Mastering the Art of Teaching Young Children: Essential Skills for Aspiring Preschool Teachers

Teaching may have its challenges, but it’s a great career option for creative people. Helping students develop through their earliest years is inspiring, and the ability to really make a difference is incredibly fulfilling. If you enjoy spending time with young children, preschool teaching can be a good career choice, but there is more to becoming a great teacher. While a good education program will teach you how to become a preschool teacher, there are other essential skills that will help you succeed in this career.

Creative People Can Thrive in Education

Today’s educational environment may seem to revolve around data, but the best teachers are those who have not lost their creative spark. Teaching is a great career for energetic people. In a preschool classroom, you will be creating new things every day, from lesson plans to learning activities to structured playtime. In your preschool classroom, you will have the chance to teach basic skills with a variety of teaching strategies. Innovation is a valued skill for preschool teachers.

Strong Leadership Skills Make Great Learning Communities

If your classroom has a good sense of community, all students will feel like they belong in your classroom. A supportive and collaborative environment goes a long way toward making each preschool student feel safe. A good teacher is warm, accessible, enthusiastic, and caring, but more than that, they are skilled leaders. A strong leader can help build the learning community and gain students’ trust. They are organized and professional.

Great Teachers Have a Love of Learning

Not only do you need to love kids, but to be a great teacher, you also need to love learning. When you are learning how to be a preschool teacher, focus on how to share your love of learning with your students. When you are excited and inspired in the classroom, your students will follow your lead. A teacher with a love of learning will make education enjoyable and engage students. The more students enjoy learning, the better they will participate, perform, and value education.

Flexibility is Key for Preschool Teachers

Every student is different and very few preschool children will behave exactly the way your educational materials describe at all times. Every student has their own timeline of developmental milestones, comes from a unique background, and has different educational needs. Some teaching styles work well with one type of student, while another may learn best through another strategy altogether. Good teachers will always adjust to meet the needs of each student. You may spend time preparing a lesson, only to find that it isn’t landing with your students that day. A good teacher will realize this and be able to adapt on the fly.

The Value of Good Preparation

Your educational program will be the key in your preparation. Not only will your program prepare you, but it will teach you the importance of preparation as a whole and how to best prepare each year, semester, week, and day for your students. When you are prepared, you know that you will be ready for every student in your classroom, and when you are confident in your preparation, you will create an environment of trust and comfort in your classroom. Good teachers rely on their own education and create intentional lesson plans. 

If you are looking into how to become a preschool teacher, first imagine yourself in that role. Are you creative, organized, professional, flexible, and caring, with a strong commitment to learning? If you think becoming a preschool teacher is the right choice for you, a good early childhood education program can set you on the path toward a rewarding and fulfilling career. To learn more about our ECE degree program, contact Athena Career Academy today!