Elementary School and Kindergarten Teachers - What They Do

Elementary school and kindergarten teachers teach basic subjects such as reading, writing and arithmetic or specialized subjects such as English or French as a second language at public and private elementary schools.

Job duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:

Prepare courses for presentation to students according to approved curriculum
Teach students using a systematic plan of lessons, discussions, audio-visual presentations and field trips
Lead students in activities to promote their physical, mental and social development and their school readiness
Assign and correct homework
Prepare, administer and correct tests
Evaluate the progress of students and discuss results with students, parents and school officials
Identify children's individual learning needs
Prepare and implement remedial programs for students requiring extra help
Participate in staff meetings, educational conferences and teacher training workshops
May supervise teachers' aides and student teachers.
Elementary school and kindergarten teachers may specialize in such areas as special education or second language instruction.

Job titles

special education teacher - primary school
remedial teacher - elementary school
teacher-librarian - elementary school
teacher-librarian, elementary school
primary school teacher
supply teacher - elementary school
special education teacher - elementary school
English as a second language elementary school teacher
French as a second language elementary school teacher
French immersion teacher - elementary school
kindergarten teacher

Employment Requirements

This is what you typically need for the job:

A bachelor's degree in education is required.
A bachelor's degree in child development may be required.
Additional training is required to specialize in special education or second language instruction.
A provincial teaching certificate is required. Additional certification is required to teach English or French as a second language.
Membership in a provincial or territorial teachers' association or federation is usually required.

Essential Skills

Reading

Read handwritten notes from co-workers, students and parents, and comments written on reporting and administration forms. (1)
Read directions for use on the labels of prescribed medications administered to children. For example, a teacher may read how to administer a dose of injectable epinephrine if a student displays an allergic reaction to almonds. (1)
Read e-mail from other teachers, school professionals and parents scheduling or confirming meeting arrangements, responding to questions or enquiring about the status of team or committee work. (2)
Read permanent school records of students entering their classes. They pay close attention to aspects such as achievements at the academic and social levels, challenges faced and assessments made by specialist physicians, psychologists, social workers, speech-language therapists and other specialists. This allows them to adapt learning environments to meet the needs of all children. (3)
Read provincial, district and school bulletins outlining curriculum, policy and procedure changes, and announcements of upcoming events. For example, they may read about upcoming reforms to elementary education or new procedures for referring students with learning and psychosocial difficulties to psychologists and other professionals. They also refer to these bulletins for information which may affect their own teaching practices. (3)
Read textbooks and curriculum guides which outline or summarize curriculum content and detail learning activities and expected outcomes for students at various grade levels. They read about basic subjects such as reading, writing and arithmetic or specialized subjects such as English or French as a second language. Teachers interpret information from textbooks and curriculum guides when developing group and individualized lesson plans. (4)
Read a wide range of trade publications to stay abreast of new research, theories, techniques and resources in education. For example, they may read about the outcomes of recent brain research which explains individual learning differences. They may also read about new educational software to learn about ideas they can use in the classroom to teach reading, writing and mathematics as well as information they can pass on to other teachers, school professionals and parents. (4)
Read a wide variety of stories, essays and other texts written by students. They read these texts carefully, making high-level inferences to provide feedback and critique features such as logical organization, word selection and sentence construction. They also refer to these texts to assess student performance and progress. As a result of these evaluations, they may adjust their teaching strategies or recommend new professional interventions by speech-language therapists. (5)

