As a lead day care teacher, it is your job to guide others in administering gentle but firm discipline for your students. Obliging every whim of the children at your center will not help the youngsters. Instead, it will leave them poorly prepared for the strict rules they are likely to encounter in the future. As lead day care teacher, you will set the tone for enacting discipline and declining to indulge spoiled behavior. It is also your responsibility to discuss performance problems with other staff members, rendering mediation and disciplinary skills essential.
Almost every aspect of a lead day care teacher’s job requires creativity and resourcefulness. One of the most important components of your job is devising the curriculum the rest of the teachers will follow, working with staff members and keeping students' needs in mind. You must devise a solution for every problem you encounter at your day care facility, using acute problem-solving skills to overcome obstacles. For example, if you do not have enough crayons for all students, you will have to use your creativity to come up with a project in which everyone can participate. You also must help the other teachers develop new activities and entertaining games that educate toddlers while encouraging them to cooperate.
Day care is an unpredictable industry. Since your day care center cannot close until every parent picks up his child, the lead day care teacher, as well as other staff members, may be required to work unexpected overtime before locking up the center for the night, since parents can become stuck in traffic or encounter other delays. As the lead day care teacher, it is your job to ensure all of the children who attend your facility are safe, and that your center is well-maintained. This may mean taking care of a child whose parents are late even when all other staff members have gone home. Your duties as lead day care teacher require that you prioritize the needs and safety of the children above all else. Therefore, flexibility is an essential quality if you plan to successfully carry out your tasks as a lead day care teacher.
In the case of an emergency, a lead day care teacher must be prepared to act in case other teachers, who may be less experienced, are not equipped to handle dire situations. For example, all preschool teachers should know CPR and have basic first-aid training. However, as the lead day care teacher, it is your job to prepare the center for a natural disaster such as an earthquake, or an accident such as a fire. You must know where emergency supplies are kept in your day care facility and ensure that they stay well stocked. It is also your responsibility as lead teacher to devise an exit strategy to ensure the safety of your students and co-workers should an evacuation become necessary.