Head Start Teacher

Head Start Teacher

Under the supervision of the Curriculum Specialist, the Head Start Teacher will provide responsive care, effective teaching and an organized learning environment that promotes the health development and children's skill growth aligned with the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework:
Ages Birth to Five, (HSELOF) including for children with disabilities. HS Teachers will emphasize nurturing and responsive practices, interactions and environments that foster trust and emotional security; are communication and language rich; promote social, emotional, behavioral, and language development and support all children's engagement in learning experiences and activities.

The Head Start Teacher will:

• Provide and deliver developmentally, culturally and linguistically appropriate learning experiences in language, literacy, and mathematics, social and emotional functioning, approaches to learning, science, physical skills and creative arts.
• Provide responsive care, effective teaching and an organized learning environment that promote health development and children skill growth aligned with Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework, Birth to Five (HSELOF), including for children with disabilities.
• Provide nurturing and responsive practices, interactions and environments that promote trust and emotional security.
• Provide environments that are language rich and high quality, language modeling using self-talk, parallel talk, and open-ended questions as outlined in CLASS Language Modeling
  - Instructional Support.
• Promote critical thinking and problem-solving, while also providing opportunities for social emotional behavioral and language development. Maximize student's engagement by implementing interesting activities so that children have the opportunity to explore, utilize materials and gain positive experiences.
• Support all children's engagement in learning experiences and activities.
• Focus on promoting growth in the developmental progress described in the HSELOF by utilizing the High/Scope curriculum to direct planning of organized activities, schedules lesson plans and high-quality learning individualized learning experiences.
• Integrate child assessment data in individualized and group planning through the COR Advantage using the COR Highest Score report.
• Recognize that bilingualism and biliteracy are strengths for dual language learners and will implement research-based teaching practices that include:
• A focus on both English language acquisition and the continued development of the home language.
• Requests from the supervisor for culturally and linguistically appropriate materials.
• Implement well-organized learning environments with developmentally appropriate schedule, lesson plans and indoor and outdoor learning experiences.
• Provide a balance of teacher-directed and child-initiated activities, active and quiet learning activities and opportunities for individual, small group and large group learning activities. Engage in Instructional Support assisting children in concept development, language modeling and quality feedback (Teachstone CLASS Instructional Support Domain).
• Provide intentional age-appropriate approaches to accommodate children's need to nap (such as a regular time every day where children are encouraged but not forced to rest or nap).
• Implement snack and meal times to support development and learning. Snack and meal times will be structure as learning opportunities to support teaching/staff teacher/child interaction and foster communication and conversation through family style meals using the High Scope Mealtime Cards or child-initiated discussions. Provide sufficient time for children to eat and not use food as reward or punishment.
• Approach routines such as hand washing and tooth brushing and transitions between activities as opportunities for strengthening growth and development.
• Integrate intentional movement and physical activities into curricular activates and daily routines in ways that support health and learning. Physical activities cannot be used as reward or punishment.
• Teachers will implement the High Scope curriculum (a scientifically valid research-based curriculum with standardized training practices - that is aligned with the HSELOF).
• Teachers will implement curricular enhancements to include a social and emotional focus with science infused learning opportunities along with Positive Climate, Teacher Sensitivity and behavior management outlined in the Teachstone CLASS Classroom Organization and Emotional Support Domain.

In collaboration with each child's parent and parental consent, obtain a current development screening to identify concerns regarding children's development, behavioral, motor skills, language development, social and emotional skills, within 45 calendar days from a child's enrollment. When a concern is noted on the appropriate screenings, teachers will implement the referral process to include Notification and collaboration with the Licensed Mental Health and…