Part-Time Private Preschool Teacher / Tutor
Location: Lincoln Park, Chicago
Schedule: Monday–Thursday, 8:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. (Flexible - to be mutually agreed)
Hours: Approximately 16 hours per week, with the potential to extend to 20 hours per week
Position Type: Part-time; independent contractor structure
Position Overview
We are seeking an experienced, certified preschool teacher or early childhood educator to provide individualized, one-on-one instruction for our three-year-old son in our Lincoln Park home.
The teacher will be responsible for creating and delivering a structured, engaging, and age-appropriate preschool curriculum that supports his academic, social-emotional, language, and physical development. The ideal candidate will combine the warmth and patience of an exceptional preschool teacher with the organization and intentionality of a private tutor.
This is not primarily a childcare or nanny position. The focus is on creating a consistent, high-quality preschool learning experience tailored to one child.
Primary Responsibilities
- Develop weekly and monthly lesson plans based on age-appropriate preschool learning objectives.
- Provide structured one-on-one instruction Monday through Thursday.
- Teach early literacy skills, including phonics, vocabulary, storytelling, letter recognition, and pre-writing.
- Introduce foundational mathematics concepts, including numbers, counting, patterns, sorting, shapes, and measurement.
- Incorporate science, nature, music, art, imaginative play, and hands-on learning activities.
- Support speech, communication, listening, and expressive-language development.
- Promote social-emotional development, independence, self-regulation, confidence, and appropriate classroom behaviors.
- Incorporate fine-motor and gross-motor activities into the daily schedule.
- Select or recommend appropriate books, educational materials, activities, and supplies.
- Create a predictable daily routine that balances structured learning, creative play, movement, outdoor activities, and breaks.
- Track developmental progress and provide the parents with a concise weekly update covering:
- Lessons and activities completed
- Progress against developmental goals
- Areas requiring additional attention
- Recommended activities for reinforcement
- Adjust curriculum and teaching methods based on the child’s interests, learning style, developmental progress, and evolving needs.
- Maintain an organized, safe, clean, and positive learning environment.
- Coordinate periodically with the parents regarding goals, priorities, scheduling, and overall progress.
Required Qualifications
- Current or prior certification in early childhood education, elementary education, special education, or a closely related field.
- Bachelor’s degree in education, early childhood development, child development, or a related discipline strongly preferred.
- At least three years of experience teaching preschool-aged children.
- Demonstrated ability to create and execute structured, developmentally appropriate lesson plans.
- Experience providing individualized or small-group instruction.
- Strong understanding of early childhood developmental milestones.
- Excellent communication, organization, reliability, and time-management skills.
- Ability to pass comprehensive criminal background, sex-offender registry, identity, and reference checks.
- Current CPR and pediatric first-aid certification, or willingness to obtain certification before beginning.
- Legally authorized to work in the United States.
- Reliable transportation and consistent availability Monday through Thursday.
Preferred Qualifications
- Current or former preschool, pre-K, kindergarten, Montessori, Reggio Emilia, or early childhood special education teacher.
- Experience supporting speech and language development.
- Experience working with children in a private-home or one-on-one educational environment.
- Familiarity with play-based, Montessori, phonics-based, or other evidence-informed early childhood teaching methods.
- Ability to design a curriculum that can be extended as the child progresses.
- Willingness to accompany the child to nearby parks, libraries, museums, classes, or other educational activities with parental approval.
- Flexibility to extend the schedule beyond 12:30 p.m. periodically or increase the role to approximately 20 hours per week.
Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is warm, energetic, patient, creative, and highly dependable. They should enjoy building a meaningful relationship with a young child while maintaining structure, clear expectations, and measurable developmental goals.
We are looking for someone who views this as an educational role and takes ownership of the curriculum, preparation, instruction, and communication required to create an exceptional private preschool experience.
Compensation
Competitive hourly compensation based on education, certifications, experience, and schedule flexibility.
All required planning and preparation time should be incorporated into the agreed-upon compensation and weekly schedule.
Application Requirements
Please provide:
- Resume
- Brief summary of your teaching philosophy and experience with preschool-aged children
- Copies or descriptions of relevant certifications
- Current availability
- Two or three professional references
Qualified candidates will be asked to participate in an interview, complete all required background checks, and conduct a paid working session before a final selection is made.
Pay: $20.00 - $25.00 per hour
Benefits:
Work Location: In person
