Kindergarten teachers teach academic and social skills to kindergarten students.

 

  • Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
  • Prepare children for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
  • Instruct students individually and in groups, adapting teaching methods to meet students' varying needs and interests.
  • Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills.
  • Demonstrate activities to children.
  • Read books to entire classes or to small groups.
  • Guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems or special academic interests.
  • Observe and evaluate children's performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
  • Provide a variety of materials and resources for children to explore, manipulate, and use, both in learning activities and in imaginative play.
  • Prepare and implement remedial programs for students requiring extra help.
  • Identify children showing signs of emotional, developmental, or health-related problems and discuss them with supervisors, parents or guardians, and child development specialists.
  • Maintain accurate and complete student records and prepare reports on children and activities as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
  • Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects and communicate those objectives to children.
  • Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.
  • Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
  • Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, and storytelling.
  • Meet with parents and guardians to discuss their children's progress and to determine their priorities for their children and their resource needs.
  • Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.
  • Meet with other professionals to discuss individual students' needs and progress.
  • Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
  • Prepare objectives and outlines for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or requirements of states and schools.
  • Assimilate arriving children to the school environment by greeting them, helping them remove outerwear, and selecting activities of interest to them.
  • Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of kindergarten programs.
  • Prepare materials, classrooms, and other indoor and outdoor spaces to facilitate creative play, learning and motor-skill activities, and safety.
  • Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate children's progress.
  • Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula.
  • Organize and label materials and display children's work in a manner appropriate for their sizes and perceptual skills.
  • Prepare for assigned classes and show written evidence of preparation upon request of immediate supervisors.
  • Plan and supervise class projects, field trips, visits by guests, or other experiential activities and guide students in learning from those activities.
  • Supervise, evaluate, and plan assignments for teacher assistants and volunteers.
  • Involve parent volunteers and older students in children's activities to facilitate involvement in focused, complex play.
  • Administer standardized ability and achievement tests and interpret results to determine children's developmental levels and needs.
  • Attend professional meetings, educational conferences, and teacher training workshops to maintain and improve professional competence.
  • Attend staff meetings and serve on committees as required.
  • Select, store, order, issue, and inventory classroom equipment, materials, and supplies.
  • Perform administrative duties, such as assisting in school libraries, hall and cafeteria monitoring, and bus loading and unloading.
  • Provide disabled students with assistive devices, supportive technology, and assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.
Work Context
  • Electronic Mail — 94% responded "Every day".
  • Contact With Others — 83% responded "Constant contact with others".
  • Face-to-Face Discussions — 72% responded "Every day".
  • Work With Work Group or Team — 76% responded "Extremely important".
  • Physical Proximity — 67% responded "Very close (near touching)".
  • Deal With External Customers — 55% responded "Extremely important".
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — 79% responded "Every day".
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Work Activities
  • Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
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Detailed Work Activities
  • Teach life skills.
  • Establish rules or policies governing student behavior.
  • Monitor student performance.
  • Monitor student behavior, social development, or health.
  • Evaluate student work.
  • Modify teaching methods or materials to accommodate student needs.
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Knowledge

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.
Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
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Skills

Instructing
  • Teaching others how to do something.
Social Perceptiveness
  • Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
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.
Speaking
  • Talking to others to convey information effectively.
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Abilities

Oral Expression
  • The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension
  • The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Oral Comprehension
  • The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Speech Clarity
  • The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
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Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Achievement/Effort
  • Persistence
  • Initiative
  • Leadership
  • Cooperation
  • Concern for Others
  • Social Orientation
  • Self Control
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Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Spreadsheet software
  • Microsoft Excel Hot Technology
Office suite software
  • Microsoft Office Hot Technology
Electronic mail software
  • Microsoft Outlook Hot Technology
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