Usually the education curriculum is a/b 5 years and includes a 1-2 semester internship (student teaching).

You want to be a 1st grade teacher – so, you need to major in elementary education. Although you can request it, there is no guarantee that you will be assigned to teach 1st grade. Where I teach, the elementary teachers occasionally change grade levels. The principal allowed a Kindergarten teacher to swap with a 2nd grade teacher during Summer break. They both enjoyed the change. A larger 2nd grade and smaller 4th grade enrollment required a 4th grade teacher to change to 2nd grade.

It will all depend on the situation.

All teaching is the same. BA degree. For first grade an Education degree might be best. For higher grades your major should be in what you want to teach, such as music, art, history, PE, chemistry. But in grades 1-3 any BA will do, Education might be a help. Then you need to take extra courses required by your state, pass the Praxis test for first grade education, possibly student teach for 10 week, then you get credentialled.

If you decided to be a teacher after getting your bachelor’s, you have to go to grad school. There you will receive your master’s in education and get certified that way. You will also have to take the same tests as I said above. This way will take about 2 additional years. So, about 6-7 years.

first grade is the most important year of a students learning. it is when they learn most of the techniques to learn to read and write. choose carefully and good luck!!