Assistant Teacher

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…