What do they do?
Instruct preschool-aged students, following curricula or lesson plans, in activities designed to promote social, physical, and intellectual growth.
Also known as:
Child Development Teacher, Day Care Teacher, Daycare Teacher, Early Childhood Teacher, Group Teacher, Infant Teacher, Montessori Paraprofessional, Montessori Preschool Teacher, Nursery Teacher, Pre-Kindergarten Teacher (Pre-K Teacher), Teacher, Toddler Teacher
No Data Available
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1.1%
Change
Ranks #51 in job growth rate1,750Job Openings
Ranks #15 in net job growth
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- Bachelor's degree (37%)
- Some college, no degree (19%)
- Master's degree (18%)
- Associate's degree (12%)
- High school diploma equivalent (12%)
- Less than high school diploma (2%)
- Doctorate or Professional Degree (1%)
Most Popular Majors that prepare Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education
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#1
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Degrees Granted
26,653
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Female Students
25,665
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Male Students
988
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Median Starting Salary
$30,700
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-
#2
-
Degrees Granted
2,068
-
Female Students
1,840
-
Male Students
228
-
Median Starting Salary
$34,700
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-
#3
-
Degrees Granted
1,665
-
Female Students
1,599
-
Male Students
66
-
Median Starting Salary
$32,000
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#4
-
Degrees Granted
842
-
Female Students
814
-
Male Students
28
-
Median Starting Salary
$34,700
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#5
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Degrees Granted
190
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Female Students
187
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Male Students
3
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Median Starting Salary
$31,400
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People in this career often have these skills:
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
People in this career often know a lot about:
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
People in this career often have talent in:
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
- Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
- Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
People in this career often do these activities:
- Teach life skills.
- Establish rules or policies governing student behavior.
- Modify teaching methods or materials to accommodate student needs.
- Set up classroom materials or equipment.
- Provide for basic needs of children.
- Discuss student progress with parents or guardians.
- Plan educational activities.
- Monitor student behavior, social development, or health.
- Discuss problems or issues with supervisors.
- Maintain student records.
- Monitor student performance.
- Evaluate student work.
- Read to students.
- Develop instructional objectives.
- Arrange childcare or educational settings to ensure physical safety of children.
- Apply multiple teaching methods.
- Enforce rules or policies governing student behavior.
- Develop strategies or programs for students with special needs.
- Collaborate with other teaching professionals to develop educational programs.
- Assist students with special educational needs.
- Attend training sessions or professional meetings to develop or maintain professional knowledge.
- Display student work.
- Prepare reports detailing student activities or performance.
- Plan experiential learning activities.
- Supervise school or student activities.
- Maintain inventories of materials, equipment, or products.
- Distribute instructional or library materials.
- Order instructional or library materials or equipment.
- Evaluate performance of educational staff.
- Supervise student research or internship work.
- Administer tests to assess educational needs or progress.
- Serve on institutional or departmental committees.
This page includes data from:
Career data: O*NET 28.3 Database
by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (“USDOL/ETA”). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA
Occupation statistics: USDOL U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics
Videos: CareerOneStop, USDOL/ETA and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development
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