Who is preschool teacher and what is their job?

A teacher is an educator who provides education for students in the school. The role of teacher is carried out by the professional at school or any other formal education and which is a continuous process. Teachers are expected to use a lesson plan to help students in easy learning and providing them a course of study which is usually known as curriculum. There are some qualities which a teacher is expected to have like empathy, positive mental attitude, open to change, role model, creative, sense of humor, presentation skills. A preschool teacher provides education for small children who are of two to four years of age. They teach elementary school children at tender age with a very gentle approach so that students receive easily what the teacher says.

Preschool teachers help students in learning the concepts like alphabets, rhymes, counting, and basic language skills and teaching them good habits, eating manners, giving respect to elders etc…a preschool teacher is always expected to be a role model for their students. The job is more about molding children into better people and helping them by developing character that would make them school easy and interesting to go and have fun. Teachers should provide such an environment that is both caring and safe where children can grow and learn and enjoy their school life. They usually promote physical, intellectual and social growth in small children. This job can be a perfect one for those who love to be in company with small children but physically and mentally strain at some time.

Skills needed for preschool teacher

Preschool teacher is very important in any child life as they are the first people who make them introduced to formal learning. Some of the important skills required are:

• Communications: Having a very good communication is very important for preschool teacher as they have to communicate perfectly with children, parents and school administrators. They should be able to understand what is going in children’s mind like how they are perceiving the world around them must be clearly understood by the teacher and be responded with a clever answer which always remains in child‘s mind.

• Patience: As teachers are always expected to deal with different kinds of teachers they must have lots of patience. Depending on the child mentality some are energetic, some reserved or shy. A teacher should exhibit her skills to each student several times during each school day.

• Enthusiasm: For a teacher to have successful career it is very important to be happy and enthusiastic and always have energetic attitude for a productive classroom. They should always be in a position to give them examples and teach them which will inspire children and will not have any confusion or negative effect on their behavior.

• Versatility: In a preschool teacher is expected to have a wide range of skills they should be able to easily floe from one subject to another which provides comfortable leaning for the children. It is an added advantage if they have experience in music, art, science, English, math etc…this is actually considered one of the best skills which make them success as a preschool teacher.

• Organizing: Organizational skills come in general to the preschool teacher when making lesson plans, organizing children for lunch, nap and time out periods, making children’s prepared for field trips and special events and checking the classroom for safety and healthy reasons.

Preschool teachers educate and nurture young children who are of 3 to 5 years of age and prepare them for kindergarten.

Duties and responsibilities of a preschool teacher

• Preschool teachers are responsible for care for the children whose parents go for work or for any reason that parent is not around during daytime hours.
• They look for health, nutrition, safety of the children.
• They are responsible for feeding them breakfast, lunch, snacks, milk and other beverages and also make them play.
• They help them with going to washrooms and clean up afterwards.
• They organize different kinds of activities for children which will stimulate children’s emotional, physical, social and intellectual growth.
• They are the first people to introduce children how to read, write, make creative arts, social studies, and improve their vocabulary.
• They help them learn good manners wishing elders, build up their self-esteem which will be useful for their life.
• They make children learn activities like rhyming games, storytelling which will improve their social skills and help them count blocks to improve scientific and mathematical skills.
• They should also plan taking children for outdoor activities and make them play games to improve their motor skills and take fresh air.
• They help them learn basic skills such as number recognition, colors, shapes, letter recognition, personal hygiene and proper manners like saying please and thank you.
• They are responsible for monitoring each student carefully and keeping notes on each child progress about who is learning at a normal rate and who need little more help.
• They should evaluate children’s behavior, physical health, and social development and get enough information from their supervisors, specialists and parents.
• They should conduct parent’s teachers meetings and get parents know about their children and their lesson plans and how each child is doing with progress and how they are doing in the classrooms. And get any suggestions or information from the parents.

Certifications for preschool teachers

Certifications for preschool teachers differ from one state to another. Some schools which receive funds from state or federal government have more stringent rules for having certifications for preschool teachers. Usually certifications for preschool teachers can be obtained by universities and community colleges.

