Special Education Teacher Assistant

Designs, develops, and implements developmentally appropriate programs and lesson plans for children in their care. Will utilize various approaches to develop content and employ multiple teaching strategies to accommodate learning differences such as, those with Individual Education Plans (IEP).

Essential Job Duties & Responsibilities

Supervision of and Interaction with Children

• Assumes responsibility for the assigned children in the Teacher's classroom; meets the social, emotional, physical and cognitive developmental needs of children in routine areas of their care and throughout their planned daily schedule of activities.
• Cultivates optimal growth and development through activities while working with children during indoor and outdoor settings daily, year-round activities.
• Ensures a high level of teacher-child interaction; initiates and nurtures personalized individual relationships with each child that promote self-esteem
• Will always supervise children while in care custody and control.
• Delivers daily meals, materials, and equipment to classroom, as needed.
• Provide coverage for classroom groups or other classrooms during absence of teachers inside or outside of your site, as requested by supervisor.
• Completes accurate and timely paperwork related to children in classroom; daily lesson plans, attendance records, meal counts, heights and weights, classroom assessment observations, while entering the data into the appropriate electronic records systems.
• Utilizes screening and assessment data to complete daily lesson plans to individualize the child's developmental needs and abilities while working with the child's interests.
• Daily lesson plans will focus on teaching through the child's interests while utilizing the CLASS teaching techniques and individualize service plans.
• May be asked to assist in Individual Education Plans (IEP) meetings to help support the parents, child, and Special Services Department.
• Supervise children to and from bus pick-up and drop-off to the early learning center, as needed.

Curriculum and Instruction

• Fosters the creation of an exciting and fun learning environment based on program requirements, the High Scope Curriculum and individual assessment data.

• Completes individual assessments and screenings for children in their care; formulates plans to support children with special needs.
• Models, engages and promotes flexible and cooperative team teaching with co-workers, volunteers, parents, and student teachers.
• Implements the Conscious Discipline approach in classroom settings with all children.
• Participates in the implementation and evaluation of all activities in all content areas over the course of a year.

Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)

• Maximizes contribution of nutritional services to children's development and socialization by ensuring food is not used as punishment or reward, and that each child is encouraged, but not forced, to eat or taste food.
• Takes point of service meal counts at all meals/snacks; assists with the serving and clean-up of meal service.
• Takes steps to ensure children have adequate time to eat.
• Holds any child who is still receiving a bottle at any meal time.
• Enters meal counts into the electronic records system daily.
• Ensures children who continue to eat, while the classroom moves on to different parts of the routine, are always within vision of staff in the classroom.

Parent and Community Collaboration

• Develops caring, meaningful, and professional relationships with parents while discouraging personal involvement.
• Gives and receives daily information about the children including the daily schedule, activities, and procedures.
• All child related concerns and/or questions will be discussed with the supervisor.
• Address serious concerns immediately with their supervisor prior to speaking with the parent.
• Conducts two home visits and two parent teacher conferences per year for assigned group; provide guidance to co-workers as they prepare to do the same.
• Works cooperatively with students and volunteers, assisting them with assigned responsibilities and program activities.
• Participate in monthly planning meetings with parent/caregivers and care team members.
• Follows integrated plan created by care team.

Administrative

• Develops and implements plans that reflect the changing needs of children, including part-time enrollment, second shift lunch non-napping children, tooth-brushing and other appropriate self-care routines
• Maintains timely and accurate classroom records including attendance, food service tallies, and lesson planning; prepares anecdotal notes on a weekly basis and enters information into the electronic records systems.
• Maintains individualized children records including intake information, screening, health records, social service contacts, individual educational service plans, activity records, and transition documents
• Ensures the classroom is following all policies and procedures from all regulatory bodies, including internal policies and procedures.
• Ensures outdoor equipment is safe and kept in good condition.
• Inventories classroom supplies and requests new supplies as needed.
• Be a resource to new employees placed at your location, especially in your classroom as they become accustomed to the room, operations, and practices of our agency.

Professional Development

• Participates in in-service training, seminars, training sessions, practice based coaching sessions, formal college course work, and meetings outside the agency as a method of gaining more experience and knowledge.
• Ongoing training and education in Trauma Informed Care and Conscious Discipline.
• Maintains awareness of professional ethics and related issues.
• Keeps abreast of research and best practices.
• Implements and follows through on a Personal Professional Development Plan for continuing education; follows all current annual training requirements put forth by program funders.
• Completes10 hours of in-service trainings annually per fiscal year.

Other Job Duties & Responsibilities

• Maintains cleanliness and sanitation of the assigned classroom area, other areas in the center, toys and equipment regularly throughout the day
• Responsible for laundry within the assigned classroom - washing, drying, and folding, as needed.
• Maintains playground area by cleaning and sanitizing high touch areas after each classroom outside play.
• Assist Center with child enrollment by communicating with community members and passing out flyers.
• Other duties as assigned.

Job Qualifications:

Teacher I

• Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or related.

Teacher Assistant II

• Teacher Assistant II; Associate degree required (Early Childhood Education focus preferred).
• Ohio Department of Education (ODE) Pre-kindergarten Associates Teaching Certificate a plus.

Teacher Assistant I

• Teacher Assistant I: Childhood Development Associate (CDA) required (Infant/Toddler or Pre-School).

All Teaching Positions

• CPR/First Aid, Communicable Disease, Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention within 30 days of hire (training provided by The Centers).
• Trauma Informed Care and Conscious Discipline training within 6 months of hire.
• One year experience in a classroom setting with early childhood focus preferred.
• Occasional evening hours may be required.
• No record of child abuse or moral turpitude as determined by background check based on fingerprints.

Physical Demands/Work Environment

This job operates in the classrooms, playrooms, and year-round outdoor environment of an early learning center. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to speak, hear, and interact with young children at their physical level. The employee is frequently required to walk quickly, climb, stoop, bend, crawl, stand on a stool, sit, stand and walk for up to 8 hours, use hands and fingers, and reach with hands and arms. It requires the ability to lift supplies, equipment, and files, open/close storage cabinets, and lift children from the floor, into/out of high chairs, cribs, changing tables.

Must meet mental and physical ability requirements for employees and childcare staff members set forth by the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services rule 5101.

This job description is not intended to be a complete list of all responsibilities, duties or skills required for the job and is subject to review and change at any time, with or without notice, in accordance with the needs of The Centers. Since no position description can detail all the duties and responsibilities that may be required from time to time in the performance of a job, duties and responsibilities that may be inherent in a job, reasonably required for its performance, or required due to the changing nature of the job shall also be considered part of the jobholder's responsibility.

The Centers is an Equal Opportunity Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Other details

• Job Family Education
• Pay Type Hourly
• Hiring Rate $16.25

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