Document use

Write e-mail to parents and colleagues to plan meetings and share information. (1)
Prepare lesson plans according to approved curriculum to organize the flow and content of group and individualized activities. These short and informal plans are shared with teachers' aides and student teachers. (1)
Write notes and text entries in forms. For example, they describe circumstances which resulted in students' injuries on incident report forms. (2)
Write letters to parents on a variety of topics. For example, they may write to parents to inform them of upcoming field trips and solicit participation, or obtain their consent prior to referring children for psycho-educational assessments. (2)
Write student evaluation reports several times a year for the benefit of students, parents and school administrators. They comment on students' achievements, progress, ways of learning, socialization skills and self-confidence. They must carefully select their words to motivate students, encourage parents and minimize the possibility of misinterpretation. (3)
Write intervention plans for children with learning or psychosocial difficulties. In these plans, they describe results of assessments conducted jointly with parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists and identify students' strengths, educational needs, goals, types of intervention and proposed strategies. Teachers refer to these plans when reviewing students' progress. (3)

Writing

Write e-mail to parents and colleagues to plan meetings and share information. (1)
Prepare lesson plans according to approved curriculum to organize the flow and content of group and individualized activities. These short and informal plans are shared with teachers' aides and student teachers. (1)
Write notes and text entries in forms. For example, they describe circumstances which resulted in students' injuries on incident report forms. (2)
Write letters to parents on a variety of topics. For example, they may write to parents to inform them of upcoming field trips and solicit participation, or obtain their consent prior to referring children for psycho-educational assessments. (2)
Write student evaluation reports several times a year for the benefit of students, parents and school administrators. They comment on students' achievements, progress, ways of learning, socialization skills and self-confidence. They must carefully select their words to motivate students, encourage parents and minimize the possibility of misinterpretation. (3)
Write intervention plans for children with learning or psychosocial difficulties. In these plans, they describe results of assessments conducted jointly with parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists and identify students' strengths, educational needs, goals, types of intervention and proposed strategies. Teachers refer to these plans when reviewing students' progress. (3)

Numeracy

Money Math

Count monies collected from fund raising activities such as calendar and chocolate sales. (1)
Calculate amounts to be claimed from parents for field trips. They add transportation, accommodation, food and other expenses and calculate per student fees. (2)
Calculate line amounts, discounts, taxes and totals on purchase orders for books, art materials, gym equipment and other school supplies. (3)

Scheduling, Budgeting & Accounting Math

Set daily and weekly schedules for group and individualized courses with students, factoring in schools' established timetables. They frequently adjust schedules because of missing school supplies, snow storms and other unexpected events. (3)
Prepare and monitor budgets for field trips and other extracurricular activities. They ensure that expenditures incurred for transportation, accommodations, food and admission fees remain within budgeted amounts. (3)

Measurement and Calculation Math

Calculate the quantities of books, art materials, gym equipment and other school supplies to purchase for their classes. (2)
Calculate physical dimensions and scale distances when teaching elementary geometry and geography. They measure scale distances from maps, convert them to actual distances and calculate areas and perimeters of simple shapes such as rectangles and triangles. (3)
Measure ingredients and create solutions and mixtures for craft, cooking and science projects. For example, they may mix quantities of paint and water to achieve specific concentrations. They may also adjust mixture quantities for larger or smaller groups of students. (3)

Data Analysis Math

Compare students' grades at different points in time to assess progress. (1)
Calculate averages of test and assessment scores. They may also compare individual test scores to class averages. (2)
Collect and analyse numerical data about student academic achievements and generate statistics for parents and school administrators. (3)

Numerical Estimation

Use experience to estimate the length of time needed to prepare and implement lesson plans. (1)

