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Child care aide vs child caregiver

The differences between child care aides and child caregivers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a child care aide and a child caregiver. Additionally, a child caregiver has an average salary of $32,065, which is higher than the $29,192 average annual salary of a child care aide.

The top three skills for a child care aide include child care, CPR and behavior management. The most important skills for a child caregiver are child care, autism, and meal prep.

Child care aide vs child caregiver overview

Child Care AideChild Caregiver
Yearly salary$29,192$32,065
Hourly rate$14.03$15.42
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs168,47543,573
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 41%
Average age3737
Years of experience22

What does a child care aide do?

A Child Care Aide is primarily in charge of children's care and personal needs. They typically work at schools, offices, and even in residential areas. Their responsibilities include meeting the parents to identify the extent of the children's needs, developing care plans, monitoring the children's behavior, and updating parents regularly. They also perform various tasks depending on the children's age and needs, such as changing diapers, dressing, preparing meals and snacks, feeding, and toilet assistance. Moreover, a Child Care Aide must ensure a safe and healthy environment for children.

What does a child caregiver do?

Basically, a child caregiver looks after the fundamental needs of children like feeding, playtime supervision, and dressing. Child caregivers take responsibility for preparing and organizing the snacks and mealtimes for children. They organize the activities or implement a curriculum allowing children to learn about the world as well as explore their interests. It is part of their job to keep records regarding the routines, interests, and progress of the children. They may work as family childcare providers, nannies, or childcare center workers.

Child care aide vs child caregiver salary

Child care aides and child caregivers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Child Care AideChild Caregiver
Average salary$29,192$32,065
Salary rangeBetween $21,000 And $39,000Between $22,000 And $45,000
Highest paying CityMercer Island, WASanta Clarita, CA
Highest paying stateMassachusettsWashington
Best paying companyUniv Of Colorado-Colorado SpgsCARE
Best paying industryFinanceManufacturing

Differences between child care aide and child caregiver education

There are a few differences between a child care aide and a child caregiver in terms of educational background:

Child Care AideChild Caregiver
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 41%
Most common majorPsychologyPsychology
Most common collegeCalifornia State University - Long BeachCalifornia State University - Long Beach

Child care aide vs child caregiver demographics

Here are the differences between child care aides' and child caregivers' demographics:

Child Care AideChild Caregiver
Average age3737
Gender ratioMale, 14.1% Female, 85.9%Male, 10.1% Female, 89.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 21.7% Asian, 6.9% White, 56.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between child care aide and child caregiver duties and responsibilities

Child care aide example responsibilities.

  • Work with the children with ABC's and numbers.
  • Help with ABC's and numbers on part-time schedule.
  • Provide activities of daily living for a child with autism.
  • Purchase and order groceries and household supplies to keep kitchen and household stock.
  • Provide individual needs prescribe in IEP and direct by teacher for students with autism.
  • Coordinate recovery at nursing facilities, and rehabilitation treatment in the home setting, through VNA.
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Child caregiver example responsibilities.

  • Teach them their numbers, ABC's, months & days of the year, etc.
  • Appropriate pet clean-up as required.
  • Provide childcare service for children all backgrounds, including those diagnose with autism.
  • Administer minor first aid and perform emergency measures learned through CPR certify training.
  • Provide pet sitting services including feeding, dog walking, and yard care.
  • Introduce children to a wide variety of foods following USDA requirements to support healthy growth.
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Child care aide vs child caregiver skills

Common child care aide skills
  • Child Care, 37%
  • CPR, 29%
  • Behavior Management, 6%
  • Child Development, 5%
  • Foster Care, 4%
  • First Aid Training, 4%
Common child caregiver skills
  • Child Care, 39%
  • Autism, 14%
  • Meal Prep, 14%
  • Applied Behavior Analysis, 12%
  • CPR, 6%
  • Homework Assignments, 3%

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