Elementary School

Education news, analysis, and opinion about schools serving the lower grades, typically up to 5th, and their students
Illustration with blue background and three bubbles, within those bubbles are a teacher and students. Two bubbles are connected.
Nadia Snopek/iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being Teachers View Chronically Absent Students Less Favorably
Teachers report poorer relationships and lower academic perceptions of chronically absent students, research finds.
Evie Blad, June 27, 2024
4 min read
People attend a ribbon cutting ceremony on May 6, 2024, for the recently-completed River Grove Elementary School in Lake Oswego, Ore.
People attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 6, 2024, for the recently completed River Grove Elementary School in Lake Oswego, Ore., which is built to be climate-resilient, withstanding earthquakes and prolonged power outages from extreme weather.
Courtesy of Alondra Flores
School & District Management Inside a New School Built to Be Climate-Resilient
A newly opened elementary school is designed to remain standing and operational in extreme weather.
Caitlynn Peetz, June 5, 2024
6 min read
Photo illustration of chemistry teacher working with young student.
F. Sheehan for Education Week + E+ / Getty
Science From Our Research Center Educators: Start Early to Keep Students Engaged in STEM
The EdWeek Research Center asked teachers, principals, and district leaders how to motivate kids to pursue STEM learning.
Kevin Bushweller, May 28, 2024
2 min read
Photo illustration of young boy working on math problem.
F. Sheehan for Education Week + iStock / Getty Images Plus
Mathematics Young Students Gravitate to Math. How Teachers Can Build on That Curiosity
A focus on rich, real-world problems makes math more interesting, relevant, and enticing to students.
Alyson Klein, May 28, 2024
8 min read
Students from Centreville Elementary School in Fairfax, Va., release brook trout they’ve grown from eggs in their classroom into Passage Creek at Elizabeth Furnace Recreational Area in the George Washington National Forest in Fort Valley, Va. on April 23.
Students from Centreville Elementary School in Fairfax, Va., release brook trout that they’ve grown from eggs in their classroom at a creek in Fort Valley, Va., on April 23.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Curriculum Outdoor Learning: The Ultimate Student Engagement Hack?
Outdoor learning offers a host of evidence-based benefits for students. One Virginia school serves as an example how.
Elizabeth Heubeck, May 7, 2024
7 min read
Irene Perez and Yolanda Cosio type in math equations on their calculators during their general education development class within the community hub at John H. Amesse Elementary School on March 13, 2024 in Denver. Denver Public Schools has six community hubs across the district that have serviced 3,000 new students since October 2023. Each community hub has different resources for families and students catering to what the community needs.
Irene Perez and Yolanda Cosio type in math equations on their calculators during their GED class held at the community hub at John H. Amesse Elementary School on March 13, 2024, in Denver. The Denver school district has six community hubs that provide a range of resources for families and students.
Rebecca Slezak For Education Week
Families & the Community Why This District Meets Parents at Home
Parent-teacher home visits are more than conferences. They're about forming trusting relationships.
Libby Stanford, April 25, 2024
15 min read
Parents take photos of their children during a Black History Month program at Stevenson Elementary School in Southfield, Mich., on Feb. 28, 2024.
Parents take photos of their children during a Black History Month program at Stevenson Elementary School in Southfield, Mich., on Feb. 28, 2024.
Samuel Trotter for Education Week
Families & the Community How a School Made Parents Central to Its Turnaround
A strategy to constantly bring parents into the school has been central to rising achievement at a Detroit-area elementary school.
Libby Stanford, April 25, 2024
16 min read
Students from two kindergarten classes at the Lewiston elementary campus of Saint Dominic Academy listen to a teacher read a book in Lewiston, Maine, on Aug. 22, 2018.
Students from two kindergarten classes at the Lewiston elementary campus of Saint Dominic Academy listen to a teacher read a book, in Lewiston, Maine, on Aug. 22, 2018.
Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal via AP
Reading & Literacy Explainer Make Time for the Read-Aloud. Here's How
Literacy experts explain the benefits of making the read-aloud a daily classroom ritual.
Elizabeth Heubeck, April 24, 2024
4 min read
UConn guard Hassan Diarra (10) scores past Purdue guard Myles Colvin (5) during the second half of the NCAA college Final Four championship basketball game on April 8, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz.
UConn guard Hassan Diarra scores past Purdue guard Myles Colvin during the second half of the NCAA college Final Four championship basketball game on April 8, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. A 2nd grade class in North Carolina completed one of the best March Madness brackets in the nation for the annual tournament.
David J. Phillip/AP
Teaching & Learning This 2nd Grade Class Picked One of the Best March Madness Brackets in the Nation
The exercise was supposed to be just for fun. Then, this class' picks just kept winning.
Caitlynn Peetz, April 17, 2024
2 min read
Carrie White, a second-grade teacher, makes a heart with her hands for her student, Tyrell King-Harrell, left, during an SEL exercise at Yates Magnet Elementary School in Schenectady, N.Y., on March 28, 2024.
Carrie White, a 2nd grade teacher, makes a heart with her hands for her student, Tyrell King-Harrell, left, during an SEL exercise at Yates Magnet Elementary School in Schenectady, N.Y., on March 28, 2024.
Scott Rossi for Education Week
Student Well-Being What This School Used as the Main Ingredient for a Positive Climate
When systemic and fully integrated, the practice has the power to reduce bad behavior and boost teacher morale, experts say.
Libby Stanford, April 14, 2024
10 min read
During recess at Ruby Bridges Elementary School in Woodinville, Wash., students have cards with objects and words on them so that all students, including those who cannot speak, can communicate. Pictured here on April 2, 2024.
During recess at Ruby Bridges Elementary School in Woodinville, Wash., students have access to cards with objects and words on them so that all students, including those who do not speak, can communicate. Pictured here, a student who has been taught how to lead and use commands with a campus service dog does so under the supervision of a staff member on April 2, 2024.
Meron Menghistab for Education Week
Special Education Inside a School That Doesn’t Single Out Students With Special Needs
Students with disabilities at this school near Seattle rarely have to leave mainstream rooms to receive the services they need.
Caitlynn Peetz, April 14, 2024
8 min read
Teaching Video Teachers, Try This: A Pen Pal Exchange to Improve Student Writing and Build Empathy
This class experiences so many benefits through the monthly letters they exchange with their pen pals at the local retirement home.
4:00
Teaching Profession Video Nonstop From Classroom to Classroom, an ESOL Teacher's Day
This ESOL teacher moves from room to room throughout the day, working with students from kindergarten through 5th grade.
1 min read
Teaching Profession Video How a Moment of Recognition Rejuvenated This Alabama Teacher
Kenisha Gage, an elementary school teacher in Huntsville, Ala., shares the highs and lows of her career as an educator.
Catriona Ni Aolain, March 6, 2024
1 min read