How to Become a Kindergarten Teacher (Requirements + Pay)

Most guides to this career are published by organizations that sell teacher-preparation programs, which shapes what they emphasize. This one sells nothing. Below is what the requirement actually is, what the job pays, what the federal projections say about demand — including the part the recruitment pages tend to leave out — and which skills the Bureau of Labor Statistics itself lists for the role.

What a kindergarten teacher actually does

Worth reading before the requirements, because the daily work is not what most people picture. BLS lists the typical duties for kindergarten and elementary teachers as:

• “Create lesson plans to teach students subjects, such as reading, science, and math”
• “Teach students how to interact with others”
• “Observe students to evaluate their abilities, strengths, and weaknesses”
• “Instruct an entire class or smaller groups of students”
• “Grade students’ assignments”
• “Communicate with parents or guardian about their child’s progress”
• “Work with students individually to help them overcome specific learning challenges”
• “Prepare students for standardized tests required by the state”
• “Develop and enforce classroom rules to teach children proper behavior”
• “Supervise children outside of the classroom—for example, during lunchtime or recess”

Three of those ten are not teaching in the ordinary sense: communicating with parents, supervising lunch and recess, and preparing children for state-required standardized testing. That last one surprises people about kindergarten specifically. BLS also notes that “many teachers use a hands-on approach to help students understand abstract concepts, solve problems, and develop critical-thinking skills,” which at this age is most of the method — the learning happens through activity rather than instruction.

Notice too that “teach students how to interact with others” is listed as a duty in its own right. In kindergarten, social instruction is not a side effect of the academic work; it is part of the job description.

How to become a kindergarten teacher

The route into a public-school classroom is the same in every state, even though the details differ. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

• Earn a bachelor’s degree. Public kindergarten and elementary teachers “typically need a bachelor’s degree in elementary education.” Some states require a major in a specific content area.
• Complete a teacher-preparation program with student teaching. These programs vary by state and typically involve a student-teaching placement working alongside a mentor teacher.
• Pass the required exams. Normally a general teaching certification test plus a test demonstrating subject knowledge.
• Pass a background check. Standard in every state.
• Apply for the state license. All states require public-school teachers to be licensed or certified in the specific grade level they will teach.
• Keep it current. Teachers are frequently required to complete professional development to maintain the license.

Kindergarten teacher requirements in detail

BLS lists the certification requirements as a bachelor’s degree with a minimum grade point average, completion of a student-teaching program, passing a background check, and passing both a general teaching certification test and a subject-knowledge test. The specifics sit with the state, not the federal government.

In most states the exams are the Praxis series, and the required tests and passing scores are set state by state — ETS publishes a state-by-state requirements index listing which tests each state accepts. Check your own state before paying for a test: requirements and effective dates change, and a passing score in one state is not automatically a passing score in another.

What if your degree is in something else?

This is the most common real-world question, and the answer is more encouraging than the requirement list suggests. BLS states that “all states offer an alternative route to certification or licensure for people who already have a bachelor’s degree but lack the education courses required for certification.” Some of those programs let you begin teaching immediately under the supervision of an experienced teacher; others require the education coursework first. You do not need a second bachelor’s degree.

Do you need a master’s degree?

Not to start. But BLS notes that some states require teachers to earn a master’s degree after receiving their teaching certification and obtaining a job. That is a meaningful cost to know about before you begin, because it lands after you are already employed rather than before — check whether your state is one of them.

Private schools

Private-school teachers “typically don’t require licensure,” though private schools generally still expect a bachelor’s degree. That makes private school a faster route in, at typically lower pay and without the license portability that state certification gives you.

Kindergarten teacher salary

The BLS median annual wage for kindergarten teachers was $62,680 as of May 2025. The full range matters more than the midpoint, because teacher pay is set by district salary schedules rather than negotiated individually — where you teach affects your pay more than how well you interview.

Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (May 2025 wages, 2025 employment).

Two things worth noticing. Kindergarten pays slightly less than the elementary grades for what is, in credential terms, the same qualification. And the top decile earns more than twice the bottom — that gap is mostly district funding and years of service, not talent.

Note also how small the kindergarten workforce is: 111,200 kindergarten teaching jobs against 1,419,300 elementary ones. Kindergarten is roughly one job in fourteen across the two categories, which is why openings can be scarce in a specific district even when elementary hiring looks healthy.

Why two kindergarten teachers earn very different amounts

A $46,990 floor and a $101,830 ceiling in the same occupation is a wide gap, and almost none of it works the way pay works in other jobs. Public-school salaries are set by a published district salary schedule — a grid, usually with years of service down one axis and education level across the other. Your position on that grid, and which district owns the grid, is most of your salary.

The practical consequences are unusual. You generally cannot negotiate your starting salary, because the number is public and applies to everyone at your step. Moving to a neighboring district can change your pay materially for exactly the same work. And a master’s degree often moves you across the grid, which is why it can be worth money in teaching in a way that it is not in many other fields — check your target district’s schedule before paying for one, because the size of the bump varies enormously.

Cost of living cuts the other way. The states that pay teachers most are frequently the states where housing costs most, so a higher number on the schedule is not automatically a better living. Compare the salary schedule against local rents rather than against the national median.

Job outlook: the part the recruitment pages skip

Here the honest answer and the marketed answer diverge. BLS projects employment of kindergarten and elementary school teachers to change 0% from 2025 to 2035 — described as “little or no change” — with a projected decrease of 6,100 jobs.

