Teacher Assistant

SUMMARY

The Teacher Assistant assists with all classroom and outdoor activities and field trips for assigned Head Start classroom. Assists staff with paperwork and additional duties as assigned.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned and may not cover all non-essential functions of this position.

To participate in daily and weekly planning activities.

To assist Teacher(s) with ongoing screenings and assessments of each child and development of individual curriculum.

To assist the Infant/Toddler or Preschool Teacher(s) in maintaining class records, such as parent involvement reports, home visits, etc.

To assist in maintaining a clean and orderly classroom and to take proper care of the equipment. To assist teachers in completing classroom inspections assuring a safe learning environment.

To report any problems to the Preschool or Infant/Toddler teacher, appropriate specialist and/or the Head Start Director.

To take the necessary precautions and exercise good sense to ensure the safety of children.

Understand the importance of providing young children with a wide variety of experience.

Work in cooperation with other community agencies to obtain services for Head Start families. Hand out resource file and instructions on its use.

Works with center team to maintain full enrollment and to develop a waitlist.

Assists with serving meals to the children and participates in family style meals with children; eating the same meals unless noted otherwise by physicians’ statement.

Follow all rules and regulations as written in the Performance Standards and program policies.

To monitor constantly the safety and well-being of the children. To exercise good sense where safety is concerned. To never leave a child (ren) unattended and to take precautions to prevent accidents.

To assist other center teams, on occasion, by working at their center.

Immediately reports all accidents to Central office or any unusual incident or concern particularly those which a parent may contact the Director.

To become a certified TRIS trainer.

Participates in all training sessions and maintains professionalism through continuing education and professional development opportunities, even if it means out of town training and continues to pursue degree and/or obtain any necessary certifications.

All positions in the child development program are considered child safety sensitive and therefore must pass pre-employment drug screening and submit to random drug/alcohol testing throughout the school year.

Demonstrate dependability, be cooperative, and have willingness to accept supervision.

Respect parents and recognize their strengths and differences in life styles.

To observe confidentiality in regards to staff, families and children; by not discussing a child in front of that child or any child (ren); nor by discussing a child with parents or persons outside the program. Nor by discussing information about staff or families with persons not having the need to know.

Ability to maintain poise and self-control in crisis situations.

Ability to communicate with and be sensitive to the needs of people of various backgrounds.

Exhibits excellent interpersonal and leadership skills.

Ability to focus and prioritize multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.

Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with other agencies and to be cooperative in managing referrals.

Makes good use of time and acts professionally and responsibly in all work areas.

Capable of being able to maintain a professional relationship with all entities of people (staff, Board of Directors, Policy Council Members, Collaborative Partners, officials , and the general public).

Any other duties assigned by Head Start Director or Executive Director.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

None.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily, have the knowledge, skills and/or ability required. Must have the ability to communicate with adults, parents, young children, families, coworkers, and community members. Demonstrate dependability and willingness to accept supervision.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

Must have a high school diploma or equivalent and/or have a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, or an Associate’s Degree or be enrolled in a program to obtain a CDA within 2 years of employment.

Must have six (6) hours of required state approved training within three (3) months and a minimum of fifteen (15) additional hours of training each calendar year.

Training and experience with young children and/or working with disabilities is preferable.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations. Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and to draw and interpret bar graphs.

REASONING ABILITY

Ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to a wide range of intellectual and practical problems. Ability to deal with a variety of abstract and concrete variables.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

Valid Kentucky Driver’s License and have a good driving record for five (5) years. Required to attain all certifications, licenses and registrations as directed by the Executive Director, the LKLP Board of Directors, and state and federal funding entities.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus. The employee frequently is required to sit for long periods of time. The employee may frequently be required to stand and walk throughout the day. A wide range of mobility including walking, running, climbing (step stool/bus steps), stooping, bending and carrying necessary materials to perform planning preparation, classroom activities and possible evacuation in emergencies. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds and/or occasionally lift objects from the floor to 18” inches above the shoulders.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.

Work environment is moderately quiet. Travel is required in and out of the service area.