Teaching Kindergarden/Pre-school is something I think I would really enjoy, for the very reasons you mention, such as being able to really help develop your students and see their progress. But having never worked with children before I think my plan would be to work in an Eikaiwa position for a couple of years first, hopefully gaining some experience working with younger learners in that environment to get a feel for it I'd be suited for teaching Kindergarden/Pre-school. From what you've described about having to be an all round teacher in this position, teaching life/social skills etc, I assume you also have to essentially plan the lessons for each day to equally cover maths, languages, arts etc, is there normally a curriculum provided for what you have to cover, or do you have to plan everything yourself for the whole year? Any chance you could give a very rough run through of a typical day as a Kindergarden teacher? Once again thanks in advance!
I think you are right on the money with working in an Eikaiwa first. If I had started off as a kindergarten teacher I would have been completely overwhelmed. The way my school works is we have an overall theme for each month. For example, transportation, jobs, food, animals, family and so on. So each theme as key sentences and vocab that we go over. We also have phonics and reading goals, writing, and math. This is all provided to us by the school but how we go about teaching it and achieving the goals is up to us, for the most part. BUT this is our school. Some schools are highly regulated while others are very free. A normal day in my class would be: Kids arrive and do their calendar (today is, yesterday was, tomorrow will be) After that, a writing page. Then reading review. Then we have a "circle time" which we talk about our day, weekend, the weather, read a book, sing some songs. Then we have station time where the kids split up into groups and go to different stations (building, sensory, reading, craft and games) After that, LUNCH! IF the kids finish early they have playtime THen we read new pages in our books Some writing or phonics THen the last 30 minutes is kind of whatever This schedule changes all the time depending on our theme, if the kids are getting bored, OR if I am getting bored. My kids come in at 9:20 and leave at 2:00. AFTER the morning class I do have a few afternoon classes but usually for an hour at a time. Hope this helped! And thanks for the great questions!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan I've put one on the Eikaiwa video page, just about what the sample lesson in the interview you had to do was like/what sort of lesson/material you had to cover in it. But I think that's all for now, I'm sure I'll have more at some stage! Thanks again for all the advice!
I'm a kindergarten teacher in Japan too! Done it for about 4 years. It's a TON of work, and exhausting, but it's far better than teaching Eikaiwa! And also, I agree with the Gaijinpot thing. I got my current job (at a private kindy) through it. And having to discipline, and also communicate with other teachers at your school makes the job WAY better, so speaking Japanese is very important I believe. Especially if you want to do it for awhile. Otherwise, it is very lonely. Great info man.
Thanks for all the kind words. Glad you agreed with everything too! Like you said, I enjoy it much more than Eikaiwa but that’s just the type of person I am. Eikaiwa definitely appeals to some people though. Not me though 😂 Japanese is important. It’s good for communicating with parents as well. We have Japanese staff to do that of course but I feel much better talking to the parents myself.
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan I think it puts them at ease in a big way knowing they can communicate directly with you. How many students do you have btw? By law we have to have an assistant teacher now (we didn't until about 5 years ago), so they upped the size to 30 kids..
I think that law depends on what type of school license your school has. My class does not have 30 kids though haha. Last year I had 14 and this year I have 6. Next year will be around 16 I think. I would die with 30 kids 😅😅
Great info! These videos give me a bit of wanderlust. Almost makes me want to switch countries and try teaching in Japan. And congrats on (almost) reaching 1K! So close! Go get that custom URL, buddy!
hello sir,watching your videos and it so interesting,as a first timer to go to japan..thank you for giving all the tips on how to apply as kindergarten teacher..thanknyou
Thank you so much for the video this was tremendously helpful! :) Let's say someone has about 8 years of early elementary teaching experience back in the states and just finished their first year as an ALT or at an Eikaiwa in Japan. Would that sort of background help and would it be easier to get a job like that while currently in the country? Also is the a license needed to do this--such as the 特別免許状?
