Handling Overcrowded First Grade

My daughter's first-grade classroom is overcrowded. The children are not getting quality instruction from the teacher, and the teacher does not have time to accomplish all that she wants to do. Volunteer parents are the teacher's only help. Who can we (a group of concerned parents) approach to improve this situation? A few of us have written letters to the principal, but nothing has been done to address the issue. -- Need Advice
Answer: First grade is an extremely important year in school. During this year, time will be spent teaching children to read and do basic addition and subtraction. Realistically, the children will have wildly diverging skill levels, from those who can read to those who are just starting to learn the sounds of letters. And the same is true with math abilities. It is difficult for a teacher to make sure that every student gets all the individual help needed when classes are very large.
School districts recognize the importance of having smaller classes in the primary grades. Unfortunately, they are finding it very difficult to do so with smaller budgets. Of course, parents should voice their concerns even though it may be difficult for the school to change things.
There are some things that parents can do. They may work with the administration to set up a well-organized and trained volunteer program that can assist the first-grade teacher. They may also raise funds through the parent-teacher organization to pay for an aide for this teacher as well as others in the school.
It sounds like this teacher may be overwhelmed by the large number of students. A mentor teacher might be able to help this teacher accomplish more of what she wants to do. Different techniques need to be used for small and large classes.