• Early Educator certification is one of the common certification required for preschool teacher to teach young children who have not yet started their kindergarten or first grade. And these teachers introduce children to learning, reading, writing, discovering, playing etc….
• Child Development Associate Certificate is also a common certificate which is necessary for preschool teachers and also most of the states in United States require these certifications before they apply for the preschool teacher job.
• Some states certifying agencies require continuing education credits for preschool teachers for their certifications renewal.
• The National Board for Professional Teaching standards offers a voluntary certification which can be attained by preschool teachers through school to demonstrate competency.
• All states usually recognize national certifications and many school provide special benefits to the teachers who have certifications.
• With these certifications and experience they can become senior or mentor teachers they can move into positions like school librarians, reading specialists, guiding counselors etc…they can get higher salaries along with reimbursements for certifications and continuing education.

Educational requirements

Usually preschool teachers have number of responsibilities like teaching, listening, making children play and many others. Each state has their own educational requirements but following are the basic educational levels required for any state.

• All the states require teachers to hold high school diploma or GED which is the basic requirement.
• Preschool education also requires CDA which means Child Development Associate which can be earned by teachers in two years through either community college or technical schools but having this education is a must in every state.
• CDA requires completing sixty hours of education from an institution which is expert in childhood teacher preparation. After completing this they receive a transcript, certificate or letter of completion which helps in getting jobs in the best schools.
• The main intention in Child Development Associate degree is to teach candidates about the mental and physical development of child along with how children learn.
• Main topics that should be learned in CDA are the course work which will include how to plan safe, creating healthy school atmosphere, supporting physical, rational, societal, emotional and behavioral growth of children.
• The first two years of college degree which should be of sixty hours of course work which consists of math, science, English, literature, history etc.
• They are expected to have knowledge mainly in child development, children education, infant and young child behavior, child activities, taking care of children, food and nutrition, learning methods of teaching etc.

Salary and remuneration for preschool teachers

Depending on various factors like years of experience, employer type, geographical location the salary of preschool teacher differs according to rules and regulations of each state.

• The median average annual income of preschool teacher is $17,201 to $36,359 per annum.

• The starting salary of preschool teacher who is with less than one year of experience is between $29,639 and $40,562 per annum

• Preschool teachers who are with one to four years of experience earned an average salary of $31,407 and $40,169 per annum.

• Preschool teachers with five to nine years of experience earned between $36,418 and $45,109 per annum.

• The income of preschool teachers who are with ten to nineteen years of experience in the field earn between $38,000 and $50,000 per annum.

• Preschool teachers with more than twenty years of experience will get an average income of $40,500and $52,990 per annum.

Salaries depending on the type of industry they work:

The salary of preschool teachers differs depending on the industry type also. The following are the details of the teachers who work for different employers and their salary details:

• Preschool teachers who work for child and day care industry earn $16,381 and $30,279 per annum and hourly rate of $7.85 to $14.51.
• Preschool teachers who work for education, private k-12 school industry $17,675 and $33,868 per annum and hourly rate of $8.47 and $16.23.
• Preschool teachers who work for school district industry $17,800 and $34,035 per annum and hourly rate of $8.53 and $16.31.

Salaries depending on the type of employer:

• Preschool teachers who work for kinder care learning centers earn $18,259 and $29,340 per annum and hourly rate of $8.75 to $14.06.
• Preschool teachers who work for head start  $19,490 and $36,665 per annum and hourly rate of $9.34 and $17.57.
• Preschool teachers who work for YMCA earns $15,880 and $29,423 per annum and hourly rate of $7.61 and $14.10.

Location also plays an important role in determining salaries as it mostly depends on the cost of living in that particular place and the rules and regulations of that particular state.

Salaries according to geographical location

• A preschool teacher working in New York earns an average income of between $24,022 and $38,481.
• A preschool teacher working in Florida earns an average income of between $17,717 and $29,656.
• A preschool teacher working in Massachusetts earns an average income of $32,680 per annum.
• A preschool teacher working in Rhode Island earns an average income of $32,120 per annum.