10 ELA Websites for Middle School (2025)
reviewed by Franz Jerby Delos Santos
Updated on September 18, 2025
When practicing reading, middle schoolers often struggle with comprehension and critical thinking. These skills are not easy to develop at home — it takes time, dedication, and the right tools that children will actually use. In this blog post, I’ll guide you through the 10 best ELA websites for middle school to improve reading, writing, grammar, and support overall learning.
Key points
- Recommended ELA websites for middle school students include Brighterly, MobyMax, Grammarly, Hemingway Editor, Learning Ally, ReadTheory, StoryLine Online, TeachingBook, CommonLit, and Quill.
- Most platforms offer free use with limited access to their features.
- If you’re looking for a 1:1 full reading curriculum, go for Brighterly.
- For tools that improve grammar and writing, Hemingway Editor, Quill, and Grammarly are the best platforms.
- Learning Ally offers learning plans for students with documented reading disabilities.
- ReadTheory and CommonLit are designed to boost reading comprehension.
- For read-aloud stories, choose StoryLine Online and Teaching Books.
What are the best ELA websites for middle school?
The best ELA websites for middle school should focus on comprehension, vocabulary, and critical thinking. A strong platform has to offer reading and writing practice, interactive lessons, and quizzes to track progress. But even the best website will work better with a seasoned tutor who helps students practice with the right resources.
Top 10 ELA websites for middle school
- Brighterly
- MobyMax
- Grammarly
- Hemingway Editor
- Learning Ally
- ReadTheory
- StoryLine Online
- TeachingBooks
- CommonLit
- Quill
Note: According to the statistics, the reading test results showed that children lost over 20% of their English language skills after the pandemic. This makes the abovementioned websites crucial for helping kids regain lost skills and catch up to grade-level reading benchmarks.
Paid ELA websites for middle school students
Price |
Key features |
Best for |
|
Brighterly | Starts at $17.3 per lesson (applies to the 12-month plan with 3 lessons per week). |
– Education for elementary and middle school – Flexible scheduling – Common Core-aligned curriculum – Science of Reading standards – Strong focus on math and reading – Free printable worksheets |
– All-encompassing reading support for grades 1-9 – One-on-one learning – Reading & math practice |
MobyMax | $7.99/month (individual subscription) |
– A set of award-winning tools for teachers /homeschooling, or tutoring at home – Adaptive learning K-8 subjects: Math, Early Reading, Reading, English Language, Writing, Science, and Social Studies. |
– Homeschoolers and tutors in search of educational support in K-8 reading and other subjects |
ELA middle school apps: Grammarly | Available plans: $12/month (annual billing) or $30/year (monthly billing) |
– Grammar and style suggestions – Plagiarism detection – Strategic writing suggestions – Style and vocabulary enhancement |
– Basically, any age and grade – good for both children and adults – Spelling, grammar, and punctuation support – Writing confidence – Essays and passages development |
Hemingway Editor | $8.33/month (annual billing) or $12.50/year (monthly billing) |
– Instant suggestions to rewrite wordy sentences, weak phrases, etc. – Advanced grammar checks – AI suggestions to perfect styles and tones – Finding synonyms for words and phrasing |
– Middle, high schoolers, and adults – Spelling, grammar, and punctuation support – Writing activities and practice – Breaking writer’s block |
Learning Ally | $135/year |
– Dyslexia resources – College support – Homeschool resources – Family literacy toolkit – Audiobooks for students with reading disabilities |
– Students with documented reading disabilities – K-12 students |
Note: Most of the platforms I listed above can also be used for free. That is especially true for apps like Grammarly and Hemingway Editor, which offer limited features but still work for most middle school tasks. Brighterly reading program also provides free options like reading tests to detect knowledge gaps and worksheets for various levels.
Free ELA websites for middle school: Comparison
Key features |
Best for |
Age and level groups |
|
ReadTheory |
– Lesson plans – Free printables – Interactive tools – Real-time progress tracking |
– Improving reading comprehension + critical thinking |
K-12 |
StoryLine Online |
– Videos of actors reading children’s books aloud with illustrations accompanying |
– Improving context understanding – Promoting love for reading through engaging storytelling |
K-5 |
TeachingBooks |
– Access to authors’ interviews – Book guides – Multimedia resources |
– Exploring literature and author insights |
K-12 |
CoomonLit |
– An extensive library of online reading resources with comprehension questions |
– Improving reading comprehension sense |
K-6–12 |
Quill |
– Interactive reading and writing activities with instant feedback |
– Improving grammar and writing skills |
K-3–12 |
As you can see, there are plenty of free ELA websites for middle school students online. They are great tools to use at home, but don’t forget to consider the specific needs of your kid. For example, if your child has ADHD, these websites can provide useful practice, but tutoring remains one of the most effective strategies for improving reading skills in this case.
#1 Brighterly
Age group: grades 1-9
Best for: Children who need professional reading support with a personalized curriculum.
