different languages, including Arabic, Afrikaans, Danish, English, Farsi and beyond.
LRC-South MackinVIA- Explore the LRC-South’s collection of eBooks on MakinVIA - just sign in with your LRC-South member number and password (use last name as default).
Loyal Books - Free pubic domain audiobooks & eBook downloads.
OverDrive/Libby - Borrow and read free ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines from your library using your phone or tablet.It’s easy to get started―all you need is a library card!
Project Gutenberg | Online eBook Catalog - Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution” of eBooks and audiobooks. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books.
Struggling Readers
5 Ways to Support Students Who Struggle With Reading Comprehension | Edutopia- These strategies can help students who are able to decode well but have difficulty understanding what they read—and they’re beneficial for all students.
Common Types of Reading Problems and How to Help Children Who Have Them | Reading Rockets - Three patterns of reading difficulties are common. This article explains how recognizing these three patterns can provide a valuable starting point for planning reading instruction and interventions.
Effective Reading Interventions for Kids with Learning Disabilities | Reading Rockets - Research-based information and advice for sizing up reading programs and finding the right one for your child with a learning disability.
Helping Children with Learning Disabilities Understand What They Read | LD OnLine - Presents a variety of memory strategies. Pay attention to a child’s reaction to the strategies and help the child select and use strategies that are comfortable and match his or her learning needs.
Identifying and Teaching Students with Significant Reading Problems | AFT - These evidence-based practices are fundamental and necessary not only to develop strong readers but also to discern the differences between students with reading difficulties that can be readily supported through general education from those with serious reading disabilities or dyslexia.
Instructional Strategies for Struggling Readers - Instructional strategies for struggling readers who are blind or visually impaired with learning disabilities.
Literacy Resources and Interventions for Students with Disabilities | NJDOE - The New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) believes that all students have the ability to learn and deserve culturally, linguistically, and accessible literacy instruction, the highest quality evidence-based instructional support, and the intensive literacy acceleration needed to flourish in school and life.
Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9 | WWC - This practice guide provides four evidence-based recommendations that teachers can use to deliver reading interventions to meet the needs of their students.
Reading Intervention Strategies for Struggling Readers | HMH - Reading is the way some find joy and spend the day unwinding—curling up with a favorite novel, poring over current news, or reading the latest trend in various topics. But for some, reading is a chore, another dreadful assignment to complete, and an anxiety-ridden task, particularly when it involves reading in front of others.
Science of Reading For Students with Disabilities | Education Week - Evidence-based literacy instruction can be tailored to individual learning needs.This Spotlight will empower you with strategies to support students with dyslexia; research exploring the potential benefits of the Orton-Gillingham method to teach reading; an analysis of morphology and its ability to help develop students’ vocabularies; insight into properly preparing teachers to apply the science of reading to support students with learning differences; and more.
Supporting Struggling Readers in Navigating Grade-Level Texts | Edutopia - A reading interventionist shares strategies to help students in grades 3 to 8 access grade-level material.
Struggling Readers | International Literacy Association - To support readers who struggle, educators must be able to not only provide adequate and appropriate interventions but also identify potential issues when they arise—if not before.
Struggling Readers | Reading Rockets - The primary mission of Reading Rockets is to provide resources to help parents and educators support kids who struggle with reading. Browse the articles, research briefs, videos, and webcasts to find out more about why learning to read can be difficult and what teachers and parents can do to help.
Struggling Readers | IRIS Center - What approaches are available to schools to help struggling readers and to efficiently identify students who need special education services?
Struggling Readers | NEA Research Brief - Success in reading is essential throughout a student’s school career and into adulthood. Interventions designed for students at risk of reading difficulty are helpful to all students. However, modifications in identification, diagnosis, and delivery of services are needed when working with culturally and linguistically diverse students.
Professional Resources & Intervention Websites
AdLit | All About Adolescent Literacy - A rich, multimedia library of free, research-based resources to support your students in grades 6-12.
The Best Evidence Encyclopedia (BEE) - A website created by Johns Hopkins University School of Education, Center for Research and Reform (CRRE) providing easy-to-read, reviews of various types of K-12 education programs, including early childhood programs, elementary and secondary reading and math programs, and programs for struggling students and English-language learners.
The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading - A collaborative effort by foundations, nonprofit partners, business leaders, government agencies, states and communities across the nation to ensure that more children in low-income families succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career, and active citizenship.
Center on Instruction -Research-based resources on instruction, targeting students with difficulties learning mathematics, students needing intensive instruction, or special needs/diverse learners, including English language learners.
CommonLit | Free Reading Passages and Literacy Resources - A nonprofit education technology organization dedicated to ensuring that all students, especially students in Title I schools, graduate with the reading, writing, communication, and problem-solving skills they need to be successful in college and beyond.
Diverse BookFinder - A go-to resource for librarians, educators, parents, book creators, and publishers who seek to create collections in which all children can see themselves -- and each other -- reflected in the picture books they read.
EDSITEment! Neh.gov - Lesson plans, teacher’s guides and student activities for Humanities education Grade K-12.
ELA Curricula - Open Up Resources - A non-profit publisher partnering with districts and schools to bring high-quality curriculum, professional learning, and peer communities to PK-12 classrooms.
English Language Arts | PBS Learning Media - Browse standards-aligned ELA resources for students in all grades.
Folger Shakespeare Library: Offers a world of online resources for teachers -- from lesson plans to study guides to videos -- for teaching Shakespeare on the K-12 levels.