I have 8 years of experience of child care with infants to toddlers. Weekly, and for a couple hours at a time. My job was to watch them and take care of them, but sometimes we did have lessons and activities for them to do. Toddlers are sponges but language is difficult for them. I have helped them learn words and phrases. So because I have been in the preschool setting for a while now, would that constitute as good experience in a resume? I would love to teach preschoolers in Japan, considering I’ve volunteered to teach toddlers in America for so long.
Thanks for the great question! That kind of experience is great. Even if you weren’t teaching a language. That can be taught to a new teacher. Teaching how to handle kids is a lot more difficult. I would definitely put it on your resume and go into detail about the kind of stuff you did. Wish you luck! If you have anymore questions feel free to ask!
Hi, thank you so much for the informative video! I have always wanted to teach kindergarten, but I am really afraid I might not be cut out for it, or I might not have the right qualifications. For one, I have a bachelor's degree. I have been teaching Business English to Japanese professionals online for more than 3 years now (students range from graduating university students preparing for work life to doctors, bankers, consultants, researchers, CEOs etc). I have no experience teaching young kids, and my degree is not in any way related to Education or Early Childhood Development. Although, I volunteered to teach less fortunate children for charity once. My questions are: 1) Do I need TEFL / TESOL Certification to somehow compensate my lack of teaching experience with kids? 2) Does your pre-school provide you a curriculum to work with? Or do you have to singlehandedly work on your lesson plans? I really, really want to teach young kids! I understand what you mean when you said it's fulfilling to see them grow, as I've always dreamt of having that kind of impact to tiny, growing human beings.
Thanks for watching and for the great question! I understand your concerns about teaching children. It can be difficult at times. I didn’t have any experience before I started either nor did I have any qualifications. Those qualifications will definitely help make it easier for you but in the end it’s experience that will help you most, and you can only get that from just trying it. Volunteering is a great way to get experience. If you have any nieces or nephews that helps as well. I would suggest, if you have your heart set on working in Japan, try working at an Eikaiwa first. There you get a mix of different types of students. Different ages and levels. So you can get a little experience but you’re aren’t just thrown into a full fledged kindergarten. If you find you like working with the younger kids you can then try to find another job. I have a video on Eikaiwa as well to give you a bit of an idea of what it is. ⤵️⤵️ th-cam.com/video/TdZGcfwcuyE/w-d-xo.html
Forgot to answer your second question! My school does have a curriculum based on themes that changes each month. For example, this month we are doing transportation. But how we go about teaching the material is pretty much up to us.
Hey, thanks for sharing! I'm currently teaching Kindy in Taiwan. I've been teaching in Kindergartens, Language centres, and elementary schools for two years here. Do you think its possible to land a job while outside of the country? I've heard that's the best approach if applying for ALT jobs. But I kinda want to get something for 2019 and get over to Japan. If you know of any kindys looking for a teacher I'd appreciate a heads up! Many thanks and all the best
It’s definitely possible! You have experience with both teaching children and living in another country. First, I’d come up with a good reason that you want to move to Japan other than, “I want to live in Japan.” You can say that because it’s definitely important but another deeper reason. I do know of a place, though I’ve never worked there, that is looking. If you look on Gaijinpot.com under jobs search Earlybirds International School. They are a kindy that’s looking. If you HAVE to be in Japan in 2019 I would also apply to other ALT and Eikaiwa jobs (you can find my videos on each of those in this video’s playlist) just in case you can’t get a kindy job. At least get your foot in the door and then you can continue looking for a kindy job. Glad you found this video helpful and thank you for your comment. If you haven’t already please consider subscribing! It helps tiny channels like me a lot! If you have any more questions please feel free to ask!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan Thanks for the advice! I'll definitely get started with applications. A few other TH-camrs have said the same, that getting your foot in the door to get the work visa and then applying for other jobs when I am there is a good approach. I'm just trying to avoid having to return to the UK and wait potentially months for my visa to process if I'm offered a position. I'd much rather be teaching somewhere. Either way I'll certainly shop around and consider all types of teaching jobs there. Thanks again and I'll sub and check out your other videos! ✌😊
My pleasure man! Is your current visa in Korea almost up? If so, yeah try not to be too picky about the kind of job. Right now is the good season though! Many companies are hiring for the start of the new school year in April. I just looked on Gaijin Pot and there are a lot of Kindergartens hiring! If you need any more help I’m here man!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan Thanks bro! I have around three months left on my visa. So all being well that gives me enough time to get a few job offers and then get the visa processed. I'm just going to let my resumes fly and see what comes back my way. Could be perfect timing for the new semester! Definitely won't be too picky. As you say, it's a foot in the door and I will probably appreciate my experience (and budget!) more if I end up teaching somewhere outside of Tokyo. So where do you teach and live right now?
