Highlighting the right skills on your teacher resume (and in a teacher cover letter) is a great way to make your application stand out.
When choosing skills for a resume, a good mix of hard and soft skills will show principals you have both the technical training and personality required to run a classroom effectively and inspire young learners.
10 teacher skills to include in your resume (plus examples)
Here are the top 10 skills for teachers, plus specific examples for your resume:
1. Computer skills
Technology has crept into every aspect of our lives, and the classroom is no different.
Teachers use computers and other digital media devices to:
- create study guides, tests, and other teaching materials
- give presentations
- track grades
- show relevant videos to students
- research online libraries and databases
- send and receive emails
Here some teaching skills related to computers that are great to include on a resume:
- Administrative skills
- Classroom management systems
- Database handling
- Google Suite
- Microsoft Office
- Social media
- Spreadsheet creation and management
- Virtual meeting coordination
2. Organizational skills
Most schools have 20+ students in one classroom, and it’s your responsibility to manage all their assignments and grades.
A well-organized classroom also contributes to your overall success as a teacher, because students perform better when they know exactly where to find materials.
Here are other organization-related skills for your teacher resume:
- Delegation
- Meeting deadlines
- Grading
- Maintaining attendance records
- Planning and preparing lessons
- Prioritization
- Report card writing
- Scheduling
3. Subject knowledge
Teachers should have an evolving knowledge of specific subjects and a passion for sharing them with others. For higher grade levels, this sometimes means continuing your own education or attending conferences to expand and update your knowledge of the subject you teach.
It’s also great to demonstrate well-rounded knowledge and interests. For example, if you’re a certified yoga instructor, you could include your certification on your resume and let principals know that you enjoy working daily movement and mindfulness practices into your lessons.
4. Classroom management
Classroom management refers to the teaching skills required to keep students focused, attentive, and productive in class. Effective classroom management is a hallmark of a good teacher, as it enhances student learning by minimizing disruptions.
Classroom management usually involves:
- ensuring your pupils understand why and how your rules work
- following through with the expectations you’ve set
- establishing trusting relationships with your students
- maintaining classroom authority
- engaging students in lessons
- recognizing and applauding students’ efforts
Lack of proper classroom management leads to a dysfunctional classroom where some students can’t learn. This is why classroom management is an essential skill that employers look for in teacher resumes.
Here are other classroom management-related teacher skills for your resume:
- Attention to detail
- Patience
- Giving feedback
- Teamwork skills
- Management skills
- Boundaries
- Problem solving skills
5. Communication skills
The teaching profession is all about transmitting knowledge to students. In addition to giving lessons, good communication skills help you:
- create lesson plans
- provide feedback on students’ work
- send written notes to parents
Communication skills also help you work effectively alongside colleagues and administrators.
Check out some more communication-related skills for teachers:
- Collaboration
- Giving feedback
- Language skills
- Public speaking
- Cultural sensitivity
- Body language
- Leadership skills
- Listening skills
- Report writing skills
6. Curriculum planning
Teachers must be able to plan clear, appropriate, and engaging instructions for their students.
Employers need teachers who can develop effective lesson plans that accommodate all students and get them excited to learn.
Highlighting your curriculum planning skills shows you know how to structure and teach your lesson plans.
7. Time management skills
The duties of a teacher are endless, but the time available is limited.
Besides teaching students in the classroom, a teacher has to write lesson notes, grade papers and assignments, tutor students, and occasionally shop for supplies.
So a teacher should be able to effectively manage time in their planning periods and in between lessons.
Here are other time management-related skills of good teachers:
- Coordination
- Decision making
- Delegating and outsourcing tasks
- Goal-setting
- Managing appointments
- Multitasking skills
- Planning
- Prioritizing
8. Enthusiasm
As a teacher, the energy you bring into the classroom will directly affect your students. Showing a keen interest in the academic growth of your students will help them succeed, especially those who don’t get a lot of support at home.
Employers know how demanding teaching can be and are looking for candidates with the enthusiasm to overcome obstacles and bring a postitive energy and drive to their work.
These are enthusiasm-related skills you can include in your resume:
- Interpersonal skills
- Friendliness
- Humor
- Motivational skills
- Honesty
- Tenacity
- Patience
- Strong work ethic
9. Attention to detail
Teachers are only human, so mistakes are inevitable, but teachers should still hold a high standard for their work as they guide students through new material. Any mistake a teacher makes will affect how parents view the teacher and the school, so being detail-oriented is a plus for employers.
Detail-related skills for a teacher resume include:
- Adaptability
- Analytical skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Expertise with numbers
- Editing and proofreading
- Observation
- Specialized knowledge
10. Problem solving skills
Teaching is a problem-solving profession. As a teacher, you have to answer difficult questions from students and inquiries from parents, including questions that don’t fall under your scope of work.
So include some skills that prove you can gracefully fix problems you encounter in the classroom or school environment.
Below are problem solving skills needed to be a teacher:
- Collecting information
- Confidence
- Open-mindedness
- Conflict resolution
- Flexibility
- Goal setting
- Managing student behavior
- Patience
- Research skills
- Teamwork skills
Where to include teacher skills in your application
Now that you know the essential teaching skills to add to your resume, let’s look at how and where you can introduce them.
1. Resume objective
A teacher’s resume objective is a short description (2–3 sentences) a teacher writes at the top of their resume highlighting their qualifications, skills, and desire to work at a specific school.
Your resume objective is the first thing employers see when they pick up your resume, so mention your most relevant teacher skills there.
See how this candidate worked their administrative and coordination skills into their resume objective:
Look through the job description to see the teacher’s skills you need to list and include a few job-relevant keywords in your resume objective.
2. Work experience section
You should also add your teaching skills throughout the work experience section of your resume, giving examples of how these skills helped you succeed.
Here are some tips to help you craft a well-written work experience section:
- Use hard numbers like percentages, time worked, and other data like the number of classes you taught, report cards you wrote, or any other stats that help employers see how you applied your skills in context
- Use strong action verbs to present your skills to the employer in a compelling way
Here’s an example of how to showcase your teacher skills using work experience bullet points:
3. Skills section
If you’re a visual learner, this video summarizes what teaching skills you should add to your skills section so you can stand out to employers.
To expand on our video, here are some ways to write a skills section that’s accurate and memorable:
Support your work accomplishments with skills that the employer wants to see in a good instructor by including a stand-alone skills section on your resume where you can list 3–9 of your most relevant teaching skills. This way, a recruiter can immediately see your strengths.
Your teacher’s skill section should look like this:
It’s a good idea to include mainly technical skills in this section of your resume, because unlike soft skills, they usually don’t need to be backed up with evidence or examples.
4. Cover letter
Your teacher cover letter is another place to and show you possess the skills required to inspire your students and help them grow. When writing your cover letter, think about how your skills have helped you succeed.
A teaching cover letter gives you the opportunity to tell stories that show employers evidence of your expertise. For instance, helping struggling students pass their SAT/ACTs are great ways to showcase your dedication to your role.
Here’s an example of how to include your teaching skills in a cover letter:
