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Characteristics and Needs of Primary School Students

At the Kindergarten/Prep level, children begin to combine simple ideas into more complex relationships. As a result, they need an environment rich in printed materials that stimulate the development of language and literacy skills. They also need a variety of direct experiences to develop cognitively, physically, emotionally, and socially.

First graders are active learners and demonstrate considerable verbal skills. They love games and rules, developing concepts and problem-solving skills from these experiences. Hands-on activity and experimentation are important.

Second graders are increasingly able to reason, listen to others, and show social give-and-take. They can display flexibility, open-mindedness, and tolerance of unfamiliar ideas to a remarkable extent.

Third graders combine great curiosity with increased social interest. They are able to learn about people who live elsewhere in the world, but their understanding of what they read is dependent upon relating ideas to their own experience.

Fourth graders are somewhat self-conscious and prefer group activities to working alone. They also are beginning to understand abstractions as well as cause-and-effect relationships, but need real experiences in social settings.

Fifth graders may be experiencing bodily changes and rapid growth spurts, which cause periods of frustration and anger. They generally are interested in and enthusiastic about places and problems in the news and want to know what caused these problems, where they occurred, and the reasons for them.

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