Sounds good! I’ve been teaching in Okayama for around 8 years....maybe? It’s been a while! I started in an Eikaiwa and worked there for 5 years. Now I’m on my third year as an international preschool/kindergarten teacher. Definitely like it better as a kindergarten teacher. I get to see my kids every day and I feel like I’m actually making a difference in their lives!
Yeah I’ve thought about adding in some BGM. I’ll add it into my last two videos of this series and see what happens! I’ve got an epidemic music subscription so I have a huge library to pick from.
Thanks for watching. I believe I told you pretty much everything in this video. I would start with going to www.Gaijinpot.com and then following my advice in the video.
Teaching Kindergarden/Pre-school is something I think I would really enjoy, for the very reasons you mention, such as being able to really help develop your students and see their progress. But having never worked with children before I think my plan would be to work in an Eikaiwa position for a couple of years first, hopefully gaining some experience working with younger learners in that environment to get a feel for it I'd be suited for teaching Kindergarden/Pre-school.
From what you've described about having to be an all round teacher in this position, teaching life/social skills etc, I assume you also have to essentially plan the lessons for each day to equally cover maths, languages, arts etc, is there normally a curriculum provided for what you have to cover, or do you have to plan everything yourself for the whole year? Any chance you could give a very rough run through of a typical day as a Kindergarden teacher?
Once again thanks in advance!
I think you are right on the money with working in an Eikaiwa first. If I had started off as a kindergarten teacher I would have been completely overwhelmed.
The way my school works is we have an overall theme for each month. For example, transportation, jobs, food, animals, family and so on. So each theme as key sentences and vocab that we go over. We also have phonics and reading goals, writing, and math. This is all provided to us by the school but how we go about teaching it and achieving the goals is up to us, for the most part. BUT this is our school. Some schools are highly regulated while others are very free.
A normal day in my class would be:
Kids arrive and do their calendar (today is, yesterday was, tomorrow will be)
After that, a writing page.
Then reading review.
Then we have a "circle time" which we talk about our day, weekend, the weather, read a book, sing some songs.
Then we have station time where the kids split up into groups and go to different stations (building, sensory, reading, craft and games)
After that, LUNCH!
IF the kids finish early they have playtime
THen we read new pages in our books
Some writing or phonics
THen the last 30 minutes is kind of whatever
This schedule changes all the time depending on our theme, if the kids are getting bored, OR if I am getting bored. My kids come in at 9:20 and leave at 2:00.
AFTER the morning class I do have a few afternoon classes but usually for an hour at a time.
Hope this helped! And thanks for the great questions!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan Thanks that helped a lot! :)
No problem! Anymore questions? 😬😬
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan I've put one on the Eikaiwa video page, just about what the sample lesson in the interview you had to do was like/what sort of lesson/material you had to cover in it. But I think that's all for now, I'm sure I'll have more at some stage! Thanks again for all the advice!
Matt Barber just replied to it! Sorry!
I'm a kindergarten teacher in Japan too! Done it for about 4 years. It's a TON of work, and exhausting, but it's far better than teaching Eikaiwa!
And also, I agree with the Gaijinpot thing. I got my current job (at a private kindy) through it.
