What Does My Child Learn in First Grade? Math, Reading, Homework

This overview shows what comes up in first grade in math and German, who decides that, how much homework is normal, and how you can tell whether your child needs support. It is based on the educational standards of the Kultusministerkonferenz (KMK, the conference of state education ministers), the curricula of Bavaria and Saxony as examples, and the rules of the school ministry in North Rhine-Westphalia. At the end you will find a printable "I can do this already" checklist.

What does my child learn in first grade? Who decides

What your child learns in elementary school (Grundschule) is set on three levels:

1. The KMK sets the goal for the end of grade 4. The educational standards describe the skills children "should have acquired by the end of grade 4" (in German). According to the KMK, they are "binding targets in all states" (in German). They do not contain a list for first grade.
2. The states write the curricula. The educational goals are made concrete through curricula, "for which the ministry of education of the respective state is responsible" (in German). The Deutscher Bildungsserver links the elementary school curricula of all states on one page.
3. The school spreads the material across the school years. Bavaria and Saxony combine the goals for grades 1 and 2. Saxony explains it like this: "In the interest of flexible work in this phase, the curricula combine the learning goals and contents for grades 1 and 2." There, each school shapes the school entry phase according to its own concept.

What this means for you: your child's teacher knows exactly what will be covered by summer break. At the parent information night (Elternabend), ask which math book and which reading book the class uses and which topics are planned through midyear. The textbook shows you most precisely what is coming up.

Key facts about starting school

Grades 1 and 2 at a glance

The following table is our own compilation from the curricula of Bavaria and Saxony. Both combine the goals for grades 1 and 2, so there is no separate list for first grade alone.

Math in grade 1

In the first school year, calculating up to 20 is the focus. A handout from the NRW school ministry calls the basic addition facts and the basic subtraction facts "central teaching content of the first school year" (in German). They do not have to be memorized after one year: according to the handout, all children should be able to do the problems automatically "by the end of the school entry phase at the latest". The Bavarian curriculum sets the goal of using addition facts up to 20 "automatically and flexibly", for grades 1 and 2 together.

What that means in practice is shown by the curricula of Bavaria and Saxony:

• Counting: forwards, backwards and in steps.
• Seeing quantities at a glance: children use the "structure of 5s and 10s to grasp quantities quickly", for example on the twenty frame (Bavaria). Saxony calls this "Blitzblick" (flash view).
• Breaking numbers apart: 10 = 1 + 9 and 10 = 9 + 1 (example from the Bavarian curriculum).
• Addition and subtraction with inverse problems: 9 − 7 = 2 goes with 2 + 7 = 9.
• Doubling and halving: for example on the twenty frame (Saxony).
• Comparing: with the words "is greater than", "is less than", "is equal to", "more" and "less" (Bavaria).
• Shapes: recognizing and naming triangle, circle, square and rectangle (Bavaria).

By the end of grade 2, numbers up to 100 and the core multiplication table problems are added, in Bavaria the multiplication facts with 1, 2, 5 and 10. What is added in grade 2 is explained in Second grade math: what does my child need to know?.

Counting on fingers is normal at the start

If your child counts problems out on their fingers, that is normal at the beginning of elementary school. The NRW handout says: "Solving simple addition and subtraction problems by counting is a completely normal and expected approach at the beginning of elementary school." Little by little, though, your child should find ways that do without counting. One of them is called "calculating in steps" in the Bavarian curriculum ("Rechnen in Schritten"). Talk to the teacher about ongoing difficulties.

How to practice math at home

These suggestions fit the contents of the curricula:

• Finger patterns instead of counting: Have your child show a number with their fingers without counting each finger one by one. The NRW handout suggests sentences like "That is 7 fingers. I am showing 5 fingers and 2 fingers."
• Flash view: Roll a die and ask right away: "How many?" An egg carton for ten eggs works as a ten frame for laying out buttons or noodles.
• Games with quantities: The NRW handout names games "in which a number of objects, pictures etc. has to be grasped", for example Halli Galli or Connect Four.
• Breaking numbers apart in everyday life: "We need 6 apples, 4 are already in the bag. How many are still missing?"
• Short instead of long: Try five minutes on several days instead of one long practice session on the weekend.
• Take mistakes calmly: "Calculation problems are normal, and mistakes are part of learning", it says in the handout. Ask "How did you work it out?" rather than saying "Wrong".

If your child's methods look unfamiliar to you, our article on why kids calculate differently than their parents did explains what is behind number houses, the number line and the like.

