Clara Said:

What type of degree is required to work at a kinder-garden or 1st grade teacher?

We Answered:

You can teach K or 1st with a bachelors in early childhood education. I'm not sure why you would major in anything else if you want to teach that age group. A master's is great, but not required.

I have taught both K and 1st. The job is stressful and rewarding both. Most of the stress for me came from students who had a not so great family life. They had little or no support or help from home. I have even had to deal with children who have been abused at home. Sometimes they even came to school without eating breakfast, and brought a non-nutritious lunch. Dealing with parents can also be stressful. There are parents who think that their child is perfect and when you tell them otherwise , they blame you for their child not doing well.

In the school I taught the curriculum is provided along with suggested lesson plans. Planning the lessons was easy for me. For your first year, ask an experienced teacher for help. Better yet, if you can find a retired teacher, he/she may give you purchased materials that are no longer needed. Preparation took time because I made many of my own visuals and learning games.

There is so much more to this job than writing lesson plans.
If you do choose this career you must love young children. You must be able to deal with runny noses, untied shoes, tears, and even occasional wet pants. You are not always able to leave your work at school when you go home each day.
You will get notes saying "I love you" written with crayons in letters that are backwards or barely legible. You will get pictures of an over sized stick person with the title "My Teachur". You will get wilted flowers and bruised apples. To your students you become the most important person in their life outside of family.

I do suggest you volunteer or work as an intern in an elementary school if you can. This will help you to know if this is the path you
want to take.