Need help updating your child care worker resume to meet the changing demands of the industry in 2020?
Child care centers are going through an unprecedented period of change in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After months of mandated and voluntary closures, centers are working to reopen their doors or expand their enrollment in accordance with CDC guidelines. Some families are hesitating to return their kids to child care during a global pandemic, resulting in lower enrollment levels at child care facilities across the country.
In parallel, child care centers are also facing staffing shortages, with furloughed staff entering other areas of the workforce, or temporarily exiting the workforce due to the risk of coronavirus infection. Now, more than ever, centers are scrambling to hire qualified child care workers with the right certifications who can hit the ground running and contribute positively to their business and community.
This resource highlights the most important components of your child care worker resume and the top skills you should emphasize to increase your chances of being hired in 2020.
Why Choose a Career in Child Care?
Despite the challenges faced by the child care industry this year, a career in early childhood education still offers plenty of promise and opportunity.
There is significant demand for licensed child care workers, who can seek employment in private child care centers, elementary and secondary schools, other recreation industries (hospitality, health clubs, etc.) and private homes.
The average pay for child care workers is $11.65/hour in the United States, with the top 10 percent earning $17.21 per hour or more.
Child care workers provide children with routine care while supporting their educational and personal development. Helping kids learn about the world as they prepare for Kindergarten, or staffing an after school program where kids can socialize and get help with homework is a fulfilling and rewarding experience for child care workers who are passionate about enriching children’s lives.
Components of an Effective Child Care Worker Resume
Your child care resume should tell prospective employers who you are, what you want and what you have to offer. Here’s a quick checklist to help you cover the most important elements:
- Contact Information – Include your full name, current address, contact phone number and contact email address.
- Objective – Include an objective statement or personal statement that tells your prospective employer how you are hoping to develop your career by working for them.
- Skills – Highlight your most important and relevant skills to the child care worker position.
- Work Experience – Outline your history of work experience that is relevant to the child care worker position.
- Education – List educational achievements, including schools you attended and any awards you received.
- Certifications – Call out any licenses or childcare certifications you have that are relevant to your career as a child care worker.
- Cover Letter – Write a cover letter to introduce yourself, highlight the skills, experiences and qualifications that make your application unique, and thank the hiring manager for taking the time to review your resume.
Top Additions to Your Child Care Worker Resume in 2020
Transferable Skills
Teamwork
A child care worker with strong teamwork ability knows how to collaborate with others in a group to achieve a common goal or work toward a larger purpose.
For child care facilities in 2020, reducing the spread of COVID-19 is a team effort. Everyone at the center must work together to implement and follow policies that limit infection risks and prevent outbreaks. Child care center administrators will be looking for child care workers with a proven track record of performing well in teams.
Communication
Communication is all about providing and receiving information. For those who work in child care, communication takes place with kids, with parents, with colleagues, and with child care administrators and directors.
The success of child care centers in 2020 and beyond depends on child care workers who can successfully communicate the appropriate messages to stakeholders within the child care community. That means being able to address parents’ concerns about safety measures at the facility through effective parent engagement. It could also mean communicating with kids to help them understand and navigate the changes brought about by coronavirus.
Most critical, though, is the need to communicate with colleagues and child care administrators about potential infection risks or policy breaches. The increased stakes in this area mean that child care centers will prefer applicants who prove they can use their voice as a positive force in the work environment.
Leadership
Child care workers with solid leadership skills do two things very well:
- They become invested in the goals, mission and vision put forward by leadership, encouraging others to do the same.
- They model a high standard of care in the daily performance of their job duties.
Child care centers are moving toward a clear mission in 2020: reopening their facilities, recovering their enrollment numbers and remaining infection-free. Centers need child care workers who can contribute positively and motivate others to drive that vision forward.
Knowledge-based Skills
Infection Prevention Skills
Child care workers in 2020 will use their knowledge of infection prevention each day to protect themselves, their colleagues and their communities from COVID-19 transmission. As centers continue to align themselves with CDC guidelines, child care workers may be expected to:
- Perform basic verbal, visual and temperature screenings as kids arrive to the center
- Demonstrate safe, appropriate use of personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Practice, model and teach healthy hand hygiene
- Practice, model and teach social/physical distancing
- Perform regular cleaning and disinfecting of toys, bedding and surfaces at the center
After reviewing the CDC’s guidelines for infection prevention, you may choose to add infection prevention skills to your child care worker resume.
Procare Software Proficiency
Child care centers in 2020 are often using child care management software to support their COVID-19 infection prevention efforts, particularly when seeking to reduce direct contact with anyone unnecessarily.
Centers that choose Procare Solutions can benefit from our paperless child care billing software, which offers attendance-based billing and automation features, along with some of the lowest payment processing fees available in the child care industry. Procare also offers two new contactless check-in and check-out solutions:
- QR Codes allow parents to complete the check-in process on their mobile phone by scanning the QR code on the device at your check-in kiosk in a touchless process.
- Curbside Contactless Check-in leverages GPS technology, enabling parents to complete the check-in process on their mobile phone from within 50-100 yards of your facility.
Child care workers with Procare software proficiency are uniquely positioned to take a leadership role as their centers implement these new measures to limit infection risks.
How to Build Child Care Work Experience for Your Resume
Need more work experience to supplement your resume?
Landing your first job in child care can be a struggle if you’re applying without prior experience. Thankfully, there are a handful of ways to start getting that experience before you apply for a full-time role as a child care worker. Here are six things you can start doing to build your experience and beef up your child care worker resume:
- Volunteer at a Children’s Hospital – Organize and participate in group activities, recreation and play that improves hospital experiences for sick kids.
- Babysit in Your Community – Connect with families in your community to provide child care services on an as-needed basis.
- Become a Camp Counselor – Take on a role at a summer camp or day camp, organizing activities and learning opportunities for kids.
- Care for Younger Siblings or Cousins – Earn valuable child care experience by caring for younger siblings or cousins.
- Start Tutoring Children – Work on your early childhood education skills by tutoring a child in math or reading.
- Teach a Specialized Skill – Develop your ability to communicate knowledge by teaching a specialized skill to a young person. You could provide guitar lessons, swimming lessons, knitting lessons, athletic training or another skill you possess.
Download Child Care Worker Resume Samples & Templates
Need to update your child care worker resume today?
How about a shortcut?
We’ve put together some links to our favorite child care worker resume samples and templates that make it even easier for you to update your information and start applying for jobs.
Check out the links below!
Child Care Worker Resume Examples on Job Hero
Child Care Provider Resume Examples on Live Career