If you’re looking for the best ELA curriculum for middle school, Brighterly online educational platform might just fit your expectations, offering personalized 1:1 instruction with professional tutors — 100% adapted to the child’s needs. It focuses on reading and math, connecting the US 1st-9th graders with expert tutors to create space for lasting progress in these subjects. Over 200K parents joined Brighterly last year, with their satisfaction reflected by the average score of 4.5 on TrustPilot.
Benefits of Brighterly
- You can start with a free demo lesson — no credit card or registration required.
- The platform connects you with the best tutors for your child’s needs based on their reading level, goals, and learning style. You don’t have to scan tutors yourself — Brighterly’s team has already done that for you.
- The ELA lesson plans for middle school are designed specifically to suit your child’s needs best.
- You can choose to build a learning schedule around your life, and not the other way around. The platform allows you as much flexibility as you need.
- Brighterly offers free reading worksheets to accommodate solo reading practice.
Vetted tutors
The platform only works with skilled reading and math tutors who have undergone a rigorous background check and selection process. This ensures expertise and creates a safe, supportive environment for children to learn with confidence. Brighterly tutors use only evidence-based, interactive teaching approaches so that kids can follow and internalize the material easily.
Learning plans designed for every student
First, with Brighterly, you get a complimentary session to see if the platform, tutor, and your child are a match. During this session, the tutor assesses your child’s reading skills and knowledge gaps to design a personalized curriculum fully adapted to your child’s educational needs. This educational plan is used as a roadmap for future lessons, ensuring stable progress in reading.
Brighterly reviews on Trustpilot and other platforms mention a visible improvement in reading in just a few weeks of learning, noting the patience and support of the tutoring team.
Alignment with the school curriculum
Along with the customized plan, your child is getting, in addition, an English Language Arts curriculum that is fully aligned with the school’s standards.
Here’s what it means: your child’s lessons reinforce what they learn in school, cover grade-appropriate skills and learning goals provided by the Common Core (or state-specific benchmarks). This alignment helps meet the school requirements and keeps children on track academically.
Brighterly: Key pros and cons
Trustpilot reviews highlight that Brighterly is a great supplementary learning option for children who need personalized learning paths. It falls short, however, for those looking for a broader subject range.
Brighterly pros |
Brighterly cons |
✅ Personalized learning paths | ❌ Only reading and math available |
✅ Transparent pricing | ❌ Online lessons only |
✅ Gamified approach (reading games) | |
✅ Vetted tutors |
Brighterly cost
The platform has an affordable price, where you’ll pay $17.3 per lesson (applies to the 12-month plan with three lessons per week).
Also, Brighterly offers free diagnostic reading tests for grades 1–9, free reading worksheets, a curated Knowledge Base, and educational blog posts on various topics and themes. This seems like a perfect price-offer ratio for me.
#2 ELA website: MobyMax
Age group: K-8
Best for: Homeschoolers and tutors in search of educational support in K-8 reading.
MobyMax offers a K-8 curriculum in reading, language arts, vocabulary, spelling, writing, and more. I would recommend this platform for anyone looking for personalized instruction to close specific learning gaps.
MobyMax: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Adaptive curriculum
- Foundational reading module
- Advanced progress monitoring
MobyMax: Pricing
Family pricing starts at $7.99/month per student, with a free 30-day trial available to explore the platform’s features.
You have the option to customize your plan by selecting specific subjects.
Middle school ELA platform MobyMax: Pros and cons
MobyMax pros |
MobyMax cons |
✅ Personalized learning paths | ❌ Targeted towards educators |
✅ Real-time progress monitoring | ❌ Advanced features require a paid subscription |
✅ 30-day free trial |
#3 ELA website: Grammarly
Age group: Any age
Best for: Spelling, grammar, and punctuation support, writing confidence, and essay development.
Grammarly is an AI writing assistant that helps with spelling, grammar, punctuation, and more. Although it’s targeted more towards adults, K-12 students can use it to improve their writing.
Grammarly: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Grammar and spelling checks
- Clarity suggestions
- Plagiarism checker
- AI writing assistance
Grammarly: Pricing
Grammarly can be used for free with limited features.
Pro plans cost $30/month, $60/month, and $144/year. Longer subscriptions have lower prices.
Grammarly for middle school ELA activities: Pros and cons
Grammarly pros |
Grammarly cons |
✅ Real-time writing suggestions and spelling checks | ❌ Student might become dependent on Grammarly |
✅ Educational explanations | ❌ Inconsistent suggestions happen |
✅ Available across various platforms |
#4 ELA website: Hemingway Editor
Age group: Any age
Best for: Spelling, grammar, and punctuation prompts; developing clear and concise writing.
Hemingway Editor is similar to Grammarly, but it focuses on readability and clarity rather than grammar checks.
Hemingway Editor: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Readability score
- Color-coded feedback highlights
- “Write” mode – drafting without formatting
Hemingway Editor: Pricing
Hemingway Editor can be used for free with limited features.
Subscription plans (per word count) cost $8.33/month (5K limit), $12.50/month (10K limit), and $12.50 for team management features (10K). A 2-week free trial is available.
