Special Education Teachers, Preschool Career, Salary and Skills
Special Education Teachers, Preschool have a BLS-reported national median annual wage of $64,830 based on the 2025 OEWS dataset, with reported national employment of 29,510. Wage data is published for 142 locations.
Occupation description
Teach academic, social, and life skills to preschool-aged students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.
O*NET code
25-2051.00
Job zone
4
Typical education
Not recorded
Experience
None
National salary and employment
Median annual
$64,830
Hourly median
Not published
Employment
29,510
Data year
2025
National salary distribution
Top skills
| Skill | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Learning Strategies | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Monitoring | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Active Listening | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Critical Thinking | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Speaking | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Active Learning | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Instructing | 3.88 | 3.25 |
| Writing | 3.75 | 4.00 |
Typical tasks
- Communicate nonverbally with children to provide them with comfort, encouragement, or positive reinforcement.
- Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, or administrative regulations.
- Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification or positive reinforcement.
- Attend to children's basic needs by feeding them, dressing them, or changing their diapers.
- Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, or social skills, to preschool students with special needs.
- Develop individual educational plans (IEPs) designed to promote students' educational, physical, or social development.
- Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.
- Develop or implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of disabilities.
Technology
- American Sign Language Browser
- Children's educational software
- Drawing software
- Email software
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Word
- Screen magnification software
- Screen reader software
- Web browser software
Special Education Teachers, Preschool salary by location
Areas with the highest reported employment for this occupation.
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in NYMedian $68,180 · Employment 6,220
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in New York, NYMedian $81,210 · Employment 6,110
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in CAMedian $59,550 · Employment 2,510
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in TXMedian $65,680 · Employment 2,010
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in NJMedian $92,060 · Employment 1,720
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in FLMedian $58,240 · Employment 1,370
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in MNMedian $75,880 · Employment 1,250
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in OHMedian $60,700 · Employment 1,150
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in ILMedian $62,580 · Employment 1,080
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in LAMedian $56,890 · Employment 960
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in MOMedian $62,250 · Employment 940
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool Salary in Chicago, ILMedian $61,950 · Employment 900
Related careers
- Career/Technical Education Teachers, Middle SchoolNational median $65,030
- Self-Enrichment TeachersNational median $46,800
- Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and AdvisorsNational median $64,330
- Instructional CoordinatorsNational median $77,440
- School PsychologistsNational median $95,990
- Education Teachers, PostsecondaryNational median $75,350
- Teaching Assistants, Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School, Except Special EducationNational median not published
- TutorsNational median $43,350
Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0 (onetcenter.org). Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, 2025 (bls.gov/oes). Figures are published survey estimates, not real-time market data.