Teacher AppleTree Resident Teacher
Job Description
The AppleTree Early Learning Teacher Residency provides the Resident with the appropriate training, education and knowledge in order to be successful during their residency year and the following years as a Lead Teacher. The Resident is part of a 3-person instructional team, under the leadership of a Lead Teacher. The Resident supports the Lead Teacher in all facets of instructional planning and implementation. Through a gradual release model, the Resident takes on more responsibilities as the year progresses.
The Residency is a two-year program, including a residency year and support during the first year as a Lead Teacher. The residency year is an apprenticeship during which Residents gain teaching competencies and expand their knowledge of the development of young children, the ways in which young children learn and scientifically based practice to support the social, emotional, and cognitive development of young children. Upon successful completion of the residency year and passing of the Praxis Exams, Residents receive the opportunity to interview to become a Lead Teacher for the following school year.
Duties and Responsibilities
Actively engages in the Residency program to learn and develop instructional skills
- Observes strong instructional practice within one’s classroom and in other classrooms, during opportunities such as Instructional Rounds.
- Incorporates coaching and feedback from regular observations conducted by Instructional Leader and AppleTree Leadership Team members.
- Participates in all required professional development sessions and coursework which includes:
- Weekly 3-to-4-hour practice sessions to develop and perfect their teaching skills.
- Approximately 8 hours of weeknight sessions per month
- Online instruction (8-10 hours per month)
- Aligned assessments to demonstrate mastery of key teaching skills
Supports the development of young children
- Implements the Every Child Ready instructional model with fidelity, which includes instructional activities that encourage children’s abilities to analyze, conceptualize, synthesize, and evaluate.
- Creates safe, clean, attractive, and engaging physical learning environments that encourage both exploration and complex play.
- Plans intentional, systematic, playful, and engaging activities that promote children’s understanding of the way things work and the world around them into the thematic curriculum.
- Skillfully and systematically motivates students to participate in activities that support the development of their early literacy and mathematical skills.
- Incorporates adequate time for student talk and encourages children’s language use throughout the day. Intentionally provides modeling and support for children’s expressive and receptive language.
- Explicitly teaches children how to recognize and manage their feelings.
Meets the needs of diverse learners
- Uses a variety of observational and direct assessment tools in collaboration with ECR standards to determine children’s varying needs and opportunities in order to differentiate instruction for all children.
- Actively seeks out available resources and supports for children who are not making expected progress, provides additional support for students in need of remediation and differentiation in the classroom.
- Establishes clear behavior expectations, rules, and procedures to maximize learning time. Ensures effective implementation of universal behavior management systems as well as targeted plans to support student behavior.
- Fosters tolerance and a sense of community in their classrooms, modeling and explicitly teaching acceptance and appreciation of others.
- Collaborates and cooperates with related service providers and student support staff (SPED, ELL, PBS, etc.) to ensure the needs of all children are met, as needed.
Collaborates with families and communities
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Actively seeks to make connections with their children’s family members and other important people in their children’s lives.
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Solicits parents and community members to share their skills, experiences, and cultures in the classroom.
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Regularly communicates the school’s and individual children’s educational goals and progress to families.
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Supports school-wide family engagement activities (i.e. planning, communicating, and/or leading) and participates in at least one family event each month.
Contributes to a community of practice
- Plans collaboratively and shares ideas and resources with instructional team.
- Meets with Lead Teacher regularly to review and support fidelity to AppleTree Early Learning Teacher Residency.
- Actively participates in school and network wide professional development opportunities provided, integrating strategies and methods into their practice.
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Communicates professionally and constructively with colleagues.
- Fulfills the standards of professionalism including appropriate dress, attendance, and timeliness.
Requirements
Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater by May 2018 and possess strong verbal and mathematical abilities. Ideal candidates will demonstrate determination to succeed, creativity, initiative, a passion for social justice, and a strong desire to improve the educational outcomes for young children. Experience working with young children is preferred. The program begins with a 2-week, in-person summer session in July. The official dates of the summer term are released in Spring 2018, and dates vary slightly by year. In addition, Residents will put their practice into action during the summer after their residency year with continued coursework.
Disclaimer
- The preceding description is not designed to be a complete list of all duties and responsibilities required of the Resident.
