1,314 FREE Reading Comprehension Worksheets, Games and Tests
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FREE Reading Comprehension Worksheets

Reading is a very important part of learning a language. It's considered a receptive skill, otherwise known as a passive skill, which means that students don’t necessarily have to produce language - just receive it. But more often than not, students have difficulty reading because of vocabulary and/or the context involved. BusyTeacher.org offers 1,314 reading comprehension worksheets that are sure to help your students stay engaged in their reading, by providing interesting stories and effective exercises.

We as teachers don’t always have the time to make up our own stories, or go through books to pick out excerpts to present in our lessons. The reading worksheets on BusyTeacher.org offer a variety of different stories and texts in different categories and genres to help your students improve their reading ability and learn the language, all the while enjoying the stories they're reading. Depending on what you're aiming to teach, you can use these worksheets in a whole variety of different ways in the classroom. If a worksheet has a story that contains dialogue, you could assign roles to students and have them act out what the characters say. You can also use the stories on the worksheets to create comprehension questions. Some worksheets can even make for classroom discussion topics. After reading a passage, you can present a question to students, and ask them to give their opinions of where the story is going. These are just some of the many things you can do to make use of these worksheets in the classroom.

Whether you're teaching scanning, skimming, critical thinking, or reading for gist, BusyTeacher.org has the worksheet(s) you need for your lessons. There are worksheets on just about any topic you can think of - sports, business, history, and holidays to name a few. Another handy feature on BusyTeacher.org is that each worksheet has the level shown in the description, which makes it easy for you to find an appropriate worksheet for your students. The thumbnail can be opened to full page view, so you can check if the worksheet is right for your lesson. Some worksheets you'll find here are appropriate for several - or even for all levels, which means they're reusable for a future lessons with students at different levels.

No registration or subscription is necessary to download our worksheets. They’re all free to download, copy, and use in your lessons. Plus, all of them were created and uploaded by fellow ESL teachers from all around the globe, and have helped other ESL teachers in their lessons. In addition, if you have a worksheet you've created and would like to submit it to this site, you can do so by clicking the “Submit a worksheet” link at the bottom of this page. Join thousands of other ESL teachers using BusyTeacher.org, and bookmark us as your number-one stop for worksheets to use in your lessons daily! With 1,314 reading worksheets, planning your lessons has never been easier. Get started by checking out the most popular worksheets below. Try downloading one and using it in your lesson today!

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The Apartment Building: Reading Worksheet

The Apartment Building: Reading Worksheet

This is a reading comprehension worksheet for pre-intermediate students. It practices prepositions of place. It can be used as an ice-breaker for intermediate students or to review prepositions wi ...
15 Views 23,151 Pre-IntInt
Movie Worksheet: Buffy the Vampire Slayer [Hush]

Movie Worksheet: Buffy the Vampire Slayer [Hush]

Exercises and quizzes on the episode Hush of the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (s04e10). It contains: 1) Reading about the show, with a self-assesment quiz. 2) Watching the episode. 3) Exerc ...
12 Views 11,550 Int
Where Does Halloween Come From?

Where Does Halloween Come From?

, , , Reading Comprehension
This reading comprehension worksheet deals with the origins and traditions of Halloween.The exercises are aimed at elememtary young learners. The text was taken from another worksheet at abcteach. ...
93 Views 147,840 Elem
Passive Voice Practice: Obesity and Overweight

Passive Voice Practice: Obesity and Overweight

, , Reading Comprehension
A simple activity to practice Passive Voice. Students are asked to read a text about Obesity in which some sentences are highlighted. After reading and clarifying vocabulary problems, students hav ...
16 Views 15,860 IntAdv
Gestures

Gestures

, Reading Comprehension
A great activity for Upper-Intermediate or Advanced students. It starts with a text about "How Gestures Can Vary In Different Cultures" and also "Differences in Similar Cultures", followed by a ma ...
16 Views 14,155 Adv
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A Surgeon Again: Reading Worksheet

A Surgeon Again: Reading Worksheet

, Reading Comprehension
This reading worksheet titled 'a surgeon again' is based on a true story about a doctor who lost his fingers after an earthquake in Mexico city. The worksheet is organized in a way that tries to t ...
15 Views 17,703 Int
Nessie's Diary

Nessie's Diary

This is a reading comprehension about Nessie's daily life. After the text you'll find some questions. The text is in Past Simple and is suitable for pre-intermediate and intermediate learners of ...
20 Views 16,169 Pre-IntInt
Lionel Messi: Soccer's Superstar

Lionel Messi: Soccer's Superstar

, , Reading Comprehension
This worksheet is formed around today's football super star, Lionel Messi and is suitable for the intermediate-upper intermediate level of students. The material is divided into four parts. The fi ...
13 Views 24,865 Int
US Government [for RU speakers]