Google Lit Trips - The essence of the Google Lit Trips project is the use of Google Earth to create immersive 3D literary field trips where students virtually become traveling companions with characters in stories commonly taught in grades kindergarten through high school.
FCRR: Florida Center for Reading Research | Educators- Educators can find resources to support your knowledge and practice. Use these resources to make evidence-informed decisions to improve reading outcomes for all learners.
FCRR Student Center Activities - Student Center Activities for use in pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade classrooms. The activities are designed for students to practice, demonstrate, and extend their learning of what has already been taught, sometimes with teacher assistance and sometimes independently.
Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade - Offers educators specific, evidence-based recommendations for teaching foundational reading skills to students in kindergarten through 3rd grade.
IMSE - Institute for Multi-Sensory Education | Resources - IMSE's Orton-Gillingham program allows children to break down how and why letters and words sound the way they do. Using multiple senses, children can better understand the rules of the English language. This is effective in the classroom because it allows educators to teach children in the way that each individual child learns best.
The International Dyslexia Association - An international organization that concerns itself with the complex issues of dyslexia.
Intervention Central: Response to Intervention | RTI | RTI Resources - Provides teachers, schools and districts with free resources to help struggling learners and implement Response to Intervention.
LitCharts - Review the library of over 690 literature guides. Explore the chapter summaries and character analysis (especially helpful for students with memory issues), the theme wheels and analysis and quotes. Essential to support students' understanding of assigned fiction (MS and HS).
Learning Materials | National Center for Families Learning - Our multigenerational family literacy models combine parent-child literacy activities, adult education, parenting and workforce skills training, and youth education to help children succeed in school.
Narrowing the Third-Grade Reading Gap | EAB Report - A research brief for educators embracing the science of reading from the EAB District Leadership Forum. An accessible read for educators who want to learn more and implement classroom instruction that is aligned to the science of reading.
National Center on Improving Literacy | Schools & Districts - Find evidence-based approaches and effective professional development to screen, identify, and teach students with literacy-related difficulties. Includes toolkits, videos, research briefs and infographics, Q&A with experts, and other resources around topics such as beginning reading, dyslexia, remote learning, interventions, legislation, and screening.
National Council of Teachers of English | Resources - Online resources, communities and groups to help provide professional support throughout the many stages of your teaching career.
Newsela: Instructional Content Platform - An instructional content tool allowing teachers to find articles with appropriate reading levels, featuring questions and writing prompts, for their students.
Quill.org - Quill.org, a non-profit, provides free literacy activities that build reading comprehension, writing, and language skills for elementary, middle, and high school students.
Reading and Writing Basics | Reading Rockets - A primer on the key components of reading, including oral language, phonemic awareness, decoding, orthographic mapping, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.
Reading Rockets | Launching Young Readers - Reading resources assist parents, teachers, and other educators in helping struggling readers build fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension skills.
Reading Rockets | Reading Adventure Packs for Families - a set of reading adventure packs to encourage hands-on fun and learning centered around paired fiction and nonfiction books.
ReadWorks.org - A resource for reading passages and lesson plans for K-12 teachers, including pre-made worksheets, quizzes, and other printable materials to enhance the lesson.
ReadWriteThink | Classroom Resources - Subject-specific curriculum sites managed in part by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Providing educators and students access to the highest quality practices and resources in reading and language arts instruction.
Science of Reading | International Literacy Association - A sampling of resources that represents a range of perspectives on the science of reading (SOR), a term that ILA defines as “a convergence of accumulated and evolving findings from research regarding reading processes and reading instruction (pedagogy) and how the two are implemented across contexts that interactively bridge cultural, social, biological, psychological, linguistic, and historical bases of learning.”
The Science of Reading: The Basics | National Center on Improving Literacy - There are so many pieces to the Science of Reading that it can be difficult to know where to start. Here are a few highlights about what the Science of Reading IS and what it IS NOT. This knowledge will help you on your journey to teaching all children, including those with diverse needs and cultural backgrounds, to read.
Share My Lesson | English Language Arts Lesson Plans & Activities - Share My Lesson offers free lesson plans, teacher resources, and classroom activities created by educators.
Storyboard That: The World's Best Free Online Storyboard Creator - An online storyboard with a simple drag-and-drop interface and a large collection of custom artwork making it easy for students and teachers to create storyboards that bring visual learning to life.
Teacher Resources | American Literature - Free resources for teaching reading, writing, and critical thinking skills
TeachersFirst - An online community for teachers by teachers. With thousands of lessons, units, and reviewed web resources for K-12 classroom teachers, our website is designed to enrich teaching and learning for both teachers and their students.
Text Project - Strategies, tools, and texts to bring beginning readers and struggling readers to high levels of literacy.
UDL TechToolkit - Online literacy tools to make learning accessible to all students.
UFLI Virtual Teaching Resource Hub -Designed to assist teachers as they explore new ways to teach foundational reading skills using technology. This site has tools for reading instruction and intervention with children in the elementary grades. Reviews existing research on different programs, products, practices, and policies in education with a goal of providing educators with the information they need to make evidence-based decisions.
Why Some Kids Struggle and How to Help | Reading Rockets - Learn more about why some kids have trouble learning to read, how to target the problem, and how to help a struggling reader with self-esteem issues.
Return to Online Resources to view LRC-South's collection of free resources for use by educators and families. Please check back often as we are regularly updating the online resources we provide.