When studying in school, the first few elementary school grades are critical for laying a solid educational foundation, or else children may find themselves struggling to grasp more advanced materials presented in the grades to come. If your child is finishing first grade, how can you ensure they develop the skills they need to excel in school and the workplace?
That's where the Common Core comes in. The Common Core is a series of standards devised by grade level to ensure children have an understanding of the necessary skills to progress in school. Here are the Common Core standards set for first-grade students to ensure they have a comprehensive education.
Mathematic Common Core Standards for First Grade
In each grade level, children are expected to meet Common Core requirements for Language Arts and Mathematics. First graders studying under the Common Core should have a grasp of the following materials in their math courses:
- Solve addition and subtraction problems: Children in first grade are expected to learn basic addition and subtraction. They will be expected to add within 100 and subtract in multiples of 10.
- Understand the mathematic order of operations and employ it through math equations.
- Tell and write time: First graders will be beginning the process of learning to tell time, though it may not be fully mastered until second or third grade. First grade children will learn to tell time at the hour and half-hour times on a standard clock.
- Understand place value for 10s and 1s places.
- Measure lengths directly and indirectly: They should be able to grasp units of measurement being made up of smaller units.
- Learn how to create and manipulate shapes: They should be able to put shapes together to form new shapes, as well as identify the shapes making up more complex shapes.
Children are also expected to enhance their problem-solving, critical-thinking, and reasoning skills.
How Will First Grade Common Core Skills Be Built Upon in Second Grade?
Children develop mastery of skills they learn in first grade, then build on those skills when they progress to second grade. Second grade students are expected to continue developing their grammatical understanding of English, including irregular noun and verb usage and the correct use adjectives and adverbs in sentences. Students will continue developing their skill with addition and subtraction but will also develop the foundations for equal-number multiplication.
What Happens If Your Child Fails to Meet Common Core Standards?
If your child is having trouble in first grade, they may be at risk for being held back. Contact Math Genie, an after-school education program dedicated to helping your child get on the right track in school, so they can improve their skills and build towards a more comprehensive education.
