There's More Than Meets The Eye

Ever wonder the answers to some of life’s little questions?

• How do skills develop in children?
• What factors influence their development?
• What factors inhibit their development?
• What role can physical movement play in education?
• What do balance, hand-eye coordination, and music all share in common? And how can this affect the development of other cognitive abilities in children?

These are just a few of the questions considered if your job is:

Teacher At A Childcare Center

• Are you wondering what working in this profession entails?
• Have you ever wondered what my average day is like?
• Do you imagine the benefits of doing this type of work for a living?

The following brief job description contains not all but some of the hundreds of details that working in the field of early childhood development has given me.

Job Title:Teacher

Type of Company: Privately-owned childcare center in Summerside PE.

Education: Early Childhood Education Teaching Diploma, Truro Teachers College (Truro. NS) Montessori Teaching Diploma (NAMC Vancouver BC)

Previous Experience: I was an intern at a preschool, then an assistant and later became a lead teacher at various Kindergartens throughout the Province.

Job Tasks: As the owner and lead Teacher in a Montessori preschool that cares for children that are two and half to five years old. I manage two full-time teaching positions and assistants when required. I organize and conduct parent and staff meetings, fill out progress reports throughout the year, follow guidelines of the EECD (Education and Early Childhood Development) and ECDA (Early Childhood Development Association). I write a newsletter to parents, do a monthly/weekly planning. and provide a safe and nurturing environment, while trying to teach children basic help skills and build self-esteem on a daily basis.

Each day: I welcome the children to school and shake their hand. As the children arrive between 7:30- 8:25am they each are free to use the toys in the classroom (special activities in Montessori classrooms) and share stories of their time away from the class with their friends. After all our friends have arrived and settled I then have circle time on the rug where we read a story, sing and talk about what instructions each of them will need to work on in the “work period” to follow. During the work period the children are free to use and learn materials from the various lessons sometimes individually other times in small groups. We go outside two times a day weather permitting morning and afternoon and work together on our gross motor skills. At noon they have lunch and snacks are provided throughout the day. I often write each parent a note about their child's day or special millstones they achieve. It is always busy and there is always something to do. We have a lot of daily paperwork and many things to document. It's a long day but worthwhile.

Best Parts of the Job:

The best part is the children and how much they love to learn. Children are by nature very happy and to work with them and see them grow is just wonderful, so each day is exciting and fun.

Job Tips:

Enjoy the children while you try to teach.

You must be a teacher in your heart. (Anyone can be a teacher on paper)

Get as much education as you can. Daycare jobs often require Post Secondary now.

Additional Thoughts:

To do this job, you must like children. Days can be hard and long. There is never enough staff to cover days off. You are needed every day. The job is low-paying and turn-over rate is high.

But, if you love children, teaching, smiling and laughing, this job is tops! I've been doing it for 22 years and I love every day of it and I can't imagine doing anything else.