7 Essential Skills Every Early Childhood Educator Needs
Children’s lives are influenced by their early experiences. Early learning educators play an important role in shaping their young minds. This responsibility shouldn’t be taken lightly, and educators require a specific set of skills to be successful, beloved teachers and role models.
Not everyone makes a great early learning teacher. The best teachers share seven essential skills and traits that make them valued by local families. Here are the seven qualities every early childhood educator needs:
1. Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence is your ability to recognize, understand, manage, and use emotions towards yourself and others. It is built on four skills:
- Self-awareness is being aware of your emotions and how they influence your behaviours and actions. Being self-aware of your emotions allows you to act responsibly and calmly, a behaviour young students will learn to emulate.
- Self-regulation is how you deal with your emotions and adapt to changing situations. Regulating your emotions helps you deal with inevitable changing situations in the classroom and in children’s behaviour.
- Empathy is understanding and recognizing the emotions of others and being able to offer comfort and support. Being empathetic towards your students helps build trust in you as a trusted authority figure in their lives.
- Social Skills help with relationship building and maintenance, and building strong communication and leadership skills. Modeling good social skills shows students how to communicate better and maintain friendships, even in the face of arguments or disagreements. Good communication with parents and caregivers helps them feel included in their child’s education and care.
As an early learning teacher, model positive emotional intelligence and help your students build these skills by offering empathetic support and guidance as they navigate their day in your care.
2. Adaptability
As much as you plan your classroom lessons and activities, unforeseen circumstances may intervene. Whether it’s a child getting sick on the carpet during circle time, forgetting to purchase essential supplies for a craft, or a thunderstorm forcing you and the kids inside early from outdoor play time, you must remain adaptable.
This also means having the adaptability skills to modify certain classroom activities to include students with different abilities or learning styles. For example, when teaching the alphabet, not every student can understand if you’re just lecturing from the whiteboard. Some students learn better by being more hands-on and writing on paper or drawing letters in a sandbox.
The ability to think on your feet, even when the day doesn’t go as planned, will help you maintain order (and fun) in the classroom.
3. Creativity
Good ECE and Montessori teachers create a positive environment for children to be creative and explore. You can plan activities where students can express their creativity and learn more about the world around them.
4. Observation and assessment abilities
Parents will expect progress reports and assessments of the children in your care. This means you must have good observational skills and be able to assess children across whatever criteria is expected of them.
This also means being aware of common developmental milestones and encouraging their development. Your observation skills will allow you to identify potential concerns early, so you can adapt your teaching style or activities to encourage growth and fill developmental gaps in your children.
Your assessment skills will help you record what you observe and plan the next steps for each child to move forward at their own pace, with your support.
5. Classroom management and organizational skills
Let’s be honest, a preschooler’s or early learning classroom can be a bit chaotic at times. Minimize the chaos and instill calm with your classroom management and organizational skills.
Your classroom management will help you create a structured space where children feel safe and free to explore and learn without too many limitations. You’ll be balancing routines and flexibility to meet your children’s needs and adapt when needed to avoid classroom confusion and unnecessary chaos.
Your organizational skills will help you keep a tidy, organized classroom and class schedules to ensure student educational requirements and needs are met.
6. Cultural sensitivity and inclusiveness
In Canada’s diverse community, educators need to create an inclusive classroom and practice cultural sensitivity. This may mean making allowance for children with specific needs that need to be met (including dietary, cultural restrictions, or holiday observances).
Take opportunities to help children celebrate their diversity and learn about each other’s cultures. Don’t shy away from exploring cultures and observances as a classroom, using it as a learning tool for students to learn more about their peers and the wider world outside the classroom.
Be culturally sensitive and inclusive, creating a classroom where every child feels seen and heard, and not afraid to show what makes them unique.
7. Commitment to lifelong learning
Depending on where and what level you want to teach, it takes as little as 5-80 weeks to become a qualified ECE or Montessori teacher in Canada. However, your learning doesn’t end on graduation day.
What we know about the world and early learning is adapting as scientists uncover new knowledge about early childhood learning. As an ECE or Montessori teacher, you should commit to regular skills upgrading and learning new things. This is the best way you can serve the children in your care. Be open to feedback and professional development opportunities, and learn from them to create a positive early learning environment in your classroom.
Model a love of learning and life in the classroom
Aside from their parents, teachers are often one of the first role models a child will have in their lifetime. This responsibility requires that you master the above seven skills so you can be that positive role model to help children learn and grow.
These are not skills we expect you to be born with. They are skills you can learn and strengthen over time, especially through quality ECE educator programs, like the ones at Capital College, in Richmond, BC, Canada.
At Capital College, you’ll learn the latest research, knowledge, and strategies to become the best ECE teacher possible. You’ll hone the above seven essential childhood educator skills through in-classroom lectures and learning, and your practicum placements.
If you are passionate about helping children grow and thrive, enroll in the ECE or Montessori teacher programs at Capital College today. We’re accepting both local and international students now.