"The most important day of a person's education is the first day of school, not Graduation Day. "
Kindergarten days are one of the most important days of a student’s life as they shape their personality and make them understand the basics of life. Kindergarten students are known as ‘kindergarteners’. The age of these students is between four to seven years. The kindergarteners or kindergarten students are full of energy, enthusiasm, and learning capacity, therefore they are also called the powerhouse of energy. The kindergarten students are dependent on their parents and teachers for every little-big need. Therefore, the kindergarten teachers play an important role in the growth, development, and learning of the students.
What are the qualities that make a good kindergarten teacher? How to make sure that students’ learning is not compromised? What are the best teaching strategies that can help a kindergarten teacher in helping their students the best way possible? This article will answer all the questions regarding Kindergarten teachers.
Qualities Of A Good Kindergarten Teacher
- Patient and Supportive- The kindergarten teachers have to be extremely supportive and patient while dealing with the students. Since the students of kindergarten are very young and might ask the same question multiple times, the teachers need to maintain their calm and help the students wherever required.
- Ability to be active for long hours- The kindergarten teachers have to stay extremely active the whole day as the students don’t like to settle at a place. The teachers might need to run behind the students in order to handle them well. Hence, the kindergarten teachers should prepare themselves for all such juggles.
- Knowledge about child development & psychology- Since the kindergarten teachers need to deal with young minds very closely, having a good understanding of child development and psychology would make their job easier. Having a deep understanding of child development would also help the teachers in coming up with innovative and effective teaching strategies for their students.
- Excellent communication skills- No matter how much knowledge a teacher has, if they can not communicate or deliver well to the students, it is of no use. The kindergarten teachers should definitely have good communication skills in order to help the students in the best way possible.
Teaching Strategies For Kindergarten Teachers
1- Teach with stories- "Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today."- Robert McKee
Students love listening to stories, they can listen to them anywhere and anytime. Teachers can use the storytelling technique for helping the students in understanding the concepts better. The kindergarten students would find it extremely convenient to understand the difficult concepts with the help of something they love.
2- Appreciate little achievements- “Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.” -Voltaire
For a teacher or a professor, the happy results of their 50 students might be a big achievement. However, for a 4 year old student, writing the letter ‘A’ may be their biggest achievement. A little appreciation by the teachers at such little achievements can encourage the students to achieve bigger goals in life. And as they say ‘small things make the difference’.
3- Deal students with patience- “Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” - John Quincy Adams
Dealing with young kids is not an easy task, it takes a lot of hard work, smart work, and most importantly patience. While dealing with the kindergarten students, patience is a game changer. In any situation teachers should not lose their calm, and they will themselves see the magic.
4- Involve parents- Since the students spend a majority of their time at home with their students, the parents can help them in strengthening the values that they learn at school. With the support of parents and teachers, the learning of the kindergarten students can be accelerated.
5- Practice fun based learning- You ask any student or child for playing a game and you would never hear a no. Practicing fun based learning would not only help the teachers in making their classes more engaging but will also help the students in learning the complex concepts with ease.
“In their innocence, very young children know themselves to be light and love. If we will allow them, they can teach us to see ourselves the same way.” Michael Jackson
Students are the like clay and it's the responsibility of the teachers to give them a right shape. There is nothing that patience, love, and creativity can't fix. We hope that the above mentioned tips would help you in being a good kindergarten teacher.
Happy Teaching!
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