What qualities do nursery employers look for when looking for employees?

Question

What qualities do nursery employers look for when looking for employees?

Answer 1

I worked in nursery schools and preschools for years and have also hired and what I would look for is a genuine love of babies and children, positive attitude, good outlook on life in general, has good hygiene, generally knows to how to stay calm in stressful situations and emergencies, energy level good, eager to learn.

Answer 2

I agree with the response above.  I have just a few things to add:

Honesty and integrity

Willingness to take responsibility

The ability to ask for help when it is needed

Motivation

Organization

Ability to work well with children and families

Acceptance of unique family situations

Here are a few reasons I have seen people "not work out."

Talking about other staff members, children and/or families (it's just not necessary or acceptable)

Being unreliable - not being on time to work or calling in at the last minute

Constant references to "how we did it at the last center I worked at..."

Refusing to apply knowledge gained in training to the classroom setting/not following center guidelines.

Best wishes!

Answer 3

A genuine passion for children and their education and a willingness to learn more about it. Patience is nice to have, but an understanding of typical child development is better. That person should enjoy children and of course have a clean criminal background check and usually a high school diploma or higher.