And having to discipline, and also communicate with other teachers at your school makes the job WAY better, so speaking Japanese is very important I believe. Especially if you want to do it for awhile. Otherwise, it is very lonely.
Great info man.
Thanks for all the kind words. Glad you agreed with everything too! Like you said, I enjoy it much more than Eikaiwa but that’s just the type of person I am. Eikaiwa definitely appeals to some people though. Not me though 😂
Japanese is important. It’s good for communicating with parents as well. We have Japanese staff to do that of course but I feel much better talking to the parents myself.
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan I think it puts them at ease in a big way knowing they can communicate directly with you.
How many students do you have btw? By law we have to have an assistant teacher now (we didn't until about 5 years ago), so they upped the size to 30 kids..
I think that law depends on what type of school license your school has. My class does not have 30 kids though haha. Last year I had 14 and this year I have 6. Next year will be around 16 I think. I would die with 30 kids 😅😅
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan it's far too many... I would be insanely happy with 6... Or even 16. Hahah
ToKini Andy 14 was a good number. 6 is kind of too quiet sometimes. I guess it depends on the students as well.
Great info!
These videos give me a bit of wanderlust. Almost makes me want to switch countries and try teaching in Japan.
And congrats on (almost) reaching 1K! So close! Go get that custom URL, buddy!
Thanks man! Honestly you could switch pretty easily BUT your TH-cam channel name wouldn’t quite fit. 😂😂
Yeah I’m pretty excited at hitting 100 soon!
hello sir,watching your videos and it so interesting,as a first timer to go to japan..thank you for giving all the tips on how to apply as kindergarten teacher..thanknyou
Great video series, looking forward to the next ones!
I got two more coming out! Looking forward to YOUR questions!
Thank you so much for the video this was tremendously helpful! :)
Let's say someone has about 8 years of early elementary teaching experience back in the states and just finished their first year as an ALT or at an Eikaiwa in Japan. Would that sort of background help and would it be easier to get a job like that while currently in the country?
Also is the a license needed to do this--such as the 特別免許状?
I have 8 years of experience of child care with infants to toddlers. Weekly, and for a couple hours at a time. My job was to watch them and take care of them, but sometimes we did have lessons and activities for them to do. Toddlers are sponges but language is difficult for them. I have helped them learn words and phrases.
So because I have been in the preschool setting for a while now, would that constitute as good experience in a resume? I would love to teach preschoolers in Japan, considering I’ve volunteered to teach toddlers in America for so long.
Thanks for the great question!
That kind of experience is great. Even if you weren’t teaching a language. That can be taught to a new teacher.
Teaching how to handle kids is a lot more difficult. I would definitely put it on your resume and go into detail about the kind of stuff you did.
Wish you luck! If you have anymore questions feel free to ask!
Hi, thank you so much for the informative video!
I have always wanted to teach kindergarten, but I am really afraid I might not be cut out for it, or I might not have the right qualifications. For one, I have a bachelor's degree. I have been teaching Business English to Japanese professionals online for more than 3 years now (students range from graduating university students preparing for work life to doctors, bankers, consultants, researchers, CEOs etc). I have no experience teaching young kids, and my degree is not in any way related to Education or Early Childhood Development. Although, I volunteered to teach less fortunate children for charity once.
My questions are:
1) Do I need TEFL / TESOL Certification to somehow compensate my lack of teaching experience with kids?
2) Does your pre-school provide you a curriculum to work with? Or do you have to singlehandedly work on your lesson plans?
I really, really want to teach young kids! I understand what you mean when you said it's fulfilling to see them grow, as I've always dreamt of having that kind of impact to tiny, growing human beings.
Thanks for watching and for the great question! I understand your concerns about teaching children. It can be difficult at times.
I didn’t have any experience before I started either nor did I have any qualifications. Those qualifications will definitely help make it easier for you but in the end it’s experience that will help you most, and you can only get that from just trying it.
Volunteering is a great way to get experience. If you have any nieces or nephews that helps as well.
