Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education
Also called: Art Teacher, Bilingual Education Teacher, Bilingual Kindergarten Teacher, Classroom Teacher, Early Childhood Teacher, Educator, Instructor, Kinder Teacher
Teach academic and social skills to kindergarten students.
What kindergarten teachers, except special education do
Typical tasks
- Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
- Prepare children for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
- Instruct students individually and in groups, adapting teaching methods to meet students' varying needs and interests.
- Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills.
- Demonstrate activities to children.
- Read books to entire classes or to small groups.
- Guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems or special academic interests.
- Observe and evaluate children's performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
- Provide a variety of materials and resources for children to explore, manipulate, and use, both in learning activities and in imaginative play.
- Prepare and implement remedial programs for students requiring extra help.
- Identify children showing signs of emotional, developmental, or health-related problems and discuss them with supervisors, parents or guardians, and child development specialists.
- Maintain accurate and complete student records and prepare reports on children and activities as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education salary
The median annual wage for kindergarten teachers, except special education is $62,680 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $46,990 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $101,830. The mean annual wage is $69,370.
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $62,680 → in 3 years $68,400 → in 5 years $72,500 → in 10 years $83,800 (10-year range $72,000–$97,300). The model assumes pay growth of +2.9% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education United States | 幼稚園教員 Japan | |
|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $62,680 | ¥4.43M ≈ $28,148 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $83,800 | ¥5.56M |
| Outlook score | 55 | 46 |
| AI replacement risk | 29% Low | 8% Very low |
| Workers | 109K | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 4 — considerable preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★☆☆ Moderate (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become kindergarten teachers, except special education
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as kindergarten teachers, except special education
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.