All careers

Special Education Teachers, Preschool

Teach academic, social, and life skills to preschool-aged students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.

What you’d do

  • Develop or implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of disabilities.
  • Communicate nonverbally with children to provide them with comfort, encouragement, or positive reinforcement.
  • Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, or administrative regulations.
  • Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification or positive reinforcement.
  • Attend to children's basic needs by feeding them, dressing them, or changing their diapers.
  • Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, or social skills, to preschool students with special needs.
  • Develop individual educational plans (IEPs) designed to promote students' educational, physical, or social development.
  • Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.

Skills that matter

  • Active Listening
  • Critical Thinking
  • Learning Strategies
  • Monitoring
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Social Perceptiveness

How to get there

Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

Also called

  • Early Childhood Special Education Teacher (ECSE Teacher)
  • Early Intervention Teacher
  • Preschool SPED Teacher (Preschool Special Education Teacher)
  • Special Education Teacher
  • Exceptional Student Education Teacher (ESE Teacher)
  • Profound Mental Handicaps SPED Teacher (Profound Mental Handicaps Special Education Teacher)

Related careers

See all careers

  • Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten

    Teach academic, social, and life skills to kindergarten students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Special Education Teachers, Elementary School

    Teach academic, social, and life skills to elementary school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Special Education Teachers, Middle School

    Teach academic, social, and life skills to middle school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Special Education Teachers, Secondary School

    Teach academic, social, and life skills to secondary school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education

    Teach academic and social skills to kindergarten students.

    Considerable preparation: most need a four-year bachelor's degree

  • Teaching Assistants, Special Education

    Assist a preschool, elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher to provide academic, social, or life skills to students who have…

    Medium preparation: usually vocational school, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree