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What does a preschool assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
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Preschool assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real preschool assistant resumes:

  • Receive training in CPR and first aid, and gain experienceworking with children with food allergies.
  • Assist child in accordance to his IEP.
  • Assist in preparation of and implementation of IEP plan.
  • Review daily lessons, activities and responsibilities with Pre-K teacher.
  • Help instruct and supervise a Pre-K classroom in social and developmental activities.
  • Develop activates that introduce math and literacy concepts.
  • Stimulate creativity in children through art and outdoor activities and introduce math and literacy concepts.
  • Develop innovative PowerPoint presentations used to incorporate creative lessons for daily teaching consistent with teaching multiple grade levels at once.
  • Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips.

Preschool assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 42% of Preschool Assistants are proficient in CPR, Child Care, and Classroom Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Organizational skills, and Physical stamina.

We break down the percentage of Preschool Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • CPR, 42%

    Certified in CPR and first aid, Wa food handlers and basic 20 hour Stars

  • Child Care, 21%

    Helped to set up meals for children and assisted in the cleaning and straightening of the child care rooms.

  • Classroom Management, 10%

    Assist primary teacher in classroom management, activity planning/execution and administrative support.

  • Math, 7%

    Hired to teach incremental classes - phonics, music, Spanish, math and active adventures.

  • Behavioral Issues, 4%

    Worked with students who were partially separated from mainstream classes because of emotional/behavioral issues and their associated accommodations.

  • Instructional Materials, 2%

    Help in the selection of utensils and other instructional materials suitable for early childhood program.

"cpr," "child care," and "classroom management" are among the most common skills that preschool assistants use at work. You can find even more preschool assistant responsibilities below, including:

Communication skills. preschool assistant responsibilities often require "communication skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "teacher assistants need to be clear and concise in discussing student progress with teachers and parents." This resume example shows what preschool assistants do with communication skills on a typical day: "maintained classroom environment by implementing lessons throughout the day strengthened my personality and work ethics created a parent communication board for communication"

Interpersonal skills. Another crucial skill for a preschool assistant to carry out their responsibilities is "interpersonal skills." A big part of what preschool assistants relies on this skill, since "teacher assistants must be able to develop relationships with a variety of people, including teachers, students, parents, and administrators." How this skill relates to preschool assistant duties can be seen in an example from a preschool assistant resume snippet: "coordinated daily activities taught interpersonal skills supervised children during field trips maintained clean and healthy environment for the children"

Patience. While "patience" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to preschool assistant responsibilities. Much of what a preschool assistant does relies on this skill, seeing as "working with students of different abilities and backgrounds may be difficult." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of preschool assistants: "modeled patience and a positive attitude to establish an encouraging learning environment. "

Most common preschool assistant skills

The three companies that hire the most preschool assistants are:

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Compare different preschool assistants

Preschool assistant vs. Assistant language teacher

An assistant language teacher is in charge of performing support tasks for language teachers. Their responsibilities include preparing teaching and coursework materials, assessing student performance, taking attendance records, and holding lectures as a substitute for the teacher. They may also help students who are having trouble following and adjusting to the lessons, assisting them as needed. Above all, an assistant language teacher must monitor the students' progress, all while maintaining a safe and healthy learning environment for everyone.

If we compare the average preschool assistant annual salary with that of an assistant language teacher, we find that assistant language teachers typically earn a $2,580 lower salary than preschool assistants make annually.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both preschool assistant and assistant language teacher positions are skilled in cpr, classroom management, and social development.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between preschool assistants and assistant language teacher. For instance, preschool assistant responsibilities require skills such as "child care," "child abuse," "math," and "behavioral issues." Whereas a assistant language teacher is skilled in "english-language," "classroom environment," "language curriculum," and "elementary schools." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Assistant language teachers earn the highest salaries when working in the manufacturing industry, with an average yearly salary of $31,308. On the other hand, preschool assistants are paid more in the finance industry with an average salary of $32,841.On average, assistant language teachers reach similar levels of education than preschool assistants. Assistant language teachers are 3.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Preschool assistant vs. Assistant daycare teacher

An assistant daycare teacher is responsible for performing support tasks in a daycare center. Most of the duties primarily revolve around maintaining a safe and healthy environment for children, preparing meals and learning materials, assisting children during bathroom or hygiene-related activities, and keeping the classroom clean and sanitized. Furthermore, there are instances when an assistant daycare teacher must come up with recreational activities, maintain student records, and help children improve their motor skills and basic knowledge in concepts such as recognizing the alphabet or coloring.

A career as a assistant daycare teacher brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a preschool assistant. In fact, assistant daycare teachers salary is $918 lower than the salary of preschool assistants per year.While the salary may differ for these jobs, they share a few skills needed to perform their duties. Based on resume data, both preschool assistants and assistant daycare teachers have skills such as "cpr," "child care," and "behavioral issues. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real preschool assistant resumes. While preschool assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "child abuse," "classroom management," "math," and "instructional materials," assistant daycare teachers use skills like "kids," "child development," "open communication," and "classroom environment."

Average education levels between the two professions vary. Assistant daycare teachers tend to reach similar levels of education than preschool assistants. In fact, they're 0.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Preschool assistant vs. Floater/assistant teacher

Floater assistant teachers help a homeroom teacher in their daily undertakings inside the classroom. They provide assistance with evaluating every student's activities and ensure that routines are followed and done on time. They make sure students are taught well and are physically and mentally present in the classroom. Also, the floater assistant teacher helps in maintaining the orderliness of the classroom visited.

On average scale, floater/assistant teachers bring in higher salaries than preschool assistants. In fact, they earn a $827 higher salary per year.By looking over several preschool assistants and floater/assistant teachers resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "cpr," "child care," and "classroom management." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a preschool assistant is likely to be skilled in "child abuse," "math," "behavioral issues," and "instructional materials," while a typical floater/assistant teacher is skilled in "patients," "child development," "emr," and "cda."

When it comes to education, floater/assistant teachers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to preschool assistants. In fact, they're 0.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Preschool assistant vs. Special education instructional assistant

Special education instructional assistant does work under the supervision of the principal and other administrative workers, especially in school and college. They prepare the material aids which are helping to teach in the classroom. Moreover, they are more inclined upon the progress of students. Conducting the exams, preparing the notes, preparing the result and giving the instruction to the students about their life career and course books etc are the main duties of the special education instructional assistant. They preach, instruct, command and come up with the idea about making the school environment more friendly and viable.

Special education instructional assistants tend to earn a higher pay than preschool assistants by an average of $3,583 per year.While their salaries may vary, preschool assistants and special education instructional assistants both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "cpr," "math," and "instructional materials. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between preschool assistants and special education instructional assistants, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a preschool assistant might have more use for skills like "child care," "child abuse," "classroom management," and "behavioral issues." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of special education instructional assistants require skills like "autism," "behavioral problems," "mathematics," and "instructional assistance. "

Special education instructional assistants enjoy the best pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $33,416. For comparison, preschool assistants earn the highest salary in the finance industry.In general, special education instructional assistants hold higher degree levels compared to preschool assistants. Special education instructional assistants are 6.1% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of preschool assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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