Oral communication

Talk to suppliers to order or enquire about new educational materials, equipment and software. (1)
Interact with teachers' aides and student teachers to talk about lesson plans and classroom activities. They assign new tasks, review completed tasks and enquire about the status of students' work. (2)
May interact with representatives from community organizations, professional associations, provincial ministries of education and universities to share information on special projects and coordinate activities. For example, they may talk to representatives from charity organizations to coordinate fund raising activities involving students. They may also respond to university professors asking for support in research studies, such as investigations into the relationship between creativity and socio-economic level. (2)
Speak with school principals, administrators and co-workers to discuss timetables and performance, obtain guidance and review provincial, district and school policies, procedures and programs. They may also present information to other teachers about proposed projects or topics covered at conferences they attended. (3)
Teach basic subjects such as reading, writing and arithmetic or specialized subjects such as English or French as a second language to students in groups and on an individual basis. They present lessons and examples, explain rules, facilitate discussions and question students to ascertain the understanding of concepts. They have to establish trust and encourage students' active involvement in the learning process. (4)
Speak with parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists to share information about students and discuss intervention plans. They review students' academic achievements, discuss students' behaviours, strengths, needs and support systems, determine goals to be reached by school interventions and propose strategies. They may also teach parents how they can contribute to the success of school interventions. They may need to adapt their messages to communicate with parents who speak neither official language. (4)
Facilitate and lead extracurricular activities intended to promote students' overall development. They monitor and support students through a variety of exercises in a variety of settings to develop them physically, mentally and socially. During each activity, teachers listen to and observe students to assess their comfort levels and help them resolve conflicts. At the end of extracurricular activities, they facilitate feedback sessions to help students express their opinions and elicit suggestions for making future activities more effective and pleasurable. (4)

Thinking

Problem Solving

F ace shortages of textbooks, art materials, gym equipment or other school supplies for their classes. They ask students to share supplies or they move on to other activities. (1)
Discover that some students do not have proper clothing, school supplies and other necessities. When children forget, they provide small items such as pens and paper from school supplies or supply food items for lunch. If children consistently show up for school unprepared, they may phone their parents to let them know that learning is impaired because their children are not being properly fed, clothed or equipped. In extreme cases, they may ask school administration to involve social service agencies or ask for other outside assistance. (2)
May suspect that students are being abused by family members or that they are engaged in criminal activities. They advise school principals, document their observations and follow the established procedures to alert child protection authorities. (3)
Observe students bullying others. In such situations, they may bring bullies and their victims together to let them express what they feel and make them aware of the consequences of their behaviours. They may discuss the topic of intimidation with their classes and conduct role-playing exercises to help students develop empathy. They may also ask school principals, social workers or psychologists to intervene if bullying persists. (3)
Notice sudden decreases in the academic performances of some of their students. They talk privately with these students to investigate the reasons behind the declining performance. If apathy seems to be the main cause, they try different motivation strategies. If these strategies are unsuccessful, teachers may discuss student behaviour with co-workers to gain their insights and to see if they can suggest new approaches. (3)

Decision Making

Decide which classroom responsibilities to assign to which students. For example, they may rotate responsibilities for classroom pets and plants to be fair to all students. (1)
May decide what books, art materials, gym equipment and other school supplies to purchase for their classes. They make their decisions based on analyses of the curricula, budgets, skill levels and interests of students. (2)
Decide what educational assignments, activities and structure to offer students based on analyses of their abilities. They use professional knowledge to decide the levels and types of assignments and activities that will challenge students while allowing them to obtain a well-rounded education. (2)
Decide how to reprimand misbehaving students. For example, they may decide to detain students after class after giving them a certain number of warnings. (3)

Critical Thinking

Assess students' understanding of topics covered in courses. They choose or design appropriate assignments, tests and quizzes. They administer, correct, mark and interpret them. (2)
Judge the completeness and clarity of written instructions developed for tests, quizzes, assignments and other materials addressed to students. They re-read documents to ensure that crucial information has not been omitted and wording is not open to misinterpretation. (2)
Assess the satisfaction of students with class and extracurricular activities. At the end of the activities, they facilitate feedback sessions to get students' views on what went well and what did not go so well and to elicit suggestions for making future activities more effective and pleasurable. (2)
Evaluate students' progress on a regular basis. They look at cumulative records and discuss students' development with parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists. They analyse students' strengths and weaknesses, and work still to be done with respect to objectives previously identified. As a result of these evaluations, they may adjust their teaching strategies or recommend new professional interventions. (3)

Job Task Planning and Organizing

Own Job Planning and Organizing

Elementary school and kindergarten teachers work in dynamic environments with many conflicting demands on their time. They plan classroom activities within the framework of school timetables. However, they must integrate their interventions with those of other teachers, teaching assistants, school and district administrators, parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists. Their ability to help several children on different assignments at the same time and manage priorities is critical to their jobs. They may have to cancel and reschedule group and individualized activities in response to unexpected events such as snowstorms.