Reading and writing in grade 1

Children learn reading and writing together at school. The Saxon curriculum describes for grades 1 and 2 that children experience "the close connection between writing and reading in acquiring written language" (in German). The path leads through several stages:

• Hearing sounds: The child recognizes and tells sounds apart and hears where a sound sits in a word.
• Connecting sounds and letters: The child learns which letter goes with which sound (in the curriculum: "Laut-Buchstaben-Zuordnungen", sound-letter matching).
• Syllables: The child blends syllables and so reads first words. When writing, the child speaks along in syllables. The Bavarian curriculum calls this "silbisch mitsprechen" (speaking along in syllables).
• First handwriting: Children first learn an unconnected script. According to the KMK, this is "a print script in almost all states" (in German). A connected script follows: in Saxony the Schulausgangsschrift, in Bavaria the Vereinfachte Ausgangsschrift or the Schulausgangsschrift.
• Practicing reading: For grades 1 and 2, Saxony provides "a required daily reading period" and trains reading fluency with reading aloud ("Lautleseverfahren", reading-aloud methods).

"Fata" instead of "Vater": spelling by ear is an intermediate step

If your child writes "Fata" instead of "Vater" (father), they listened closely: every sound they say is on the paper. The KMK describes this as a normal step: "In acquiring written language, sound-based writing is a developmental step on the way to writing that follows the norm." From there, children are "gradually and systematically led to orthographically correct writing". The educational standards mention "largely correct spelling" only for the end of grade 4. By then, children should also read "fluently and with understanding".

How corrections are made at school is described in a state-specific spelling framework, which according to the KMK also includes "a pedagogically motivated correction". Ask the teacher whether you should correct spelling mistakes at home or not. That way school and kitchen table do not contradict each other.

How to practice reading at home

• Read aloud a little every day: for example ten minutes, taking turns sentence by sentence.
• Keep reading to your child: When you read aloud, your child hears stories they could not yet read alone. Why listening helps with learning is explained in our article on reading aloud and listening.
• Clap syllables: "Scho-ko-la-de" (chocolate) has four syllables. Your child needs syllables for reading (blending syllables) and for writing (speaking along in syllables).
• Have your child retell: The Bavarian curriculum expects children to repeat what they heard, "e.g. by retelling a story".

One point from German class matters especially for homework: children should learn to say that they do not understand, "by politely asking for repetition and asking about unfamiliar words and phrases". So encourage your child to say sentences like "I don't know this word" instead of sitting silently in front of the sheet. What you can do when your child does not understand an instruction is explained in Child does not understand the instructions.

Homework in grade 1: what is normal

How long may homework take in first grade?

A well-documented example is North Rhine-Westphalia, where the school law and a decree regulate homework. At schools without mandatory all-day attendance, the following applies there according to the school ministry:

• In grades 1 and 2, homework should be doable in 30 minutes per day.
• On weekends, public holidays and days with mandatory afternoon classes, your child does not have to do homework.
• Homework is "not graded, but is recognized".
• Homework should be something children "can do independently without outside help".

Which rule applies in your state and at your school is something the teacher can tell you. The rules of all states are in How long may homework take in elementary school?. If your child regularly needs much longer, write down for a few days how long it took and where they got stuck, and talk to the teacher about it.

Is it normal that I help with homework?

Someone asked in the forum r/Eltern (quote): "is it normal to help your kids with homework in the first grades or do you do that alone?" (in German)

Accompanying your child is the normal case. According to the DJI study AID:A, cited in the National Education Report 2024 (in German), parents of 7- to 11-year-olds checked on average on 21 days a month whether the child had done their homework, and helped with schoolwork on 19 days.

The NRW rule also shows the limit, though: homework should be doable without outside help. The teacher checks it regularly and uses it "for further work in class". If you fix mistakes in advance, the teacher cannot see where your child stands. A split to try out:

• You provide the setting: a fixed spot, pencils ready, no TV running.
• You read aloud what your child cannot read yet: Someone who is just learning to read often cannot decipher the instructions alone yet. If you cannot sit next to them, an app with a read-aloud feature can read the task aloud too.
• Your child does the task themselves: You ask questions ("How did you work that out?") instead of telling the solution. How children become independent step by step is explained in From what age do kids do homework on their own?.
• Mistakes stay: Mark together what was unclear. That is valuable feedback for the teacher.

When is the best time for homework?

