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How to hire kindergarten teachers, except special education

A job description you can copy, interview questions tied to the real work, and what to pay. Free.

$62,680U.S. median yearly pay
$52,180–$79,910Middle half, yearly
108,870People in this job in the U.S.

Job description template

Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.

[Job title] at [Company name]
[City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range]

About the role
[Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.]

What you will do
• Demonstrate activities to children.
• Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
• Guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems or special academic interests.
• Instruct students individually and in groups, adapting teaching methods to meet students' varying needs and interests.
• Observe and evaluate children's performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
• Prepare children for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
• Read books to entire classes or to small groups.
• Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills.

What you bring
• [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any]
• [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: Bachelor's degree]
• Strong active listening, learning strategies, monitoring, speaking, reading comprehension and active learning skills
• Working knowledge of education and training, English Language, psychology and mathematics
• [Anything else you would really turn someone away for]

Pay and benefits
[Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $62,680 a year.
[Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.]

How to apply
[Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]

Check your finished job post

Interview questions for kindergarten teachers, except special education

Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.

  1. Tell me about a time you had to demonstrate activities to children. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
  2. Tell me about a time you had to establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
  3. Tell me about a time you had to guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems or special academic interests. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
  4. Tell me about a time you had to instruct students individually and in groups, adapting teaching methods to meet students' varying needs and interests. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
  5. Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
  6. How do you teach yourself a new process, and how would you teach it to someone else?
  7. How do you keep track of your own work quality during a busy shift or week? Give an example of catching a problem early.
  8. Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?

Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.

What kindergarten teachers, except special education do

  • Demonstrate activities to children.
  • Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
  • Guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems or special academic interests.
  • Instruct students individually and in groups, adapting teaching methods to meet students' varying needs and interests.
  • Observe and evaluate children's performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
  • Prepare children for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
  • Read books to entire classes or to small groups.
  • Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills.

Skills that matter most

Active ListeningLearning StrategiesMonitoringSpeakingReading ComprehensionActive LearningEducation and TrainingEnglish LanguagePsychologyMathematics

Education, experience and outlook for kindergarten teachers, except special education

  • Typical education to start: Bachelor's degree (BLS)
  • Related work experience most have: 6 months to 1 year (O*NET)
  • Job outlook: -0.3% over ten years, little or no change · about 11,900 openings a year (BLS)

What to pay kindergarten teachers, except special education

Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:

StateMedian yearly pay
Washington$99,960
Connecticut$90,030
Massachusetts$84,100
California$82,550
New York$77,630
South Dakota$49,410
Mississippi$48,880
Oklahoma$47,860

See kindergarten teachers, except special education pay in every state

Related hiring guides

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Job duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.