US Government [for RU speakers]

, , Reading Comprehension
This worksheet describes the political system of the USA. Students will speak about it using active vocabulary and scheme below. (Political words and word combinations are given for Russian learne ...
15 Views 9,717 IntAdv
UK Political System [for RU speakers]

UK Political System [for RU speakers]

, , Reading Comprehension
This worksheet describes the political system of the United Kingdom. Students can try to speak about it, using active vocabulary and scheme below. (Political vocabulary is given for Russian learne ...
16 Views 15,371 IntAdv
Functions of PR

Functions of PR

, , Reading Comprehension
This worksheet wil help you and your students to get to know the main and important functions of public relations. The study the definition of PR. It is nice to work with the group, to raise the d ...
10 Views 11,310 IntAdv
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse: Pronunciation and Short Stories

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse: Pronunciation and Short Stories

Reading Comprehension,
Hello, this is the fourth activity of a series to come dealing with pronunciation. These are activities I create to use in class, the stories are taken from http://www.storynory.com from where you ...
14 Views 20,447 All
Animal Riddles

Animal Riddles

, Reading Comprehension
Elementary worksheet consisting of 21 riddles. Students or teams of students read the riddles to each other and the other team has to guess. Focuses on reading aloud, pronunciation, listening, lis ...
137 Views 316,974 Elem
Short Straw: Pronunciation and Short Stories

Short Straw: Pronunciation and Short Stories

Reading Comprehension,
Hello, this is the third activity of a series to come dealing with pronunciation. These are activities I create to use in class, the stories are taken from http://www.storynory.com from where you ...
11 Views 15,001 All
The Princess and the Pea: Pronunciation and Short Stories

The Princess and the Pea: Pronunciation and Short Stories

Reading Comprehension,
Hello, this is the first activity of a series to come dealing with pronunciation. These are activities I create to use in class, this story was taken from http://www.short-stories.co.uk/ Unfortun ...
16 Views 25,559 All
The Analysis of the Text

The Analysis of the Text

Reading Comprehension,
The scheme of the analysis will be useful in teaching pre-intermediate and intermediate students who improve their descriptive writing. The material can be added and rearranged. It can be used as ...
11 Views 11,971 Pre-IntInt
The Queen Elizabeth II

The Queen Elizabeth II

, , Reading Comprehension
This is a reading comprehension for intermediate and upper-intermediate students about the British Queen Elizabeth II. In the text you'll find some information about her life and duties. After th ...
26 Views 39,352 Pre-IntIntAdv
Hello, My Name Is Cindy: Powerpoint

Hello, My Name Is Cindy: Powerpoint

, Reading Comprehension
In this powerpoint, there is a short reading text. A young girl gives us some information about her life, family and hobbies. Students read the short text and then there are some comprehension que ...
12 Views 13,457 Elem
A Typical Day: Reading Activity

A Typical Day: Reading Activity

, Reading Comprehension
Reading activity, suitable for elementary students, on daily routines and the present simple tense with 3 different exercises in which students are asked to decide whether the sentences are true ...
26 Views 19,912 ElemPre-Int
What A Career Coach Is

What A Career Coach Is

, , Reading Comprehension
It's an activity to discuss with the group the career mentioned. It's better for intermediate students because of the vocabulary. It will also help teachers who work with Business English. The tea ...
6 Views 11,198 IntAdv
Reading Worksheet

Reading Worksheet

, Reading Comprehension
Reading and questions for comprehension worksheet for the younger classes. Students are asked to read the text, mark the sentences as true or false, correct the false ones, and answer the questio ...
26 Views 24,129 Elem
Gatsby Quiz

Gatsby Quiz

, Reading Comprehension
A 20 mark contextual quiz which will ascertain whether or not student have read the text. This can be used at the start of teaching the novel or at the end as a tool for summarising basic facts ab ...
8 Views 7,008 Int
Music and The Mind: Reading Article

Music and The Mind: Reading Article

, , Reading Comprehension
A very interesting article dealing with the astounding connections between mind and music. How does music have anything to do with empowering our learning and vitality skills? I would recommend fo ...
29 Views 32,486 IntAdvExam
Life Style Articles For Upper Intermediate Learners

Life Style Articles For Upper Intermediate Learners

A collection of short articles mainly about life style issues such as luxury traveling, restaurants and spas all over the world. Great for upper intermediate learners who want to bring their langu ...
26 Views 36,509 IntAdvExam
Reading Excercise For Upper Intermediate ESL Learners

Reading Excercise For Upper Intermediate ESL Learners

, , Reading Comprehension
A very interesting article about South Korea's latest hi-tech innovations implementation at schools. How modern technology will change they way we perceive school or studies is also a question tha ...
18 Views 25,062 IntAdv

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