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What does a First Grade Teacher do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read
Quoted Expert
Dr. Diana Jones
What does a First Grade Teacher do

First-grade teachers are the first instructors of children after they finished the kindergarten level. They play an essential role as children aged six to seven move to more structured learning. Generally, they set an exciting tone of learning for the fundamental skills in writing, reading, and math. These teachers create and give effective learning activities to the children to enhance their physical, emotional, intellectual, and social development. They have to effectively manage the classroom and ensure that all students are safe. Also, they give regular assessments to children to evaluate if their teaching method is effective and to determine the learning style of each child. Additionally, they need to communicate with parents, guardians, and principals on the progress of the children.

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First grade teacher responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real first grade teacher resumes:

  • Used technology such as scanning documents, creating hyperlinks and PowerPoint to document student progress for student lead conferences.
  • Prepare and plan literacy and math centers daily to encourage student achievement and socialization skills.
  • Develop standards-based curricula including a balance literacy program, math and writers' workshops and after school intervention program.
  • Implement the PBIS social emotional development program.
  • Employ PBIS to reenforce positive behavior among students.
  • Focuse on ESL students using methodical scaffolding, with an emphasis on citizenship and literacy.
  • Develop tier two and tier three RTI interventions for struggling students who are not successful in iii.
  • Learned many ESL strategies to help teach children in their native language while trying to transition them into English.
  • Direct drama for kindergarten and first grade with a performance in the spring at the annual art and drama night.
  • Participate in the development of IEP's and attend meetings that include parents, lawyers, advocates and district personnel.
  • Present academic and social/emotional behavior assessments at IEP meetings.
  • Facilitate RTI for students who struggle with literacy and/or mathematics.
  • Coordinate and conduct kindergarten orientation workshops for parents of upcoming students.
  • Design and implement daily lesson plans and activities following a Pre-Kindergarten curriculum.
  • Create and implement lessons plans and learning centers utilizing an integrate curriculum for Pre-Kindergarten students.

First grade teacher skills and personality traits

We calculated that 29% of First Grade Teachers are proficient in Classroom Management, Math, and Social Studies. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Patience, and Physical stamina.

We break down the percentage of First Grade Teachers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Classroom Management, 29%

    Initiate classroom management plans promoting individual responsibility through positive reinforcement

  • Math, 13%

    Developed standards-based curricula including a balanced literacy program, math and writers' workshops and after school intervention program.

  • Social Studies, 5%

    General education classroom with curriculum based in Social Studies.

  • Professional Development, 4%

    Developed, implemented and evaluated curriculum for the middle and elementary academic programs and conducted professional development programs for those teachers.

  • Classroom Environment, 4%

    Interacted extensively and positively with parents and team members to develop and organize healthy classroom environments and communities.

  • Language Arts, 3%

    Instructed guided reading lessons daily while utilizing literacy centers for language arts skill enhancement.

"classroom management," "math," and "social studies" are among the most common skills that first grade teachers use at work. You can find even more first grade teacher responsibilities below, including:

Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a first 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 first grade teacher resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "participated in staff meetings, professional development trainings, parent/teacher communication, iep meetings, and school wide events. "

Patience. Another essential skill to perform first grade teacher duties is patience. First grade teachers responsibilities require that "kindergarten and elementary school teachers must respond with patience when students struggle with material." First grade teachers also use patience in their role according to a real resume snippet: "assisted the primary instructor in an early learning environment by demonstrating skills in communication, instruction, patience, and creativity. "

Physical stamina. This is an important skill for first grade teachers to perform their duties. For an example of how first grade teacher responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "working with kindergarten- and elementary-age students can be tiring." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a first grade teacher: "facilitated physical education class for grades kindergarten through third. ".

Most common first grade teacher skills

The three companies that hire the most first grade teachers are:

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Compare different first grade teachers

First grade teacher vs. Teacher associate

A teacher associate is responsible for assisting the teacher in classroom operations and providing teaching support for the students. Teacher associates develop learning materials according to the instructions of the headteachers, helping them to track students' progress and observing class behaviors. They also take class responsibility if the teacher is away, ensuring to keep activity records and attendance for reference. A teacher associate must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in handling students' difficulties and working with the teacher to develop techniques to address those challenges.

