Children's House Lead Teacher

JOB SUMMARY

The Montessori Program is built upon a strong developmental curriculum that develops skills through a broad range of learning opportunities.  Classrooms are multi-age grouped and the Montessori philosophy directs the way in which learning occurs.  Teachers in this environment support students' growth and development through interactions based on respect for the unique learning styles and needs of each child.

Essential Functions

Instructional  

• Implement the Montessori curriculum consistent with the goals and mission statement of the school.
• Develop and implement individual lesson plans to address the learning and behavioral needs of students.
• Present individual and small group lessons consistent with the Montessori curriculum and philosophy. 
• Conduct full group meetings with students for sharing and community building activities as appropriate.
• Coordinate delivery of instruction with other teachers and specialists when indicated.

Preparation of Learning Environment 

• Prepare a learning environment equipped with developmentally appropriate Montessori materials.
• Supplement the core Montessori materials with quality teacher made or commercial materials.
• Maintain an inventory of classroom materials and requisition materials and supplies as needed.
• Be responsible for the general order and appearance of the classroom.
• Be responsible for start of year set-up and year-end clean-up and storage of classroom and materials.

Assessment and Record Keeping

• Follow the school’s policies for documentation and maintenance of various types of student records.
• Use appropriate observational and assessment methods to evaluate, monitor and record student progress.
• Identify students who exhibit special learning, behavioral, or physical needs and follow the school’s established procedures to obtain needed evaluations and or services with administrative involvement.
• Participate in transition planning for students as they move from one program level to another.

Parent Communication

• Meet with new parents prior to the entrance of a new student and document information gathered.
• Prepare written reports and conduct parent-teacher conferences according to school schedule.
• Attend all Parent Ed and Program evenings and be available to communicate with parents as needed.
• Keep the Director of Education informed on any issues related to children and parents.

Supervision

• Supervise the responsibilities of any co-teacher, assistant teacher or aide assigned to the classroom and provide input for annual staff reviews of those assigned.
• If assigned a student intern, follow the established practice and responsibilities as outlined by the school and training program.

Health and Safety

• Supervise and be aware of the safety of the children at all times. If an accident occurs, follow established procedures and prepare an accident report form for notification of parents.
• Monitor children for signs of illness, injury or suspected abuse /neglect and report concerns to Head of School.
• Review the school’s Emergency Operations Plan and all safety procedures and participate in monthly drill procedures and related trainings.

Staff Development and Communication

• Attend all designated staff meetings as scheduled during, before and/or after school and contribute to committee/level work.
• Attend all school in-services as scheduled during teacher work weeks and during the school year.
• Participate in Montessori and other professional development programs and maintain documentation to meet AMS standards and Department of Education certification requirements.
• Participate in review procedures to assess skills as related to responsibilities and goal plan.
• Read monthly newsletters and other forms of school communication to stay aware of the events of the school.  Contribute to these avenues of communication when appropriate.
• Support school events such as fundraisers and participate in educational events in the community.

Performs other duties as assigned by the Director of Education – Elementary.

Performs in accordance with school policy, administrative regulations, state and federal laws.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Education

• PA State Teaching Public or Private School Certification

Work Experience

• Montessori teaching experience.

Licenses Required for the Position

• AMS Montessori certification 
• Current and valid PA Motor Vehicle Driving License

Special Requirements

• Position may be full or part time: full or partial day / full or partial week.  Hours vary depending on program/level. Additional time may be required for parent evenings, Open House, Annual Corporation Meeting, special school events, etc. as needed.
• Participate in certification programs for meet all Emergency First Aid, CPR and Fire Safety as required.
• A teacher with Department of Education Certification but without an AMS/AMS certification may function as a Lead Teacher if needed on a provisional basis. i.e. when doing a self-directed Montessori internship.  Approval must be obtained by AMS for this exception.

Knowledge/Ability

• Understanding of the Montessori philosophy of education and the developmental needs of the child and an awareness of the school’s Mission and Beliefs and policies that govern the school.

Temperament

• Must possess excellent interpersonal skills.

• Must be cooperative, congenial, and service oriented.

• Able to make judgments and work in situations that may be stressful.

• Must be courteous and able to effectively manage job responsibilities.

• Must be cooperative, congenial, service oriented, and promote these qualities.

• Ability to work in an environment with frequent interruptions.

• Ability to be respectful and empathetic.

Cognitive Ability

• Ability to communicate effectively.

• Ability to organize tasks.

• Ability to exercise good judgment.

• Ability to provide written and verbal directions, to read and write, to communicate effectively, to organize tasks, to handle multiple tasks, and to exercise good judgment.

• Ability to establish and maintain rapport with PennMont Academy Board of Directors, Head of School, co-workers and parents.

• Ability to work on multiple tasks and prioritize appropriately.

• Ability to recognize areas of concern and propose or recommend appropriate solutions to problems.

Specific Skills

• Must possess active listening skills.

• Must possess conflict mediation skills.

• Plans and prioritizes assignments effectively. Able to handle several ongoing tasks and projects at once.

• Able to adjust to changes in the work environment.

• Reports to work on time, gives a full day’s work and makes effective use of time while on the job.

• Maintains a good attitude toward management, fellow employees and parents.

• Proofreads work for grammar and spelling accuracy.

• Ability to compose clear, concise sentences and paragraphs.

Workplace Expectations

• Acknowledges individuals’ requests and handles them in a friendly and courteous manner.

• Promotes a positive team environment through active cooperation with others.

• Maintains awareness of the PennMont’s policies and procedures. Follows the chain of command.

• Shows initiative and works with minimal supervision.

• When appropriate, incorporates progressive ideas/concepts into daily responsibilities.

• Responds appropriately to supervision and direction.

• Dresses appropriately for job environment.

• Ability to follow directions and give direction to others.

• Ability to work independently and make work-related decisions.

• Ability to exercise good judgment in prioritizing tasks.

• Ability to communicate effectively at all organizational levels.

• Ability to appropriately handle confidential information in accordance with school policies.

Physical Requirements

The physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

The physical activity of this position. 

• Stooping. Bending body downward and forward by bending spine at the waist. This factor is important if it occurs to a considerable degree and requires full motion of the lower extremities and back muscles.

• Kneeling. Bending legs at knee to come to a rest on knee or knees.

• Crouching. Bending the body downward and forward by bending leg and spine.

• Reaching. Extending hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction.

• Walking. Moving about on foot to accomplish tasks, particularly for long distances or moving from one work site to another.

• Pushing. Using upper extremities to press against something with steady force in order to thrust forward, downward or outward.

• Fingering. Picking, pinching, typing or otherwise working, primarily with fingers rather than with the whole hand as in handling.

• Grasping. Applying pressure to an object with the fingers and palm.

• Feeling. Perceiving attributes of objects, such as size, shape, temperature or texture by touching with skin, particularly that of fingertips.

• Talking. Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word. Those activities in which they must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.

• Hearing. Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction. Ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and to make the discriminations in sound.

The physical requirements of this position. 

• Medium work. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10- 20 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. 

The visual acuity requirements including color, depth perception, and field vision. 

• The worker is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading.

The conditions the worker will be subject to in this position. 

• None. The worker is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions (such as in typical office or administrative work.)