Job Summary:
This position serves as an Assistant Teacher for a Head Start classroom. The assistant teacher shares responsibility for a Head Start classroom of 3- to 5-year-old children. S/he works collaboratively with the teacher, family members and other staff to achieve positive outcomes for children of all abilities.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities:
The Assistant Teacher will ultimately be evaluated on a combination of skills, dispositions and behaviors, some of which are related to the specific service area of this position and others that represent general expectations of all Family Guidance Center employees. The assistant teacher’s role encompasses effective practices in the following (as outlined in our Assistant Teacher Success Rubric):
CLASS™ teacher-child interactions:
- Provide emotional support through establishing a positive climate, being aware of and responsive to children, and encouraging child expression and autonomy.
- Use strategies for behavior management, such as clear behavior expectations, being proactive and redirecting misbehavior.
- Foster classroom productivity and maximize learning time, while engaging children with a variety of modalities and materials.
- Provide instructional support through concept development, fostering children’s analysis and reasoning, engaging in feedback loops, and modeling and supporting high-quality language.
Learning Environment:
- Ensure classroom arrangement, materials and displays are organized, clutter free and conducive to children’s learning.
Curriculum:
- Assist in the implementation of Family Guidance Center chosen curriculum with fidelity, being aware of the big ideas while also following all assigned guidance and resources.
- Assist with the preparation of weekly lesson plans and implementation of small-group activities, read-aloud, circle time, and other curriculum components.
- Provide children with a consistent classroom routine and facilitate all parts of the routine to support child learning.
- Interact with children intentionally throughout the day to provide differentiated support.
Child Assessment:
- Collect documentation of children through ongoing observation, embedded and direct assessment activities.
- Assist in completion of quarterly assessment checkpoints, reliably, for each child.
- Analyze child assessment data and use it to plan and individualize.
Meeting all Children’s Needs:
- Assist in completion of developmental and social-emotional screenings on all children within prescribed time frames.
- Assist in completion of theme based Individualized Learning Plans to identify specific goals and implement developmentally appropriate strategies for each child in class.
- Assist with Integration of Individual Education Plans (IEPs) or referral action plans for children with diagnosed or suspected special needs.
- Assist with Implementation of PBS practices and Program Wide Expectations.
Working with Families:
- Establish positive and productive relationships with families through building rapport and trust.
- Schedule and complete two home visits and two parent-teacher conferences each year.
- Encourage and engage family members to serve as classroom volunteers.
- Collaborate with family services staff to support families in implementing family life practices, extending learning into the home, and meeting expectations for attendance
- Follow all guidance and expectations to support of Shine On Families initiative
Professional Growth and Collaboration:
- Participate in ongoing reflective coaching and self-assessment.
- Collaborate with the teacher and other staff in the center.
- Share pertinent information with family services, disabilities/mental health or health/nutrition staff, as needed, to meet the needs of individual children and families. Participate in case conferences as appropriate.
The Assistant Teacher’s responsibilities also fall within the following core functions, although s/he may perform other tasks as needed:
PLANNING
- Assist in ensuring that the written curriculum includes:
- goals for children’s development and learning;
- the experiences through which children will achieve these goals;
- what staff and parents can do to help children achieve these goals;
- the materials needed to support the implementation of the curriculum towards achieving the stated goals;
- Responsible for collaborating with the Teacher in the preparation of daily lesson plans. Post them for parents, volunteers and visitors in the classroom
- Assist in the development of individual plans for each child including goal-setting based on identified needs and prescriptions for objectives and activities to meet established child outcomes.
PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
- Follow program curriculum providing developmentally and linguistically appropriate experiences appropriate to age, language and culture of children served.
- Implement experiential learning activities advancing the intellectual and emotional competence of children.
- Provide positive guidance and discipline supporting children as they acquire readiness skills for kindergarten and beyond.
- Implement daily lesson plans in response to children’s needs and interests incorporating observations, anecdotal record keeping, knowledge of early childhood development and the key experiences.
- Implement Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for children with disabilities.
- Provide children with a consistent classroom routine.
- Provide supervision and ensure the safety and security of children at all times in accordance with Early/Head Start and day care licensing requirements.
- Supervise and eat nutritionally prepared meals and/or snacks with the children as a curriculum activity, to model good nutrition and proper social skills for infants and toddlers.
- Supervise all classroom field trips and outdoor activities.
- Understand regulations associated with prevention of disease and injury, including the exercise of universal precautions and the prevention of contamination.
FAMILY PARTNERSHIPS
- Invite parent involvement in the development of the program’s curriculum and approach to child development and education.
- Provide opportunities for parents to increase their child observation skills and to share assessments with staff that help plan the learning experiences.
- Encourage parent participation in staff-parent conferences and home visits discussing their child’s development and education.
- Establish positive and productive relationships with families focusing on building trust and rapport.
- Work with the Teacher to schedule and complete two home visits per year and at least two parent-teacher conferences per year.
- Participate in parent orientation and ongoing parent training as required.
- Identify and refer parents wanting to volunteer in the classroom, work as substitutes or in other volunteer activities to Family Advocate. Support parent volunteers in the classroom as needed.
COMMUNICATION AND SERVICE COORDINATION
- Share pertinent information with Family Advocate ensuring coordinated services to meet the needs of individual children and families. Participate in case conferences as appropriate.
- Maintain regular contact with parents and complete appropriate documentation.
- Forward classroom updates to the Teacher to be included in the monthly newsletter.
- Direct developmental concerns to the Health, Nutrition and Disabilities Coordinator.
RECORD KEEPING AND RECORDING
- Request supplies as needed and participate in classroom/program inventory as requested.
- Gather and maintain individual, family and classroom data for documentation, on-going assessment, evaluation and recording keeping for successful individual and program planning.
ONGOING MONITORING AND SELF-ASSESSMENT
- Conduct daily health checks.
- Assess children on an on-going basis. Gather and organize anecdotal notes into the key goals and objectives and document in CreativeCurriculum.net.
- Work with the teaching team to analyze child outcomes on a classroom basis twice yearly, consult with the education coordinator and make adjustments to curriculum planning and implementation as needed.
SUPERVISION AND HUMAN RESOURCES
- Model appropriate classroom practices.
- Work with the Center Operations Coordinator and Teacher to develop and support the individual development plan for assigned volunteers.
- Assist the Teacher in devising work methods and procedures that support improvements in existing work practices; supporting the volunteers you supervise in developing and setting goals, priorities and timelines.
- Maintain the plan to meet changing or emergent program requirements within available resources and with minimum sacrifice to quantity or quality of work.
- Participates actively in Team Meetings to reflect on performance, generate solutions and ensure high-quality classroom operations.
- Participates in assigned meetings, events and training as required.
Non-Essential Duties:
- Performs any and all other duties as assigned.
Requirements:
- At a minimum, a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential or a state awarded certificate that meets or exceeds the requirements for a CDA credential, are enrolled in a program that will lead to an associate or baccalaureate degree or are enrolled in a CDA credential program to be completed within a year of the time of hire. AA/AS in Early Childhood Education preferred.
- Physical exam and background checks are required for this position.
- Travel required locally or long-distance up to 10% of the time for work-related meetings and functions.
- Must have a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation.
Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities:
- Attain and maintain Teaching Strategies GOLD Interrater Reliable Certification in Pre-School.
- Ability to interact effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.
- Ability to communicate effectively, verbally and in writing.
- Bilingual a plus.
- Demonstrated computer literacy skills, using MS Office applications and other basic data systems including internet navigation.
- Must be honest, dependable and able to meet deadlines.
- Self-motivated and able to work independently.
