Grading Papers In First Grade: How To Save Time And Be More Efficient

In this episode of The Firstieland Podcast for Elementary Teachers, your host Molly Schwab shares simple, realistic ways to make grading papers in first grade faster and far less overwhelming. If grading feels like it’s taking over your evenings, weekends, or mental space, this episode is for you.

Grading doesn’t have to mean stacks of papers following you home or hours spent entering grades. Instead of trying to grade everything, you’ll learn how to be more intentional about what actually needs a grade and what doesn’t.

Molly walks you through the exact grading systems she used in her own first grade classroom to stay organized, save time, and still collect meaningful data for report cards. From quick checks and grading while students wait to batching papers and choosing a weekly grading day, these strategies are practical and easy to implement right away.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

✔️ Why you don’t need to grade every paper and what actually should be graded

✔️ How to grade student work quickly during the school day instead of at home

✔️ Simple systems for batching and organizing papers to save time

✔️ The best way to grade multi-page tests without wasting hours

✔️ How rubrics and easy graders can simplify writing and assessment

By the end of this episode, you’ll feel more confident about your grading routine and have a clear plan to make grading papers more efficient, manageable, and less stressful.

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

Writing Templates with Built-In Rubrics -

https://firstieland.com/rubric

EZ Grader - https://amzn.to/49KlyLm

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To see everything mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes:

👉 https://firstieland.com/podcast

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Have a wonderful day and remember to make learning feel like play, see you next week! 💜

Molly

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