Learning from passionate individuals with different perspectives and experiences is fundamental to building a well-rounded approach to support your students each year; that’s why we’ve compiled a list of inspiring educators who share their experiences in the form of 1st grade blogs.
The phrase “It takes a village” comes to mind when you think about the dedication teachers and other educators have for growing young minds. Through the internet, this community has grown larger and stronger as educators take to their keyboards to share their experiences, comedic relief, and advice on how to handle difficult or unique situations.
Table of Contents
Best 1st Grade Blogs by Educators
- I Love 1st Grade By Cecelia Magro
I Love 1st Grade is run by Cecelia Magro, who has taught kindergarten through second grade as well as special education over the last 25 years. She has been running her blog for an impressive 10 years as a way to connect with and support fellow teachers.
Her blog is full of information-packed articles that clearly show her years of experience and passion for teaching. Veteran educators and newcomers alike can find inspiration throughout her blog.
- First Grade Buddies By Sarah And Tamara
First grade teachers Sarah and Tamara have co-run First Grade Buddies since becoming buddies themselves nearly 10 years ago when their classrooms shared the same hall. Their website and blog allows them to create resources to help other educators succeed with their students.
On their blog you can find articles with classroom ideas, activities, assessments, and workshops for every school subject.
- First Grade WOW By Nancy Vandenberge
If you’re looking for a goldmine of resources and information, Nancy VandenBerge’s blog is perfect for you. Her articles are specifically tagged so you can find exactly what you need within every topic.
This truly ardent educator gives new meaning to dedication with her attention to detail and personal input on each and every feature.
- Queen Of The First Grade Jungle By Katie King
The Queen of the First Grade Jungle is none other than Katie King — yes, that’s her real name!—a first grade teacher of seven years who now teaches second grade, but dedicates her blog to where she got her start in education.
Katie has a soft spot in her heart for picture books and many of her articles center around storybook curriculum ideas and activities. She also shares her hard learned secrets of balancing first graders, life, and fun in entertaining anecdotal pieces.
To find more storybook curriculum ideas for your classroom, check out the educator-created language arts resources on Teach Simple.
- Fun In First By Jodi Southard
Fun in First is run by Jodi, a 20-year first-grade veteran. This blog found its start as a personal outlet for Jodi to reflect on her teaching and allowed her to connect with other teachers worldwide.
Twelve years later she uses her platform to achieve her primary goal of creating easy to prep lesson plans to take the stress off teachers without having to compromise excitement and engagement.
To find even more lesson plans on subjects not covered by Jodi, browse Teach Simple’s complete lesson plans with printable resources.
- Firstieland By Molly Schwab
Molly has dedicated a remarkable 30 years to being an educator and isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Firstieland is her online resource for teachers to help them keep up the fun and engagement in the classroom when the volume of administering tests and meeting curriculum standards makes that feel impossible.
Her belief that children thrive when lessons allow them to learn through play is what inspires her curriculum resources.
- 1st Grade Hip Hip Hooray By Michele
Michele began teaching before computers were a common household item. Access to the internet, blogs, and other electronic resources were not available, and now she can look back and see how much they would have helped.
Helping other teachers who may be adjusting to technology in the classroom, she uses her blog to give tech tips about audio books, SMART boards, educational apps, and other interactive tools to bring up student engagement and connect with her educational community.
- Grade Onederful By Barbara
Barbara of Grade Onederful is passionate about being an active member of her teaching community by building up other educators and sharing her expertise to drive forward the success of everyone.
No one should have to struggle alone but especially not teachers. On her blog you can find lesson plans, activity ideas, and an invaluable support system.
- A Teachable Teacher By Lauren
A Teachable Teacher is run by Lauren who was inspired by her own journey as a child to create her platform. She wants to help teachers effectively educate children who struggle with learning to read just as she did in school.
Educators can find information and resources to help them streamline their phonics and reading instruction and ultimately maximize every reading lesson they teach.
Find even more phonics resources for first grade reading support at Teach Simple.
- The Lemonade Stand Teacher By Tiffany Gannon
This blog name was inspired by the age old saying “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade!” Elementary teacher Tiffany Ganon applies the same philosophy to making the most of the strict curriculum standards educators have to follow without sacrificing creativity in the classroom.
Her blog features tons of articles to help you plan lessons, find themed activities, and share advice for classroom management when you are teaching strong personalities.
- Foxwell Forest By Becca Foxwell
For Mrs. Foxwell, teaching has been a lifelong dream ever since she used to use leftover teaching materials from class to play school with her little brother at home.
She has now been teaching first grade for 12 years and found she has a knack for coming up with creative engaging resources for other teachers, which led her to start her blog, Foxwell Forest.
She hopes her materials can be used to spark a love for reading and writing from a young age and create a world of hungry learners in the next generations.
- Mrs. Jump’s Class By Deanna Jump
Deanna, known to her students as Mrs. Jump, is a passionate first grade teacher who has created a fantastic platform bursting with resources for classroom management, lesson plan ideas, activities to increase engagement, and more.
Her passion is reading and phonics, but every subject is covered in her easy-to-follow recommendations.
- Mrs. Wheeler’s First Grade By Mrs. Wheeler
Even though she has been a teacher for 12 years, Mrs. Wheeler loves learning and never wants to stop! She believes the best ways for educators to learn is from each other, so she started her blog in the hopes of sharing ideas, experiences, and inspiration.
Her articles cover over 100 A–Z topics, and she also focuses on teacher self-care—making sure their health doesn’t go unacknowledged as they pursue their selfless careers.
- Teacher To The Core By Katie Knight
Teacher to the Core blog writer Katie Knight loves to keep it real on her page in the hopes of reassuring other educators who might be struggling that they are not alone.
Her refreshing and frequently hilarious writing style allows her to share her greatest accomplishments and lowest pitfalls with lots of classroom tips and activity ideas. She even has a whole section entitled “Sanity Savers” that focuses on balancing the workload of meeting curriculum standards.
- Teaching With Haley O’Connor By Haley
As a mother and a teacher, Haley loves dedicating her life to children. She understands that when educators connect with their students, the possibilities to learn and grow are endless.
That is what her blog Teaching with Haley O’Connor is all about. Her articles and materials are geared toward fellow teachers and parents. She shows how they can all use the same philosophies to make progress through tough social-emotional and academic lessons.
- Lucky Learning By Molly Lynch
Molly Lynch started her Lucky Learning blog on a whim one day and has since found her passion for creating first-grade resources to help other teachers and make their jobs a little easier.
She has been teaching for 19 years, and, when she started, there were not a lot of options to find advice or spark creativity. Using her experience to help new and seasoned teachers alike, she is determined to accelerate the “trial and error” phase many educators face so they can focus as much as possible on inspiring young minds though her 1st grade blog.
Check Out These Additional 1st Grade Resources
About the Author
Kelalani Kimiko was born to a multi-generational Japanese American household in Las Vegas, NV. Her upbringing was heavily influenced by the strong family cultural traditions of her ancestors. The seemingly endless stream of new babies and young children in her home caused her to gravitate towards a caretaker role where she greatly enjoyed being a part of how they learn and grow. As a teen she assisted in homeschooling her younger sibling after a diagnosis of autism. This steered her towards her first college major in education where she ultimately found her calling as a writer. She now combines her passions to promote the sharing and access of information across a variety of subjects.
