Preschool Teacher Assistant

About the role

The Teacher Assistant in collaboration with the Lead Teacher provides support in effective instructional strategies, classroom management, learning, assessment, evaluation and related research for children 3-5 years old. The Assistant Teacher is responsible for providing developmentally appropriate learning experiences, supervision of children assigned in the classroom, and providing a supportive and positive classroom climate, while ensuring the individual needs of the children are met as mandated by DCFS, ExceleRate Illinois, NAEYC, federal, state and local standards, as applicable.

Responsibilities

• Promotes and models high quality teaching and learning in the classroom that fosters academic readiness.
• Demonstrates culturally and linguistically appropriate practices that values all children and families and makes them feel welcomed and an essential part of the program.
• Maintains awareness and supervision of children’s needs and ensure their physical health and safety, at all times.
• Affords assistance in communicating and developing effective partnerships with parents and families, encouraging parent involvement.
• Absolves with DCFS and all quality standards for maintaining safe, high-quality programming.
• Collaborates regularly with classroom team including families, volunteers and all staff.
• Affords assistance in collecting and using multiple data sources, both formative and summative, to inform instruction and child centered learning and development.
• Affords assistance in completing routine professional development annually; utilizes continuous quality improvement (CQI); and identifies different instructional resources and methods to meet children's varying needs and improve the classroom experience for children and families.
• Participates and supports association/center efforts towards recruitment, enrollment, attendance and retention of families while supporting the YMCA's mission and center operations as needed.
• Learns and implements lesson plans with goals, objectives, activities and outcomes for children that integrate health, nutrition, mental health, disabilities and parent involvement.
• Affords assistance in implementing high quality, developmentally appropriate instructional activities and curriculum approaches (like Creative Curriculum™) that facilitate active learning experiences and promote the social, emotional, physical and cognitive development of each child; while ensuring the program follows DCFS, YMCA, ExceleRate Illinois™, and NAEYC accreditation standards, if applicable.
• Takes the lead in absence of the lead teacher.
• Affords assistance in planning developmentally appropriate and engaging early learning experiences based upon the emergent needs of the child.
• Affords assistance in leveraging the physical environment and pedagogical documentation to support teaching and learning practices.
• Affords assistance in establishing and maintaining an attractive, clean, safe and engaging classroom environment which includes positive guidance techniques and that encourages children's independence and self-selection of activities.
• Affords assistance in classroom management, arrangement, organization, and labeling materials.
• Affords assistance in completing classroom inventory quarterly; and the selection of materials and equipment to support instruction and children’s learning using environmental assessments to guide decisions.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent (GED) and a minimum of 6 college credit hours in Early Childhood Education required.
• ECE Child Development Associate (CDA) or comparable credential (Minimum: Gateways Level 2 ECE credential) preferred.
• Must have prior experience working with children.
• Basic knowledge of child growth and development as well as developmentally appropriate practices for children ages 2-5.
• Ability to analyze and interpret state and Local Standards as well as State and local licensing requirements.
• Ability to build rapport with children, families, and colleagues.
• Child Abuse Prevention - Supports the YMCA’s commitment to child abuse prevention by:
• Reporting any items that may provide a health or safety hazard to staff, members or guests to your supervisor.
• Following all policies and procedures related to keeping children safe in our facilities and programs, including those related to the monitoring and supervision of children.
• Reporting any suspicious behavior and violation of policy and procedures to your supervisor.
• Completing all child abuse prevention training as required.