What does it take to make a great early childhood educator? When you see lists of the attributes of great teachers, most follow the same basic recipe:
- Love of Children
- Passion for Teaching
- Patience
- Compassion
- Empathy
- Flexibility
- Good Communicator
- Creativity
- Organization
Mastering these characteristics also serves educators well if their careers take them in other directions.
“Teachers are always dealing with all kinds of children, from all kinds of backgrounds,” said Education Project Manager Robert Bieschke. “Teachers are the most adaptable people I’ve ever met in my life. When you’re in a classroom, you’re making hundreds of changes a minute, because something’s inevitably not going to go the way that you planned. You’re going to have to learn to adapt. I think knowing that that really helped me when I moved up into the corporate world.”
Training Project Manager Sharon Pindell said, “Some days you think you’re going to build a great big igloo and read stories all about penguins, but what they really need are a lot of hugs and a lot of outside time. So, you pivot and that’s what you do. When that transfers over to the now, that adaptability is virtually the same way. You don’t know where your peers are coming from. You don’t know what’s happening on the outside, so you really have to adapt to the resources that you have, other people’s timelines, other people’s schedules, and being able to effectively collaborate, knowing that hopefully they’re adapting to you too.”
“I think being a teacher directly aligns with communication skills,” said Ashley Meyers, an Academy Opening Manager. “Teaching, in many ways, is an entertainment profession. It’s taking information and presenting it in a way that’s digestible and fun for your audience. That’s a skill that will help you no matter what your job is.”
Find out more
If you’re considering a career in early childhood education, you can find out more about employment opportunities at your local Academy, as well as at other Academies from coast to coast, at kiddieacademy.com/careers.