Planning and Organizing for Others

Elementary school and kindergarten teachers are responsible for assigning tasks to teachers' aides and student teachers who assist them in the implementation of lesson plans. They contribute to strategic planning at the school, district and provincial levels.

Significant Use of Memory

Recall the names of the many students, parents, guardians, teachers and school professionals to facilitate communication. The sets of names change annually.
Remember details about their students' lives, hobbies, likes and dislikes to save time, show genuine interest and build trust.
Remember details of incidents they witness to report them accurately.
Remember details of class activities to ensure follow-up.
Remember provincial, district and school policies and procedures so that they can abide by them.
Remember successful activities and strategies used in the past to teach and motivate students.

Finding Information

Find information about appropriate extracurricular activities for students by searching newspapers or asking co-workers. (2)
Search a wide range of sources including textbooks, trade publications and websites to find transferable lesson plans and learning materials. (3)

Digital technology

Use databases. For example, they may enter and view student attendance and progress data as well as parent contact information. (2)
Use communication software. For example, they exchange e-mail with attached documents with other teachers, school professionals and parents. (2)
Use word processing. For example, they use word processing software such as Word or WordPerfect to write, edit and format letters, lesson plans, assignments, tests, student evaluations and other documents. They may also use word processing software such as Tap'Touche to teach basic keyboarding skills to students. (3)
Use graphics software. For example, they may create slide shows for students, parents or co-workers using presentation software such as PowerPoint. In order to develop attractive presentations, they may import scanned photographs and images downloaded from other software. (3)
Use spreadsheets. For example, they may create spreadsheets to track student grades and calculate averages using programs such as Excel. (3)
Use the Internet. For example, they use programs such as Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator to access educational resources and interactive games' web sites, and help students refine their research skills. (3)
Use other software. For example, they may evaluate, purchase, load and use educational games such as Graph Club and Le grenier de grand-mère to help students increase their math, reading and writing skills. (3)

Other Essential Skills:

Working with Others

Elementary school and kindergarten teachers perform some of their tasks independently but also work with other teachers, teaching assistants, school and district administrators, parents, psychologists, social workers, speech-language therapists and nurses. They may work independently or with the assistance of teachers' aides or student teachers to prepare group and individualized lesson plans, teach students, correct, mark and grade assignments and write student progress reports. They coordinate their work with that of other teachers, school and district administrators, and parents to review educational policies and programs, fund raise and organize extracurricular activities for students. They collaborate with parents, psychologists, social workers and speech-language therapists to establish and implement intervention plans addressing the special needs of children with learning disabilities or psychosocial difficulties. They may also consult and collaborate with a variety of stakeholders such as community organizations, professional associations, provincial ministries of education and universities on special projects. (3)

Continuous Learning

Continuous learning is an integral part of the job for elementary school and kindergarten teachers. They are expected to know where to get information when required, and keep up-to-date on research, theories, techniques and resources in education. On a day-to-day basis, they acquire new learning by observing their students and reading information found in textbooks, bulletins and trade publications. They view videotapes, browse the Internet for educational resources and discuss educational matters with co-workers and colleagues. They also attend conferences, seminars, symposia, workshops and courses on topics such as the integration of computer technologies in the classroom, development of reading and writing skills in young children, relational communications and implementation of elementary school education reforms.

Elementary school and kindergarten teachers are governed by the provincial ministries of education. They may be required to develop their own learning plans and engage in continuous learning to maintain professional certification. (4)