What does a fifth grade teacher do?
A Fifth Grade Teacher is responsible for creating, developing, and implementing core elementary school curriculum for fifth grade students. They maintain accurate student records, evaluate student progress periodically, and prepare reports.
Fifth grade teacher responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real fifth grade teacher resumes:
- Utilize PLC time to meet the needs of struggling and achieving students
- Work with a large population of ESL and at risk students.
- Participate in response to instruction (RTI) meetings to define strategies to assist specific students in grasping key concepts.
- Adapt teaching methods and materials to meet students' varying needs and interests, create IEP's for entire classroom population.
- Integrate interventions and implement RTI strategies within curriculum.
- Modify the general education curriculum for special-needs students in mainstreaming math.
- Develop and implement math unit on geometry around major instructional goals.
- Facilitate literature circles to increase student enjoyment of reading and positive communication skills.
- Create a makeshift smartboard using limit technology leading to an overall increase in student participation.
Fifth grade teacher skills and personality traits
We calculated that 32% of Fifth Grade Teachers are proficient in Classroom Management, Math, and Classroom Environment. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Patience, and Physical stamina.
We break down the percentage of Fifth Grade Teachers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Classroom Management, 32%
Attended Classroom Management courses and participated in ongoing learning teams, workshops, and other professional development opportunities.
- Math, 14%
Created manipulative-based math lessons in alignment with Everyday Mathematics Program to introduce new concepts and increase overall comprehension levels.
- Classroom Environment, 7%
Cultivated positive and healthy classroom environment to promote learning, confidence and self-esteem.
- Language Arts, 6%
Developed, planned, organized and implemented engaging and creative lesson plans for Reading, Language Arts and Social Studies classes.
- Learning Process, 5%
Use of technology to strengthen the learning process and help students analyze and improve study methods and habits.
- Instructional Materials, 4%
Developed lesson plans and instructional materials and provided individualized and group instruction.
Common skills that a fifth grade teacher uses to do their job include "classroom management," "math," and "classroom environment." You can find details on the most important fifth grade teacher responsibilities below.
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a fifth grade teacher to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "teachers need to discuss students’ needs with parents and administrators." Additionally, a fifth grade teacher resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "developed new communication arts and social studies curriculum to align with missouri standards. "
Patience. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling fifth grade teacher duties is patience. The role rewards competence in this skill because "kindergarten and elementary school teachers must respond with patience when students struggle with material." According to a fifth grade teacher resume, here's how fifth grade teachers can utilize patience in their job responsibilities: "exhibit patience & positive attitudes in establishing an encouraging learning environment. "
Physical stamina. fifth grade teachers are also known for physical stamina, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to fifth grade teacher responsibilities, because "working with kindergarten- and elementary-age students can be tiring." A fifth grade teacher resume example shows how physical stamina is used in the workplace: "facilitated activities that develop student's physical, emotional and social growth. "
The three companies that hire the most fifth grade teachers are:
- Legacy Traditional Schools8 fifth grade teachers jobs
- Albuquerque Academy5 fifth grade teachers jobs
- Jeffrey C Still Middle School
3 fifth grade teachers jobs
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Fifth grade teacher vs. Language arts teacher
A language arts teacher is responsible for teaching the English language to the students, improving their written and oral English communication by sharing the best practices, conducting engaging lesson plans, assigning group activities, and providing comprehensive educational materials. Language arts teachers strictly adhere to the learning curriculum, as well as monitoring the students' progress through individual evaluation, identifying their areas of improvement, and adjust learning strategies to address the difficulties. They also encourage the students to attend workshops, programs, and other extracurricular activities relating to the subject matter.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a fifth grade teacher are more likely to require skills like "math," "classroom environment," "language arts," and "social studies curriculum." On the other hand, a job as a language arts teacher requires skills like "curriculum development," "literature," "grammar," and "language." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Language arts teachers tend to make the most money working in the education industry, where they earn an average salary of $48,676. In contrast, fifth grade teachers make the biggest average salary, $46,243, in the education industry.language arts teachers tend to reach similar levels of education than fifth grade teachers. In fact, language arts teachers are 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Fifth grade teacher vs. Esl teacher
An ESL teacher specializes in teaching the English language to non-native speakers of all ages, usually in a virtual setting. Their responsibilities revolve around devising lesson plans, organizing learning materials, evaluating progress, and coming up with strategies to make learners feel comfortable. Furthermore, they must maintain a healthy and safe learning environment, whether the lessons are in a one-on-one or group setting. When it comes to virtual learning, an ESL teacher must have the necessary equipment, a stable internet connection, and an obstruction-free teaching location.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that fifth grade teacher responsibilities requires skills like "math," "learning process," "social studies curriculum," and "grade curriculum." But an esl teacher might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "kids," "whiteboards," "curriculum development," and "english language."
Esl teachers may earn a higher salary than fifth grade teachers, but esl teachers earn the most pay in the retail industry with an average salary of $52,367. On the other hand, fifth grade teachers receive higher pay in the education industry, where they earn an average salary of $46,243.esl teachers earn similar levels of education than fifth grade teachers in general. They're 3.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for fifth grade teachers in the next 3-5 years?
Fifth grade teacher vs. Guest teacher
A Guest Teacher is a part-time educator who facilitates discussions and activities among students, focusing on a particular subject. Like full-time teachers, their responsibilities include preparing lesson and coursework plans, organizing individual or group activities, grading the students' performances, and assisting them as necessary. They must also coordinate with teachers, working together in developing effective teaching strategies. Moreover, a guest teacher monitors' the students progress regularly, all while maintaining a healthy and safe learning environment for everyone.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, fifth grade teachers are more likely to have skills like "math," "social studies curriculum," "grade curriculum," and "professional development workshops." But a guest teacher is more likely to have skills like "k-12," "substitute teaching," "mathematics," and "professional development."
Guest teachers earn the highest salary when working in the education industry, where they receive an average salary of $38,826. Comparatively, fifth grade teachers have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $46,243.guest teachers typically earn lower educational levels compared to fifth grade teachers. Specifically, they're 5.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Fifth grade teacher vs. Kindergarten teacher
Kindergarten teachers teach young children social and emotional skills, reading skills, music, and personal hygiene. They prepare these children for elementary school and certain life aspects. It is also their responsibility to teach children good classroom behavior, plan the curriculum daily and the whole school year, and conduct parent-teach meetings. Kindergarten teachers should encourage children to be observant of activities and give them the chance to ask questions and find the answers. They should also work with parents in putting an action plan to help children with emotional or developmental problems.
Types of fifth grade teacher
Updated January 8, 2025











