Best questions for preschool teacher survey about kindergarten readiness

Here are some of the best questions for a preschool teacher survey about kindergarten readiness, along with tips to make your survey questions meaningful. If you want to build a high-quality, conversational survey in seconds, Specific can help you generate exactly that—no hassle.

10 open-ended questions teachers should answer about kindergarten readiness

Open-ended questions give teachers freedom to express detailed observations, stories, and concerns in their own words. They're essential when you want rich, nuanced feedback—especially on complex topics like kindergarten readiness, where every child is unique. These are best when you're exploring new territory or hoping to uncover themes you hadn't considered.

Here are some of our favorite open-ended questions for a preschool teacher survey about kindergarten readiness:

1. Can you describe the primary indicators you look for to determine if a child is ready for kindergarten?

2. What are the most common challenges you observe in children who are not fully prepared for kindergarten?

3. Which classroom activities or routines best support developing readiness skills in your experience?

4. How do families typically support their child's readiness outside the classroom?

5. Are there any aspects of readiness (social, emotional, academic, physical) that often get overlooked?

6. Can you share a recent story where a child’s unexpected strength or challenge influenced your perception of readiness?

7. In your opinion, what could the school or community do differently to better support children’s transition to kindergarten?

8. How do you adapt your teaching for children at different readiness levels?

9. What changes (if any) have you observed in kindergarten readiness post-pandemic?

10. What resources or training would help you assess and support kindergarten readiness more effectively?

Open-ended responses often spark deeper follow-up questions, uncovering insights you might miss in a standard checklist. For instance, considering statistics showing that only about 51%–64% of children in various states are rated as ‘on track’ for readiness, it’s crucial to learn what factors teachers see driving these trends. [1][2][3]

Best single-select multiple-choice questions for teachers

Single-select multiple-choice questions make it easier to quantify opinions and quickly spot patterns—perfect for quick pulse checks or when you want to compare responses at scale. They're also a great way to start a conversation, since people often find it easier to pick from a short list before offering more detailed feedback.

Question: In your class this year, what percentage of children do you believe are fully ready for kindergarten?

• Less than 25%

• 25%–50%

• 51%–75%

• More than 75%

Question: Which area do you think most children struggle with when preparing for kindergarten?

• Academic skills

• Social-emotional skills

• Self-regulation/independence

• Physical coordination

• Other

Question: How confident are you in your ability to accurately assess kindergarten readiness for your students?

• Very confident

• Somewhat confident

• Not confident

When to follow up with "why?" Always ask "why?" as a follow-up when you want to dig into the reasoning behind a teacher’s choice—for example, if they select “self-regulation/independence” as the biggest challenge, a great follow-up would be: "What patterns have you noticed that lead you to this conclusion?" This approach uncovers actionable details, not just surface stats.

When and why to add the "Other" choice? Include “Other” when you suspect your fixed choices may not cover every possibility. A follow-up after “Other” can reveal surprising new challenges or overlooked strengths that could reshape your readiness strategy.

NPS-style question: Is it relevant in a teacher survey?

NPS (Net Promoter Score) measures the likelihood that someone would recommend a program, process, or school to others—and it’s a powerful, simple way to capture overall sentiment. For preschool teacher surveys about kindergarten readiness, NPS can pinpoint overall satisfaction with current readiness support, policies, or assessment tools. Just ask teachers: "How likely are you to recommend our kindergarten readiness program or process to other educators?" Using a 0–10 scale not only benchmarks satisfaction but makes it easy to segment follow-ups (detractors, passives, promoters) and compare across years or locations.

If you want to set up a tailored NPS survey in a few clicks, check out the ready-to-use model here.

The power of follow-up questions

The best survey insights almost always come from smart, real-time follow-up questions. With automatic AI followup questions in Specific, the survey feels more like a conversation with a dedicated expert than a static form. The AI reads responses and instantly issues clarifying or probing questions—saving you the hassle of endless email chains or missed context.

• Teacher: "Some of my students struggle with routines."

• AI follow-up: "Can you describe which routines are most challenging for them and what support has been most effective?"

How many followups to ask? For most Preschool Teacher surveys, 2–3 follow-ups per open question are enough to dig deep and avoid overwhelming teachers. Specific lets you tailor this—it can move to the next question as soon as a full answer is gathered.

This makes it a conversational survey, bridging the gap between structured interviews and traditional forms. Teachers feel understood and engaged, not rushed through a checklist.

AI response analysis, quick themes, no hassle: Even when responses generate hundreds of sentences of unstructured feedback, it’s now easy to analyze responses from preschool teacher survey about kindergarten readiness using AI. AI distills patterns, themes, and top suggestions, removing the manual crunch altogether.

These automated followup questions are a new concept. We always recommend generating a survey and experiencing the difference for yourself—nothing beats seeing how it adapts live to each answer.

Prompt engineering: Get better survey questions from ChatGPT or GPT-based tools

If you want to brainstorm questions yourself before or alongside using Specific’s AI survey generator, starting with a smart prompt is key. Here’s the simplest way:

First, instruct: “Suggest 10 open-ended questions for Preschool Teacher survey about Kindergarten Readiness.”

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for Preschool Teacher survey about Kindergarten Readiness.

But AI always works better with more context. So, provide background, goals, and demographics to tailor your questions:

Our preschool teaches a diverse group of children from various backgrounds. We want to understand which skills are most important for kindergarten readiness, what families can do at home, and what support or training our teachers need most. Suggest 10 open-ended questions for a survey aimed at our teaching staff.

Now, let’s organize your brainstorm. After listing the questions, ask:

Look at the questions and categorize them. Output categories with the questions under them.

Review the categories, select those you care about—say, “family engagement” and “assessment strategies”—and prompt:

Generate 10 questions for categories Family Engagement and Assessment Strategies.

What is a conversational survey? Manual vs. AI survey generation

Conversational surveys flip the old model: instead of a static list you fill out, the survey feels like a chat, asking tailored follow-ups and gently probing for the details that matter most. With AI survey generators like Specific, you can literally talk to the AI to design your survey in minutes—no more typing out 40 questions and fiddling with branching logic. Just state your needs, objectives, and audience, and let the AI become your survey-building assistant. The result? A survey that's high-quality, engaging, and ready to deploy to teachers without hours of prep.

Why use AI for Preschool Teacher surveys? With AI, you get smarter question design and effortless follow-up, which results in richer feedback and much less busywork. Try a conversational AI survey example and see how insight-rich your responses can be, even with small teacher groups.

Specific excels in building conversational survey experiences—smooth for teachers, easy for you. Want detailed, practical tips? Read our full guide on creating a preschool teacher survey about kindergarten readiness.

See this kindergarten readiness survey example now

Start understanding what teachers really think and need. You get richer feedback, natural conversations, and analysis done for you—so go create your survey now with confidence.