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19 Feb
2021
Teacher Upper Elementary Humanities Seminar Teacher
Job Description
Background
Libertas School of Memphis is a Montessori, liberal arts public charter elementary school serving a high-need neighborhood in Memphis. Our mission is to be a school for human flourishing: cultivating minds, hands, and hearts for lives of wonder, work, and love. We offer students from preschool through fifth grade a rich, rigorous, and personalized education through Montessori learning, supported with rich liberal arts content through Core Knowledge, and the best practices of high-performing urban schools. This work is done within an attachment village of supports between school, families, and our community.
Role Summary: Teach standards-aligned humanities courses for fourth and fifth grades in a departmentalized program, and lead a homeroom of fourth and/or fifth grade students. (Montessori certification is not required for this position.)
Role Information
- Full-time role. Full-time instructional hours roughly 7:30 AM – 3:30 PM (faculty meetings until 4:30 PM on Wednesdays).
- The role primarily follows the school calendar, although it may require approximately 1-2 additional weeks of work in the summer for planning. (An additional stipend is provided for the summer work.)
- Reports to: Principal.
- Key relationships: Upper Elementary Lead Teachers & Assistant Teachers, Academic Coordinator, and Consulting Teacher
Measures of Success
- Fidelity of implementation of, and student progress through, curriculum
- Student growth and achievement on annual published school metrics (e.g. internal benchmarks, MAP, TN Ready, etc)
- Timely, high quality planning
- Family satisfaction
- Satisfactory performance evaluations
- Other indicators
Key responsibilities
- Participate in implementation of an upper elementary (fourth and fifth grades) literature-based humanities curriculum that builds world knowledge and vocabulary; is aligned to state standards and the Montessori philosophy; supports writing instruction; incorporates high-quality literature; and helps prepare children to excel in a middle school classroom.
- Serve as homeroom teacher for a community of upper elementary students. Collaborate with an upper elementary teaching team made up of a math teacher, a humanities teacher, two Montessori Lead Teachers, and several Assistant Teachers. Lead a peaceful, orderly, rich, nurturing classroom that cultivates children’s minds, hearts, and hands for lives of wonder, work, and love.
- Coordinate with supervisor and colleagues to ensure that instruction is appropriate for the environment; aligned with both Montessori practice and the literacy program of Libertas; and matched with the specific needs of each child.
- Collect and record data about each child’s academic abilities and needs, and share this data with other classroom teachers, consulting teachers and support staff, and families.
- Foster habits of excellence, including order and grace & courtesy, through schoolwide and classroom-level practices and rituals, such as connecting before redirecting, using a warm and firm tone, matching children with works in the environment, tending the heart of virtue through presenting beautiful literature, and sharing responsibility for all our children
- Be a model of character and striving toward virtue for students
- Supervise students within the classroom and outside of the classroom, including at lunch, recess, arrival, and dismissal.
- Foster relationships with families to enable open and responsive communication about student growth and needs. Conduct or participate in family communication and meetings on a regular basis.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications and Traits
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- At least three years of effective teaching experience with upper elementary or middle school children in high-need communities
- Exceptional classroom management skills and instructional practices
- Willingness to serve all children, regardless of background or needs, in an inclusive and supportive setting
- Knowledge of curriculum content and children’s developmental needs
- Interest in and commitment to Montessori and liberal arts
- Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
- Bachelor’s degree and state teaching license required
- Love of learning
- Flexibility, initiative, and personal responsibility to work in fast-paced, startup environment
- Fortitude for the challenges we will face
- Warm and firm demeanor
- Work collaboratively and with a growth mindset. Give and receive feedback in a spirit of craftsmanship.
Compensation
- Salary/wage competitive with the local school district and nearby charter schools.
- Eligible for increases, bonuses, or stipends for performance or additional duties.
- Investment in faculty professional development and growth. We also offer to eligible applicants our Teacher Residency program, which provides financial sponsorship and additional coaching and support to achieve state licensure and/or Montessori certification. Please contact us for more details.
- Paid sick leave for full-time employees. Deferred pay model distributes salary throughout the year (including breaks and vacations).
- Full time employees are eligible for health insurance benefits, which we sponsor at an above-market rate (approx. 80% covered by employer for all levels of coverage). We also offer dental, vision, and other benefits, and retirement plans similar to local schools.
