Elementary School

Education news, analysis, and opinion about schools serving the lower grades, typically up to 5th, and their students
Students participate in reflections after a day of learning in Julia Kromenacker’s 3rd grade classroom at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky. on Wednesday, October 16, 2024.
Students participate in reflections after a day of learning in Julia Kromenacker’s 3rd grade classroom at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. The Bullitt County district that includes Old Mill Elementary has incorporated a focus on building more general life skills, like collaboration, problem-solving, and communication, that community members and employers consistently say they want from students coming out of high school.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Even in Academic Classes, Schools Focus on Building Students' Workforce Skills
Schools work on meeting academic standards. What happens when they focus on different sets of skills?
Matthew Stone, October 22, 2024
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11 min read
Jenna Bray, a 1st grade teacher at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., helps her student Lucas Joiner on an online learning assignment on Wednesday, October 16, 2024.
Jenna Bray, a 1st grade teacher at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., helps student Lucas Joiner on an online learning assignment on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. The Bullitt County district, which includes Old Mill Elementary, has incorporated a focus on equipping students with more general life skills—like communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving—that employers and community members consistently say they want from students coming out of high school.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Preparing for the Workforce Can Start as Early as 1st Grade. What It Looks Like
Preparing students for college and career success starts well before high school—and it doesn’t only involve occupation-specific training.
Matthew Stone, October 22, 2024
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5 min read
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Reading & Literacy Video Implementing New Reading Materials Is Hard. How This Principal Got Buy-In
A NYC principal explains how she implemented the Wit and Wisdom reading curriculum in her school. The first step was teacher buy-in.
Kaylee Domzalski, September 30, 2024
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4:38
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School & District Management Video Tour a School Built to Stay Open in Extreme Weather
River Grove Elementary is built to stay open, with the lights on, as extreme weather strikes.
Caitlynn Peetz & Kaylee Domzalski, September 20, 2024
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2 min read
Blurred photograph of smiling students running out of a school building.
Comstock/Getty
School & District Management An Unconventional Way One District Is Adding Teacher Planning Time
District leaders had to respond to increased training demands and the reality that elementary teachers generally have little planning time.
Caitlynn Peetz, August 28, 2024
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5 min read
Third graders listen at the start of Lindsey Wuest's Science As Art class, at A.D. Henderson School in Boca Raton, Fla., on April 16, 2024.
Third graders listen at the start of Lindsey Wuest's Science As Art class, at A.D. Henderson School in Boca Raton, Fla., on April 16, 2024.
Rebecca Blackwell/AP
Reading & Literacy Why Do Literacy Retention Policies Target 3rd Grade?
Literacy-related retention policies typically hold back students at the end of 3rd grade. Education experts offer insights into why.
Elizabeth Heubeck, August 12, 2024
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5 min read
Student who is upset with head down at the steps of a school.
Roman Bodnarchuk/iStock/Getty
Equity & Diversity What Happened When a State Banned Suspensions for Young Students
A statewide ban on suspension for some learners successfully reduced its use—but some students were still disproportionately affected.
Brooke Schultz, August 1, 2024
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6 min read
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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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16 min read
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