Newsela Essentials

Newsela Essentials, formerly known as Newsela PRO, helps teachers integrate literacy across subject areas with texts that are engaging and accessible to students and relevant to all classrooms. 

Newsela Essentials Features

  • An extensive library of authentic cross-topic nonfiction texts from the world’s best publications across 20+ genres. 

  • Leveled texts presented to students at their recommended reading level to support differentiation.

  • Multiple choice standards aligned quizzes and customizable write prompts to strengthen student comprehension. 

In the News category, teachers and students will find nonfiction content that reflects current issues, real-world events, and recent discoveries or findings. 

To explore the News category, follow these steps:

  1. Select the News category at the top of the page.      

  2. Scroll on the main page to explore regularly updated rows that highlight stories of the day, popular texts that week, and other exciting categories. 

  3. Select a topic (War & Peace, Money, etc.) from the left-hand navigation to browse the connected content.

In the Library category, teachers and students will find nonfiction content to build background knowledge, cover core topics, and offer context to current events. 

To explore the Library category, follow these steps:

  1. Select the Library category at the top of the page.      

  2. Scroll on the main page to explore regularly updated rows that highlight newly update, seasonal relevant, and other exciting categories. 

  3. Select a topic (Primary Sources, Opinion, etc.) from the left-hand navigation to browse the connected content.

Find articles across the News and Library categories by searching for keywords or subjects. To search, follow these steps:

  1. Click Search on the Search and Navigation bar.

  2. Enter a keyword or subject. As you type, Newsela displays articles and Text Sets that match your search term(s).

  3. Click ‘Go’. You will be directed to the results page.

  4. Use the filters shown to refine your search for other aspects of articles, including Reading Skills, Text Level, and language.

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Find multiple choice quizzes ​​on every text aligned to Common Core Standards for informational text, along with customizable Write prompts​​ to promote important writing and literacy skills.

  1. Click on an article that meets the needs of an upcoming lesson.

  2. From the article page, click the Activities carrot to open the panel

  3. To preview the Write Prompt or Quiz, click the activity.

  4. To navigate back to the list of activities, click the back arrow to the left of the activity name.

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Find your saved texts, original text sets, and text sets created at your school in the Your Content section.