Assessment Criteria for Free Math Worksheets on the Internet   by David Carr

Sites offering free math worksheets abound on the Internet. So what should free math worksheets look like? Are you searching for worksheets that have lots of problems for paper-pencil completion? Or is the illusive long division worksheet your quest? Finding the answers to these questions depends largely on personal preferences...and more importantly who will be completing your freely printed math worksheets. Here are 10 criteria to keep in mind when selecting free arithmetic worksheets to use with students.

[1] Division worksheets are not all created equal. There are basically two types: math fact sheets and long division sheets. Math fact sheets are easy to create (with the division symbol between the numbers) and require few if any paper calculation from students. Long division sheets are more difficult to program, e.g., with or without remainders, and allow for stepwise student completion of problems.

[2] Problems should use the Courier font. Why? Every Courier font character uses the same amount of space. A comma is the same width as the number 5. This means that all of the numbers line up perfectly for carrying during addition and bringing the zero down in division.

[3] Are the problems too close together? Make sure you can distinguish between the problem number and the actual problems. The problem numbers should be less obtrusive. Students with and without ADD and ADHD can become distracted by too many distractions!?

[4] Are there too many problems on the page? Some authors attempt to pack in the problems, leaving little room for students to show their work. The opposite can also be the case. Maybe there are not enough problems to accurately assess student knowledge.

[5] Are the digits on the printed page large or small? In my opinion and within reason, the numbers can never be too large. Exhibiting stress at an early age on elementary studentsí eyes from staring at small print can lead to stronger prescription lenses.

[6] Whereís the answer sheet? Are the answers correct? Are the answers listed in a column that you have to match with the student worksheets or on a replica of the student page laced with answers? Last thing you need is to be in a hurry and red mark student worksheets...when their answers were correct all along.

[7] The student worksheets should print squarely on the page. No cut offs allowed. A pet peeve: get rid of the header and footer if you are printing from a browser. Students donít need to know the URL of worksheets. Itís just plain tacky. If you donít know how to get the header and footer to disappear, find someone who does.

[8] Developers of free math worksheets primarily use either of two methods for displaying and printing worksheets on the Internet. PDF pages require an additional piece of software, Adobe Acrobat, which should automatically open worksheets in your browser. PDF worksheets theoretically cannot be manipulated and display/print precisely as the developer designed. The second mode of delivery, HTML code, displays worksheets directly in your browser window. The downside of using HTML based worksheets is they are prone to printing problems. A worksheet meant for one page can easily bleed over to a second sheet.

[9] Some free math worksheet sites allow you to choose criteria, click a button, and generate a web page of problems. These types of web sites allow for worksheets that produce random digits in numbers. You should find more robust problems sets on web-generated math worksheets.

[10] How can web sites give away math worksheets? Do free math worksheet web sites make money? Yes and no. Let's just say it is very important that you visit and support your favorite free math worksheets web site!

In conclusion, nobody wants to pay for math worksheets anymore. That's OK because there are lots of places on the Internet to get freebies. Find arithmetic worksheets that address your needs and provide students with competitive problems sets, FOR FREE!

About the Author

David Carr operates two web sites. ArithmeticCity.com is a web site offering free daily math worksheets to all educators. ArticlesForTeachers.com is a web site that displays educational news, articles, & information for teachers with few graphics.