Childcare Interviews

A NEW CAREER

Finding a new career you’ll love

You’ve made it this far. After much thought and consideration, you realized that a career in early childhood education is the right move for you, and you’re ready to get started. 

After all, you want to do something meaningful with your life, and you certainly don’t want to spend your days in a tedious job that will get you nowhere. You’ve tried other things before, but they never felt like a match quite like this one does.

There’s just something about working with kids and their families that have always inspired you. And you love the thought of giving back to your community because it gave so much to you growing up. 

To learn more about a career in early childhood education and care, call us today at 1300 765 560.

 

GUARDIAN

Why Guardian is the right fit for you

You’ve done the research. You’ve talked to people you know. And what you’ve realised is that Guardian childcare centres stand out far above the rest—and for good reason.

In fact, 95% of our centres actually exceed the sector average, and that’s pretty impressive because there are Guardian centres all across Australia. And you want to work for an organisation with results like that too. 

At Guardian, we provide many programs to help our team members complete the professional development of their choosing, receive certificates and diplomas, and earn their Bachelor’s degrees while also having the opportunity to attend national conferences and network with tons of professionals in this sector. And you want to continue to grow in your career too.

Furthermore, you know that Guardian takes good care of all of our team members, appreciates and recognises them monthly, and provides wages, salaries, and benefits that are highly competitive for the sector. And you want to enjoy those same financial rewards too.

We also have incredibly flexible schedules, so our employees can look for work on a permanent full-time, permanent part-time, casual full-time, casual part-time, or temporary basis. This helps our team members fulfil their other commitments in life like raising their families, being a carer for older family members, attending school, and volunteering. And you want to have a flexible schedule too.

So, after taking all of these important considerations to heart, you found an open position that you were interested in on our Careers at Guardian page, uploaded your resume, filled out an application, and set up job alerts for future openings. Then, you scheduled a childcare job interview and started preparing yourself for the childcare interview questions that you might be asked.

So far, you’ve done everything right. But would you be surprised to know that we’re actually happy to help you prepare for your upcoming interview and provide you with our very best childcare interview tips before it happens?

It’s true! We’re willing to offer whatever assistance you need to help you succeed—ultimately getting hired for the job of your dreams at Guardian.

 

INTERVIEW

Tips for having a successful interview at Guardian

To help you prepare for your interview at Guardian, here’s a list of child care interview questions and answers that might come up during your interview with us, as well as helpful hints on crafting the perfect answers for you:

 

Why do you want to work with children?

This is one of the more common childcare job interview questions you’ll come across, and you want to prepare ahead of time for these types of ‘why do you want to work in childcare interview answers?’ It’s important to be honest here and really explain what it is that draws you to the childcare field. If you have previous experience working with children, share a story about something cute a child did or how you helped a child in the past and how it made you feel. 

 

What coping strategies do you use to stay calm and kind in any situation? 

When it comes to child care interview questions and answers, you definitely need to get this one right. Childcare providers are looking for people who will always respect children no matter how they’re behaving at the time. So, be prepared to share whatever coping strategies you use to stay cool in heated situations. For example, taking a deep breath, visualizing yourself as calm and collected, and using respectful language at all times.  

 

What age groups do you prefer to work with?

Again, this is one of those interview questions for childcare positions that come up a lot. If you have a preferred age group, be honest about it. But keep in mind that some open positions are likely going to be assigned to a certain age group already, so you may want to ask for that information ahead of time so you don’t give an answer here that doesn’t make sense for the position you’re applying to.

 

How are the needs of babies best met?

Sometimes childcare job interview questions and answers are vague on purpose and this one is no exception. While there is not necessarily a right or wrong answer here, the interviewer is looking to see that you have actually given this some thought and formed your own opinion. Be confident in your answer and include key information here, especially if you know the centre’s infant-to-caregiver ratio and any of the procedures for infant care that they currently have in place. Read the website carefully before you go in.     

 

How do children learn best and how can you facilitate this type of learning?

This is one of the childcare educator interview questions and answers that you want to prepare for. To get this one right, think about how you learned best as a kid and include some of those details in your answer. Studies have shown that play-based learning increases engagement, improves recall, and ignites a passion for learning, so be sure to brainstorm ways you can use play throughout the day to help children learn. 

 

What steps will you take to build relationships with our families?

A career in childcare is also a career working closely with families. These types of childcare job interview questions and answers are to validate the importance of building relationships with entire families—not just the children you care for during the day. Get specific here and give examples of how you build rapport with others, communicate effectively, and take the wants and needs of parents and caregivers into account while caring for their children.

 

What do you like most about working with children?

You can never go wrong with this kind of childcare job interview questions and answers category. There are so many great things about working with kids—like having them excited to see you every morning, helping them learn a new skill, or simply watching them grow bigger and stronger over the years. So, what matters most is showing your genuine emotions and expressing how working with children actually makes you feel.

 

What do you like least about working with children?

These types of childcare interview questions with answers can really make a difference on whether or not you get a job offer, so proceed with caution here. It’s no secret that sometimes children can lose their cool when they become overly tired, hungry, or frustrated. But openly complaining about these undesirable behaviours is not the best idea. Instead, think of a creative way to answer this question like saying you hate it when you see a child get hurt or it makes you sad when you see a child struggling with self-confidence.     

 

What can you do to make sure each day runs smoothly at our centre?

Whether you’re preparing for childcare traineeship interview questions and answers or for those directed towards a Centre Manager candidate, every person on the team will be responsible for making sure every day is a success regardless of their role. Think deeply about what you can do on a daily basis to help everyone’s day go well. For instance, you can follow the procedures set in place for smooth transitions between drop-off and pick-up times or you can stay late when needed to sanitize the play spaces.

 

Describe a time that you helped out a colleague.

Remember, child care job interview questions and answers aren’t always going to be just about the kids. Employers want to make sure that you’re going to be a nice addition to the team as well. So come prepared with examples of how you’ve helped co-workers in the past perform their job duties. For example, discuss the time you helped clean up a mess when your teammate’s hands were full or the time you took a phone call when your co-worker had stepped away. You’re going to be a part of a large team of caregivers, how are you going to benefit that team? 

What’s important to keep in mind is that childcare traineeship interview questions are going to be slightly different than interview questions for childcare educators, and so on, so you want to tailor all of your answers to the position you’re applying for based on your particular educational background, previous experiences, and career goals.