And yet BLS also projects about 99,400 openings each year, on average, over the decade. Both are true, and the reconciliation is the useful part: almost all of those openings come from replacement — teachers retiring or leaving the profession — rather than from new positions being created.

Kindergarten teacher vs preschool teacher: not the same job

These get used interchangeably in conversation and they are separate occupations with different entry requirements and a large pay gap. If you are choosing a path, this is probably the most consequential distinction on this page.

Sources: BLS — kindergarten and elementary school teachers and BLS — preschool teachers (May 2025).

The pay difference is $24,540 a year at the median for work that looks similar from the outside and involves children barely a year apart in age. The gap tracks the credential and the funding model: kindergarten is part of the public school system in most states, while a great deal of preschool provision sits outside it.

The direction of travel differs too. Kindergarten employment is projected flat and slightly shrinking; preschool is projected to grow 4% with 583,200 jobs already, more than five times the kindergarten workforce. If your goal is early-childhood work rather than kindergarten specifically, preschool is the larger and faster-growing field — at materially lower pay. If you are not certain which age band you mean, our guide to what age preschool covers and where pre-K fits sets out the boundaries.

The skills that actually matter

Lists of teaching skills are usually written from intuition. BLS publishes its own, which is a more useful starting point because it is drawn from the occupation rather than from opinion. It names four.

Communication

BLS puts this first: teachers “need to discuss students’ needs with parents and administrators” as well as “communicate the subject content to students in a manner in which they will understand.” The adult half of that is the half new teachers underestimate. A large share of the job is conversations with parents and administrators, not with five-year-olds.

Patience

BLS frames it narrowly and precisely: teachers “must respond with patience when students struggle with material.” It is not a general disposition so much as a specific response to a specific moment, repeated many times a day. At this age a child who cannot do something often cannot yet say why, so the teacher is diagnosing as much as waiting.

Physical stamina

The one almost nobody writes about, and BLS lists it outright: “working with kindergarten- and elementary-age students can be tiring.” The job is spent standing, kneeling, moving between tables and managing a room, not sitting at a desk. If you are weighing this career, it is a real and rarely mentioned part of it.

Resourcefulness

Teachers “must be able to get students engaged in learning” and “should be prepared to adapt their lessons to meet students’ needs.” In a kindergarten room that mostly means having a second approach ready when the first one does not land, because children at this age vary enormously in what they arrive able to do.

And the ones the job adds

Beyond the federal list, two more are worth naming honestly. Classroom management is the skill most often cited by teachers themselves as the difference between a hard first year and a manageable one. And organization — tracking progress, materials and attendance for a room of small children — is administrative work that does not look like teaching but takes up a real share of the week. Treat these as claims from practice rather than from the federal data, because that is what they are.

Traditional route vs alternative route

Because every state offers both, the real decision for most people is which one fits where they are starting from. The two differ less in where they end than in what they ask of you first.

Requirements per BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook; specific programs and coursework are set by each state.

The license at the end is the same license. An alternative route is not a lesser credential — it is a different on-ramp to the identical certification, which is worth knowing if you are weighing whether a career change is realistic.

How long does it take?

For someone starting from scratch, four years of a bachelor’s degree that includes a teacher-preparation program and student teaching, followed by exams and a license application. For someone who already holds a bachelor’s degree in another field, an alternative-route program is the shorter path, and in some states you can be teaching under supervision while you complete it. Neither timeline includes any master’s degree your state may require later.

Frequently asked questions

What degree do you need to be a kindergarten teacher?

A bachelor’s degree. BLS says public kindergarten and elementary teachers typically need a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, and private schools generally expect one too. Some states also require a major in a specific content area.

Do you need a teaching license to teach kindergarten?

In a public school, yes — all states require public-school teachers to be licensed or certified in the specific grade level they teach. Private schools typically do not require licensure.

How much do kindergarten teachers make?

The median annual wage was $62,680 as of May 2025, per BLS. The lowest 10% earned under $46,990 and the highest 10% more than $101,830, with district pay schedules driving most of the spread.

Can you become a kindergarten teacher with a degree in another subject?

Yes. BLS states that all states offer an alternative route to certification for people who already hold a bachelor’s degree but lack the required education courses. Some let you teach under supervision while you complete it.

Is kindergarten teaching a growing field?

No. BLS projects 0% change from 2025 to 2035, a decrease of about 6,100 jobs. But it also projects about 99,400 openings a year across kindergarten and elementary teaching, nearly all from teachers retiring or leaving rather than new positions.

What tests do you have to pass?

Normally a general teaching certification test plus a subject-knowledge test. In most states these are Praxis tests, and each state sets its own required tests and passing scores.

Do kindergarten teachers need a master’s degree?

Not to begin. BLS notes some states require teachers to earn a master’s degree after they are already certified and employed, so it is worth checking your state before you start.

Is a preschool teacher the same as a kindergarten teacher?

No — they are separate occupations. Preschool teachers had a median wage of $38,140 in May 2025 against $62,680 for kindergarten teachers, and typically need an associate’s degree rather than a bachelor’s, though public-school preschool positions generally require a bachelor’s and a license.

Do kindergarten teachers earn less than other elementary teachers?

Slightly. The May 2025 median was $62,680 for kindergarten teachers against $63,970 for elementary school teachers, for what is effectively the same credential.

Sources

• US Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Outlook Handbook, Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers (May 2025 wages; How to Become One; 2025–35 projections)
• US Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Outlook Handbook, Preschool Teachers (May 2025)
• ETS Praxis — teacher certification requirements by state