I would suggest, if you have your heart set on working in Japan, try working at an Eikaiwa first. There you get a mix of different types of students. Different ages and levels. So you can get a little experience but you’re aren’t just thrown into a full fledged kindergarten.
If you find you like working with the younger kids you can then try to find another job.
I have a video on Eikaiwa as well to give you a bit of an idea of what it is. ⤵️⤵️
th-cam.com/video/TdZGcfwcuyE/w-d-xo.html
Forgot to answer your second question! My school does have a curriculum based on themes that changes each month. For example, this month we are doing transportation. But how we go about teaching the material is pretty much up to us.
Hey, thanks for sharing! I'm currently teaching Kindy in Taiwan. I've been teaching in Kindergartens, Language centres, and elementary schools for two years here. Do you think its possible to land a job while outside of the country? I've heard that's the best approach if applying for ALT jobs. But I kinda want to get something for 2019 and get over to Japan. If you know of any kindys looking for a teacher I'd appreciate a heads up! Many thanks and all the best
It’s definitely possible! You have experience with both teaching children and living in another country.
First, I’d come up with a good reason that you want to move to Japan other than, “I want to live in Japan.” You can say that because it’s definitely important but another deeper reason.
I do know of a place, though I’ve never worked there, that is looking. If you look on Gaijinpot.com under jobs search Earlybirds International School. They are a kindy that’s looking.
If you HAVE to be in Japan in 2019 I would also apply to other ALT and Eikaiwa jobs (you can find my videos on each of those in this video’s playlist) just in case you can’t get a kindy job. At least get your foot in the door and then you can continue looking for a kindy job.
Glad you found this video helpful and thank you for your comment. If you haven’t already please consider subscribing! It helps tiny channels like me a lot!
If you have any more questions please feel free to ask!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan Thanks for the advice!
I'll definitely get started with applications. A few other TH-camrs have said the same, that getting your foot in the door to get the work visa and then applying for other jobs when I am there is a good approach.
I'm just trying to avoid having to return to the UK and wait potentially months for my visa to process if I'm offered a position. I'd much rather be teaching somewhere.
Either way I'll certainly shop around and consider all types of teaching jobs there.
Thanks again and I'll sub and check out your other videos! ✌😊
My pleasure man!
Is your current visa in Korea almost up? If so, yeah try not to be too picky about the kind of job. Right now is the good season though!
Many companies are hiring for the start of the new school year in April. I just looked on Gaijin Pot and there are a lot of Kindergartens hiring!
If you need any more help I’m here man!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan Thanks bro!
I have around three months left on my visa. So all being well that gives me enough time to get a few job offers and then get the visa processed. I'm just going to let my resumes fly and see what comes back my way. Could be perfect timing for the new semester!
Definitely won't be too picky. As you say, it's a foot in the door and I will probably appreciate my experience (and budget!) more if I end up teaching somewhere outside of Tokyo.
So where do you teach and live right now?
Sounds good!
I’ve been teaching in Okayama for around 8 years....maybe? It’s been a while!
I started in an Eikaiwa and worked there for 5 years. Now I’m on my third year as an international preschool/kindergarten teacher.
Definitely like it better as a kindergarten teacher. I get to see my kids every day and I feel like I’m actually making a difference in their lives!
Any field right? I'm taking culinary course rn😄
As long as it gets you a Bachelor’s, yes! Any field!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan thanks so much
My pleasure 😇
No music this time man?!
My outro? It should have been there!
@@OneMoreGuyjininJapan nah i meant just bgm
Oh! I don’t think I had BGM in my others before this. Would you have preferred BGM?
lol brainfart... i think bgm more often than not helps.
Yeah I’ve thought about adding in some BGM. I’ll add it into my last two videos of this series and see what happens! I’ve got an epidemic music subscription so I have a huge library to pick from.
I'm from india,am a teacher and wanna work in Japan.Can u tell me how to apply?
Thanks for watching. I believe I told you pretty much everything in this video. I would start with going to www.Gaijinpot.com and then following my advice in the video.