Early years teacher
Early years teachers are specialists in early childhood development and work with children up to the age of 5.
Also known as: Nursery teacher
- Starter salary£27,000 a year
- Experienced£42,000 a year
- Typical hours32 to 40 a week
What you'll do
As an early years teacher, you'll:
- plan and prepare activities, materials and lessons
- teach children in a safe and positive environment
- speak to parents and carers about their children's development
- monitor children's progress and report any issues
- work with colleagues on curriculum planning
- supervise nursery workers, teaching assistants and volunteer helpers
Working environment
You could work in a nursery or at a school.
Your working environment may be physically and emotionally demanding.
You may need to wear a uniform.
Skills and knowledge you'll need
You'll need:
- knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
- sensitivity and understanding
- the ability to work well with others
- patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
- the ability to understand people's reactions
- the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
- to be flexible and open to change
- excellent verbal communication skills
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
How to become a early years teacher
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- an apprenticeship
- working towards this role
University
You'll need to get early years teacher status (EYTS) and meet the teachers' standards by completing a course in early years initial teacher training (EYITT).
There are several ways to do this:
- study an undergraduate degree in a subject related to early childhood studies or child development, along with course placements
- take an EYITT course after you finish your first degree
- complete part-time teacher training, if you already have a degree and are working in an early years setting
You can also have your teaching skills assessed over 3 months to make sure you meet the teachers' standards. For this route, you must be a graduate with a lot of work experience across the 0 to 5 age range, and have knowledge of key stages 1 and 2 in schools.
Early years teacher status qualifies you to teach children up to age 5. If you want to teach older children, or teach in a primary school, you'll usually need to get qualified teacher status (QTS). Find out about getting QTS from Get Into Teaching.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English, maths and science
- 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
Apprenticeship
You may be able to apply to do an Early Years Teacher Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship, with a nursey or other organisation that offers education provision from birth to 5 years.
This apprenticeship can take up to 3 years to complete and combines on-the-job training with academic study.
You'll need the support of your employer to do a degree apprenticeship.
Entry requirements
Employers will set their own entry requirements.
Work
You could work your way into this role by starting as nursery worker or teaching assistant and doing a part-time degree in childhood studies or child development.
Volunteering
You'll usually need experience of working with children and young people.
You can get this through:
- paid work
- volunteering at a school
- youth work
- a holiday scheme
Restrictions and requirements
You'll need to:
- pass enhanced background checks as you may work with children and vulnerable adults
Career path and progression
Once qualified, you could:
- move into management of a nursery or group of nurseries
- work as a supply teacher
- do further training to become a primary school teacher or play therapist
- move into teaching early years courses at university
Career tips
You can search for jobs in schools through the Teaching Vacancies service.
Guides for this industry
Related roles
- Job rolePrimary school teacher
- Job roleNursery manager
- Job roleNursery worker
- Job roleHeadteacher
- Job rolePlay therapist
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