You can set the time yourselves at home. Try out what suits your child:

• first a break with food and movement, then homework,
• about the same time every day, so it becomes a habit,
• not just before bedtime.

What if my child is in all-day care?

Since August 1, 2026, children in the first grade level have a legal right to all-day education and care (in German). According to § 24 SGB VIII (in German), it covers eight hours a day on weekdays. Whether homework gets done there depends on the school's concept. Ask whether there is a homework period and whether someone checks it. What all-day care changes for families is explained in our article All-day care from 2026: what changes for parents and homework.

Checklist "I can do this already" (printable)

The list is our own compilation from the curricula of Bavaria and Saxony and from the NRW handout on learning to calculate. The curricula set these goals for grades 1 and 2 together. Empty boxes in the first school year are therefore to be expected. The last two rows are our suggestions for everyday life, not a curriculum goal.

How to use it: print the page, go through the list together every few weeks and check off what your child can newly do, each time in a different color. Your child then sees for themselves what has been added. Do not turn it into a test: your child says or shows what they can already do.

If your child is not keeping up

Not every child is at the same point after a few months. According to the NRW handout, "calculation problems are normal". Only when problems "occur frequently, so the children seem to be overwhelmed throughout" do they become "special, persistent calculation difficulties".

An example from the same handout: calculating by counting is normal at the beginning of elementary school. If it continues "well beyond the beginning of the 2nd school year", the handout treats this as a "clear sign of special difficulties in learning to calculate".

What you can do:

1. Look closely: For one to two weeks, note which tasks are hard. "Subtraction across 10" or "mixes up b and d when reading" helps more than "math isn't working".
2. Talk to the teacher: The KMK writes: "Cooperation with and advice for parents are an important part of the educational mission of elementary school." Ask how the teacher sees your child compared with the goals of the class and what you can practice at home.
3. Practice briefly and regularly: a few minutes every day with materials (fingers, dice, ten frame) is better than one long session that ends in an argument.
4. Get it assessed professionally if it continues: Whether there is more behind persistent difficulties, for example dyscalculia or a reading and spelling difficulty, only a professional assessment can clarify. Ask the teacher who at your school can help with this.

This article does not replace advice from a teacher, pediatrician or learning therapist.

If tasks with text are the problem, keep reading at Child does not understand word problems. If math is hard overall, the article Child does not understand math helps. You can find all articles on reading, math and understanding tasks in the guide Understanding tasks.

Frequently asked questions

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Sources

• Kultusministerkonferenz: Bildungsstandards für das Fach Mathematik, Primarbereich (version of June 23, 2022). kmk.org (PDF)
• Kultusministerkonferenz: Bildungsstandards für das Fach Deutsch, Primarbereich (version of June 23, 2022). kmk.org (PDF)
• Kultusministerkonferenz: Vereinbarung zur Arbeit in der Grundschule (resolution of March 15, 2024). kmk.org (PDF)
• Kultusministerkonferenz: Grundschule (Primarbereich) (accessed September 2026). kmk.org
• Staatsinstitut für Schulqualität und Bildungsforschung Bayern: LehrplanPLUS Grundschule, Fachlehrplan Mathematik 1/2 (accessed September 2026). lehrplanplus.bayern.de
• Staatsinstitut für Schulqualität und Bildungsforschung Bayern: LehrplanPLUS Grundschule, Fachlehrplan Deutsch 1/2 (accessed September 2026). lehrplanplus.bayern.de
• Freistaat Sachsen: Lehrplan Grundschule Mathematik (subject curriculum in force since August 1, 2025). schulportal.sachsen.de (PDF)
• Freistaat Sachsen: Lehrplan Grundschule Deutsch (subject curriculum in force since August 1, 2025). schulportal.sachsen.de (PDF)
• Deutscher Bildungsserver: Lehrpläne für die Grundschule (accessed September 2026). bildungsserver.de
• European Commission, Eurydice: Germany, Organisation of Primary Education (as of March 30, 2026). eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu
• Ministerium für Schule und Bildung NRW: Hausaufgaben (accessed September 2026). schulministerium.nrw
• Ministerium für Schule und Bildung NRW: Rechenschwierigkeiten vermeiden. Hintergrundwissen und Unterrichtsanregungen für die Schuleingangsphase (2020). schulministerium.nrw (PDF)
• Autorengruppe Bildungsberichterstattung: Bildung in Deutschland 2024 (2024). destatis.de (PDF)
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• Reddit, r/Eltern: Helft ihr euren Kindern bei den Hausaufgaben? (2025). reddit.com