Is This Why You Aren’t Considering a Career in Teaching?

Posted On August 10,2020

Young child playing with blocks in a classroom.

One of the many perks of becoming a teacher is that summer vacations are pretty much a guarantee. This may also mean no paycheck during the summer months, which can cause some prospective students to pause or even reconsider a different career altogether. However, before you throw in the towel on the idea of teaching, keep in mind that there are numerous part-time or temporary job options for an early childhood educator to stay busy and earn some extra income during the summer break.

Don’t let a handful of calendar days deter you from teaching. Here are some summer job opportunities that are well suited for an early childhood educator:

Summer School Teacher

If you’re presented with the opportunity to stay at your school and teach summer classes to some of your students, you should strongly consider it. Not only do you get to work with familiar faces, but the transition will be an easy one as there won’t be any period of adaptation to deal with. One perk of teaching summer school is teachers usually work shorter hours and have smaller class sizes.

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Tutor

Tutoring is an excellent way for teachers to supplement their income, anytime of the year, but especially during those summer months. There are plenty of kids who need some additional help, or their parents are concerned about them falling behind so they search for a tutor. One perk of becoming a tutor is you can often set it up as a freelance tutoring business and set your own hours, by working for multiple students on a one on one basis. There’s also the option to tutor students online, so it’s a viable option for many early childhood educators who want to earn additional income, while still keeping their skill set fresh.

ESL Instructor (English as a Second Language)

One option for an early childhood educator is to become an ESL instructor during the summer months. ESL instructors are responsible for assessing the English proficiency skills of students from other countries, or even adults who don’t speak the language and helping them improve or better those skills. The main goal of an ESL instructor is to work with students of all ages to help them reach a high level of proficiency in the English language in a short amount of time.

Nanny

Many working parents are in need of summer care for their children, making childcare a great option for an early childhood educator seeking temporary employment options that will put their education degree to use.

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Camp Counselor

As a camp counselor you’ll have plenty of opportunities to put your teaching skills to the test as you coordinate and conduct activities and supervise students at the camp. Since many students come to camp to have fun, you’ll get the added bonus of getting to participate in those fun activities as you teach students new hobbies like arts and crafts, nature hikes, swimming, and more.

Freelancer

There are plenty of freelance business opportunities for an early childhood educator to explore, such as blogging, writing, proofreading, resume writing, or even becoming a virtual assistant, just to name a few.

While teaching does come with some financial challenges, such as reduced summer hours, there are several summer job opportunities for teachers that can help fill in the gap. Teachers never stop learning, and their unique skill set is a great advantage in helping them find creative solutions to any problem.

If you’re interested in becoming a teacher, consider earning your early childhood education degree at Athena Career Academy. Contact our admissions team today for more information about our accredited program!

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