We looked at the average first grade teacher salary and compared it with the wages of a teacher associate. Generally speaking, teacher associates are paid $15,750 lower than first grade teachers per year.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between first grade teachers and teacher associates are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like classroom management, math, and social studies.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a first grade teacher are more likely to require skills like "professional development," "kindergarten," "grade curriculum," and "student learning." On the other hand, a job as a teacher associate requires skills like "child care," "cpr," "child development," and "cleanliness." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Teacher associates really shine in the health care industry with an average salary of $32,745. Comparatively, first grade teachers tend to make the most money in the education industry with an average salary of $50,770.The education levels that teacher associates earn slightly differ from first grade teachers. In particular, teacher associates are 10.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a first grade teacher. Additionally, they're 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

First 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.

Language arts teacher positions earn higher pay than first grade teacher roles. They earn a $2,212 higher salary than first grade teachers per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. First grade teachers and language arts teachers both require similar skills like "classroom management," "social studies," and "student learning" to carry out their responsibilities.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real first grade teacher resumes. While first grade teacher responsibilities can utilize skills like "math," "professional development," "classroom environment," and "language arts," language arts teachers use skills like "curriculum development," "literature," "grammar," and "language."

On average, language arts teachers earn a higher salary than first grade teachers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, language arts teachers earn the most pay in the education industry with an average salary of $48,676. Whereas first grade teachers have higher pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $50,770.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Language arts teachers tend to reach similar levels of education than first grade teachers. In fact, they're 3.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for First Grade Teachers in the next 3-5 years?

Dr. Diana JonesDr. Diana Jones LinkedIn Profile

Chair, Department of Kinesiology, Anderson University

Technology in the next 3-5 years -- That is a tough question because technology is continually changing. However, I would say whatever learning system their school provides (e.g., Canvas, Blackboard, etc.), they should get to know. Also, the technology that involves making/editing videos of teaching would be necessary. The technique that includes exercise, fitness, sports such as heart rate monitors, Fitbits, etc. Finally, a technology that allows interactions between teachers and students and students and students.

First 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.

On average scale, esl teachers bring in higher salaries than first grade teachers. In fact, they earn a $2,944 higher salary per year.Using the responsibilities included on first grade teachers and esl teachers resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "classroom management," "social studies," and "classroom environment.rdquo;

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, first grade teachers are more likely to have skills like "math," "professional development," "kindergarten," and "grade curriculum." But a esl teacher is more likely to have skills like "kids," "whiteboards," "curriculum development," and "english language."

Esl teachers earn the best pay in the retail industry, where they command an average salary of $52,367. First grade teachers earn the highest pay from the education industry, with an average salary of $50,770.Most esl teachers achieve a similar degree level compared to first grade teachers. For example, they're 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

First grade teacher vs. Teacher

Being a teacher is one of the most passionate professions, among others. Teachers educate, motivate, and guide every generation of learners to prepare them for the real world. Every teacher is unique and has their own teaching styles and methods depending on the subject they teach and the age of their students. Oftentimes they also function as a parent, counselor, coach, friend, and even a lawmaker. There is essentially no limit to the roles a teacher portrays.

Teachers tend to earn a lower pay than first grade teachers by an average of $1,768 per year.While both first grade teachers and teachers complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like classroom management, math, and social studies, the two careers vary in some skills.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between first grade teachers and teachers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a first grade teacher might have more use for skills like "kindergarten," "grade curriculum," "literacy program," and "parent-teacher conferences." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of teachers require skills like "handle scheduling," "kids," "cpr," and "curriculum development. "

In general, teachers earn the most working in the education industry, with an average salary of $49,700. The highest-paying industry for a first grade teacher is the education industry.In general, teachers hold similar degree levels compared to first grade teachers. Teachers are 4.2% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of first grade teacher

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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