Early years teacher

What does an early years teacher do?

• Plan play-based activities that build language, early reading, number and social skills.
• Observe and record each child's development and progress.
• Create a safe, caring and stimulating place to learn.
• Support children with additional needs and work with specialists such as speech and language therapists.
• Talk to parents and carers about their child's learning and wellbeing.
• Lead and guide assistants and other early years staff.
• Follow child protection, health and safety rules.

Where do they work?

Early years teachers work in state and private nurseries, preschools, kindergartens, children's centres and the early years classes of primary schools. Some work in workplace or community childcare, or run their own settings. School-based roles follow school hours and terms, while nurseries may open all year with long days and shift patterns. The work is active and noisy, with a lot of time on your feet and on the floor with children.

What skills do you need?

• Knowledge of child development
• Patience, warmth and empathy
• Creativity in planning play and activities
• Careful observation and record-keeping
• Communication with parents and families
• Physical stamina
• Teamwork and leadership
• Understanding of child protection

Official skills profile (ESCO)

Essential skills listed for this occupation in ESCO, the European Commission's multilingual classification of skills and occupations.

• guarantee students' safety
• adapt teaching to student's capabilities
• demonstrate when teaching
• assist in children's development of basic personal skills
• assess the development of youth
• facilitate teamwork between students
• manage student relationships
• prepare lesson content
• maintain students' discipline
• give constructive feedback
• encourage students to acknowledge their achievements
• apply intercultural teaching strategies

Essential knowledge: teamwork principles · learning difficulties · curriculum objectives · kindergarten school procedures · children's physical development

How do you become an early years teacher?

Requirements vary more than for most teaching jobs. In many countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Norway and France, early childhood teachers need a bachelor's degree or higher in early childhood education or teaching. In others, you can work with young children after a vocational diploma, and a degree is needed only for lead or teaching roles. In the United States, rules depend on the state and the type of programme. Graduates in other subjects can often take a postgraduate early years qualification, and experience as a nursery assistant is useful.

1. Early childhood education degree. A three- or four-year degree in early childhood education or early years teaching covers child development, play-based learning, health and working with families, with placements in real settings. In many countries it leads to registration as a teacher and to lead roles in nurseries and preschools. Some programmes cover ages from birth up to about eight.
2. Vocational qualification. In many countries you can start with a one- or two-year vocational diploma in childcare or early childhood education, often combined with work in a nursery. This qualifies you for assistant or educator roles. Many people later study part-time for a degree so that they can become qualified early years teachers.
3. Postgraduate or employment-based training. Graduates in subjects such as psychology, sociology or education can often take a postgraduate course or employment-based training to qualify for early years teaching. In England, for example, there are graduate routes that let you train as an early years teacher while working in a nursery. These routes suit career changers and parents returning to work.

Degrees that lead to this career

• Education

  An education degree studies how people learn and how teaching, schools and education systems work.

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• Psychology

  A psychology degree is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour: how people think, feel, learn, develop and relate to each other.

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• Sociology

  A sociology degree studies how societies work: how groups, institutions and cultures shape people's lives, and why inequality, crime, migration and social change happen.

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Do you need a licence to work as an early years teacher?

Early years teaching is regulated in many countries, but the rules vary widely. Some countries require a teaching licence or registration for anyone who leads a group of young children, while others regulate the setting rather than the individual teacher. Background checks for working with children are almost always required. In countries with a federal system, such as the United States, rules can differ between states. Check with the education or childcare authority where you plan to work.

How much does an early years teacher earn?

Pay in the United States

• $38,140Median annual wage, May 2025
• $28,990–$61,390Range from the lowest-paid 10% to the highest-paid 10%
• 478.8KPeople employed in the US

US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, SOC 25-2011, May 2025. National estimates across all industries; excludes the self-employed.

Earnings of Professionals around the world

Most countries do not publish pay for single job titles. The International Labour Organization collects median monthly earnings for broad occupation groups instead. This career belongs to ISCO-08 major group 2, "Professionals". The table covers the whole group, which includes early years teacher and many other occupations.

Source: ILOSTAT, median monthly earnings of employees, latest year available. PPP$ adjusts for price differences between countries so figures can be compared. "vs all employees" compares the group's median with the median for all occupations in the same country.

Career progression

1. Early years assistant or trainee
2. Early years teacher
3. Room leader or senior teacher
4. Deputy manager or early years coordinator
5. Nursery manager or head of a children's centre

Job outlook

Many governments are expanding free or funded early childhood education, which increases demand for qualified staff. In many countries there are shortages of early years teachers, partly because pay and status are often lower than for school teachers. Falling birth rates may reduce demand in some countries over time. The work depends on human care and relationships, so it is hard to automate.

Questions about becoming an early years teacher

What qualifications do you need to be an early years teacher?

It depends on the country. Many countries require a bachelor's degree in early childhood education and registration as a teacher, especially for lead roles. Others accept a vocational diploma for assistant or educator roles and ask for a degree only for more senior positions. You will almost always need a background check for working with children.

What is the difference between an early years teacher and a childcare worker?

Early years teachers usually have a degree-level qualification. They lead children's learning, plan the curriculum and guide other staff. Childcare workers and nursery assistants often have vocational qualifications and focus more on day-to-day care, supervision and play. In practice the roles overlap, and the titles and requirements vary between countries and settings.

Can an early years teacher teach in a primary school?

Sometimes. In some countries, early childhood teaching qualifications cover children up to about eight years old, so you can teach the first years of primary school. In others, primary teaching needs a separate qualification or licence, although you may be able to add it through further study. Check with the education authority where you plan to work.

Is early years teaching a good career?

It can be very rewarding, because the first years of life have a strong effect on children's learning and wellbeing. Demand for qualified staff is high in many countries, and there are routes into management, training and policy. However, pay and working conditions are often less favourable than in school teaching, and the work is physically and emotionally demanding.

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Sources

1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — SOC 25-2011, national estimates, May 2025
2. ILOSTAT — Median monthly earnings of employees by occupation — ISCO-08 major groups, latest year per country
3. European Commission — ESCO occupation profile — ESCO code 2342.1

How to cite this page: CourseToJob (2026). How to become an early years teacher: degrees, skills and salary. https://coursetojob.com/careers/early-years-teacher/ (accessed September 26, 2026)

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