EARLY HEAD START TEACHER (EHS)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Responsible for a classroom of children 0-3 years of age. Work collaboratively with his/her partner Teacher to ensure the successful operation of a classroom with a total of 6-8 children. Along with families and colleagues, work to achieve meaningful progress of each child along his/her own unique developmental path and toward school readiness goals.

TASKS AND ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Use knowledge of the principles of child growth and development to work with children and communicate with families, internal and external stakeholders.

2. Implement child-centered daily routine, curriculum and learning environment that encourages the development of age-appropriate positive social interactions, active exploration/ engagement in learning, and self-motivation (curiosity) to promote development in all domains for children of all abilities.

3. Understand the development of self-regulation in infants-toddlers as well as age-appropriate expectations for pro-social behaviors. Creates a nurturing, responsive environment that promotes positive and development of social and emotional competencies. Observes closely and with understanding to determine possible causes of challenging behavior, implementing preventive measures, teaching children new social and communication skills in partnership with families.

4. Use observations of children and anecdotal notes to document children’s progress and individualize curriculum

5. Creates partnerships with families to establish positive interaction patterns in program, school, and home.

6. Will assist in ensuring that the written curriculum includes:

a. goals for children’s development and learning;

b. the experiences through which children will achieve these goals;

c. what staff and parents can do to help children achieve these goals;

d. the materials needed to support the implementation of the curriculum towards achieving the stated goals;

e. Support the social and emotional development of children.

f. Responsible for collaborating with a partner Teacher in the preparation of daily lesson plans. Post them for parents, volunteers and visitors in the classroom

7. Will 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.

8. Planning and implementing learning experiences that advance the cognitive and physical development of children, including progress toward school readiness goals by developing their language (understanding and increasingly complex use, expanding vocabulary) emergent literacy, print and numeracy awareness, their appreciation of books and their problem-solving abilities.

9. Follow program curriculum providing ample opportunities for natural play and hands on experiences that reflect the learning styles of individual children in the group.

10. Implement developmentally and linguistically appropriate experiences appropriate to age, language and culture of children served.

11. Establish and maintain a safe, healthy learning environment.

12. Implement experiential learning activities advancing the intellectual and emotional competence of infants and toddlers.

13. Provide positive guidance and discipline supporting children as they acquire readiness skills for kindergarten and beyond.

14. 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.

15. Implement Individual Family Services Plans (IFSPs) for children with disabilities.

16. Provide children with a consistent classroom routine that is responsive to individual infants and toddlers’ needs.

17. Provide supervision and ensure the safety and security of children at all times in accordance with Early Head Start and day care licensing requirements.

18. Supervise and eat nutritionally prepared meals and/or snacks with the children as a curriculum activity (toddlers and 2’s) to model good nutrition and proper social skills for infants and toddlers.

19. Feed all infants on demand.

20. Hold all non-mobile infants during feeding.

21. Supervise all classroom field trips and outdoor activities.

22. Understand regulations associated with prevention of disease and injury, including proper diapering procedures, and the exercise of universal precautions, and the prevention of contamination.

23. Invite parent involvement in the development of the program’s curriculum and approach to child development and education.

24. Encourage the involvement of the families of the children in a Early/ Head Start program and supporting the development of relationships between children and their families.

25. Provide opportunities for parents to increase their child observation skills and to share assessments with staff that help plan the learning experiences.

26. Encourage parent participation in staff-parent conferences and home visits discussing their child’s development and education.

27. Establish positive and productive relationships with families focusing on building trust and rapport.

28. Work with a partner Teacher to schedule and complete two home visits per year and at least two parent-teacher conferences per year.

29. Participate in parent orientation and ongoing parent trainings as required.

30. Identify and refer parents wanting to volunteer in the classroom, work as substitutes or in other volunteer activities to their Family Advocate. Support parent volunteers in classroom as needed.

31. Share pertinent information with Family Advocate ensuring coordinated services to meet the needs of individual children and families. Participate in case conferences as appropriate.

32. Maintain regular contact with parents and complete appropriate documentation (e.g. daily reporting on infant sleep, eating and elimination).

33. Forward classroom updates to the Center Director to be included in monthly newsletter.

34. Direct developmental concerns to the Health, Nutrition and Disabilities Coordinator.

35. Request supplies as needed and participate in classroom/program inventory as requested.

36. Gather and maintain individual, family and classroom data for documentation, on-going assessment, evaluation and recording keeping for successful individual and program planning.

37. Conduct daily health checks.

38. Assess children on an on-going basis. Gather and organize anecdotal notes into the key goals and objectives and document in GOLD.

39. Work with the teaching team to analyze child outcomes on a classroom basis twice yearly, consult with education leadership and make adjustments to curriculum planning and implementation as needed.

40. Model appropriate classroom practices.

41. Work with the Center Director and partner Teacher to develop and support the individual development plan for assigned volunteers.

42. Maintain the plan to meet changing or emergent program requirements within available resources and with minimum sacrifice to quantity or quality of work.

43. Participate actively in bi-weekly Team Meetings to reflect on performance, generate solutions and ensure high-quality classroom operations.

44. Participate actively in bi-weekly Teacher Meetings.

45. Participates in assigned meetings, events and training as required.

46. Performs any and all other duties as assigned.

EXPERIENCE, EDUCATION, SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED:

● Infant/Toddler CDA –OR- AA/BA in Early Childhood Education or related field with at least 120 training hours in Infant/Toddler content plus at least 480 hours of experience working with infant and toddlers

● 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.

● Ability to interact effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.

● Ability to communicate effectively, verbally and in writing.

● 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.

DISCLAIMER: The information presented indicates the general nature and level of work expected of employees in this classification. It is not designed to contain, nor to be interpreted as, a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, qualifications and objectives required of employees assigned to this job.

Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.