Hemingway Editor for ELA class middle school: Pros and cons
Hemingway Editor pros |
Hemingway Editor cons |
✅ Encourages better writing | ❌ May not catch grammar errors |
✅ Easy to use | ❌ Doesn’t stimulate creative output and figurative language |
❌ Free version lacks save/export mode | |
#5 ELA website: Learning Ally
Age group: K-12 students
Best for: Students with documented reading disabilities.
Learning Ally is an audiobook platform offering students with dyslexia and other reading disabilities classroom content, popular literature, and more.
Learning Ally: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Human-narrated audiobooks
- Note-taking, bookmarks, and other interactive features are available
- Accessible for web, mobile, and desktop users
Learning Ally: Pricing
Annual membership: $135, but can be discounted to $99 with a promo code available on the website.
Learning Ally for ELA curriculum middle school: Pros and cons
Learning Ally pros |
Learning Ally cons |
✅ Reading support for students with reading disabilities | ❌ Accessible only to students with documented disability |
✅ Curriculum-aligned library | ❌ High cost |
✅ Inclusive design | ❌ Frequent tech issues |
#6 ELA website: ReadTheory
Age group: K-12
Best for: Improving reading comprehension + critical thinking through adaptive practice.
ReadTheory is a free, adaptive tool for K-12 designed to improve reading skills.
ReadTheory: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Adaptive reading practice
- Standards-aligned content
- Elaborate progress tracking
Middle school ELA platform ReadTheory: Pros and cons
ReadTheory pros |
ReadTheory cons |
✅ Personalized learning paths | ❌ Repetitive practice formats |
✅ Real-time progress monitoring | ❌ No feedback depth |
✅ Easy to use | ❌ Not enough exercise variety |
#7 ELA website: StoryLine Online
Age group: K-5 students
Best for: Promoting early literacy, especially for elementary and middle schoolers and English language learners.
StoryLine Online is an award-winning, free literacy program founded by the SAG-AFTRA Foundation that features celebrated actors narrating stories and books with animated illustrations.
StoryLine Online: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Celebrity read-alouds
- Educators-approved resources
- Free access
StoryLine Online as middle school ELA activities: Pros and cons
StoryLine Online Pros |
StoryLine Online cons |
✅ Supports struggling or reluctant readers | ❌ Targeted towards younger readers |
✅ Builds listening and comprehension skills | ❌ Mostly picture books |
✅ Narrated by famous actors, which may stimulate interest in reading |
#8 ELA website: TeachingBooks
Age group: K-12 students
Best for: Improving reading with multimedia-rich resources, author insights, and more.
TeachingBooks is a comprehensive platform that supports literacy in students of all ages — this is one of the valuable resources for middle schoolers interested in literature.
TeachingBooks: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Curriculum support
- Author insights
- Rich library of literary resources
TeachingBooks for ELA class middle school: Pros and cons
TeachingBooks Online Pros |
TeachingBooks Online cons |
✅ Engaging reading content | ❌ The amount of resources may be overwhelming |
✅ Suits both students and educators | ❌ Some materials are paid for |
✅ Accessible materials for various learning needs |
#9 ELA website: CommonLit
Age group: grades 6–12
Best for: Standards-aligned reading materials with a vast library of reading resources and assessments.
CommonLit is a reading platform with a variety of free resources that can be used both by educators and students.
CommonLit: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Robust library of literary resources
- Features tools such as read-alouds, making notes, etc.
- Assessment tools available
CommonLit for ELA curriculum middle school: Pros and cons
CommonLit Online Pros |
CommonLit Online cons |
✅ Free access | ❌ Repetitve content |
✅ Great variety of resources | ❌ Some materials are paid for |
✅ Data-driven insights |
#10 ELA website: Quill
Age group: grades 3–12
Best for: Developing grammar, writing, and reading through interactive activities.
Quill is a platform offering diagnostic reading assessments and curriculum-aligned activities with immediate feedback.
Quill: ELA website for middle school review and features
- Offers interactive writing tools
- Diagnostic assessments
- Curriculum-aligned resources
Quill for ELA curriculum middle school: Pros and cons
Quill Pros |
Quill cons |
✅ Free access | ❌ Limited to writing and grammar |
✅ Immediate feedback | ❌ Needs to be supplemented with other resources |
✅ Designed to support learners with various proficiency levels |
ELA websites for middle school: Which one to choose?
In 2025, choosing the right ELA website for your child can be a struggle — there are simply too many options to choose from. However, here’s my top 10 ELA websites for specific goals and learning needs:
- Need to improve grammar and writing? Hemingway Editor, Quill, and Grammarly are the best platforms.
- Looking for a platform for students with dyslexia? Learning Ally offers learning plans for students with documented reading disabilities.
- Want to boost reading comprehension? MobyMax, ReadTheory, and CommonLit are for you.
- StoryLine Online and Teaching Books are perfect for read-aloud books.
And if you want an all-encompassing, one-on-one, adapted reading practice, Brighterly is definitely what you’re looking for. Here’s why:
- The platform connects you with the best tutors for your child’s needs.
- Each student gets a customized learning plan.
- You can choose the most convenient schedule for you.
- Free assessments, reading worksheets, and more!
Start with a demo session and see if it’s a match — book free lesson now!