JOB TITLE: Wild River Grades Teacher

Supervisor: Director

Job Hours and Benefits: 5 sick days, 5 PTO days, CalSavers Individual Retirement Savings Plan, Health insurance: Medical, Dental and Vision, 178 work days (172 student days + 6 in-service days), 8 hours per day (7:30am – 5:00pm).

Job Purpose Statement: A Grades Teacher is responsible for providing a comprehensive education program for homeschool students in a manner that nurtures and guides them according to the needs of each individual child, the family and the community as a whole while supporting the vision & mission of Wild River. Our Grades Teachers stay with their classes typically through grades 1st-5th or 1st-8th.

Essential Job Functions:

• Instruct students in reading and language arts, social studies, mathematics, science, health, physical education, art and music based on a Waldorf methods curriculum and incorporates the attainment of the California Common Core Standards
• Understand the model of child development that underlies the Waldorf curriculum and provide a level of instruction based on each student’s reasonable achievement potential by drawing on and valuing individual backgrounds, interest, temperaments, development of social skills and artistic preparation, through lesson preparation and classroom management.
• Ability to provide for the children a conscious model of responsible behavior that together with loving authority and discipline, conveys to them a living sense of respect, reverence, and gratitude.
• Promote self-directed, reflective learning for all students by engaging students in problem solving, critical thinking and other activities that make subject matter meaningful.
• Establish and articulate goals for student learning though the designing and implementing of both short and long term classroom projects.
• Ability to teach academic content as well as share personal talents and interest to contribute to Wild River’s specialty class and/or after school offerings.
• Ability to develop strong cooperative relationships with both students and their parents. Maintain well-organized records and submit required work samples and attendance in a timely way.
• Perform a variety of specialized tasks and meet schedules and deadlines of partnering organizations and families.
• Actively engage parents in the children’s education and provide them with relevant and appropriate feedback regarding their child’s growth, development and progress.
• Nurture a healthy, positive relationship with each parent and among the parent group.
• Perform recess, play, before and after hours pickup duty when needed as assigned by the director.
• Attend weekly faculty meetings, scheduled in-service days, student success (SSTs) teams, I.E.P. meetings, community festivals and other events where the teacher’s attendance is required (ie plays, assemblies, field trips).
• Help organize fieldtrips, group meet-ups, and events that help foster community within their group of students and the larger Wild River Community.
• Consistently informs parents of information on field trips, testing, workshops, or any other school events/gatherings.
• Identify students who may have special needs and bring those students to the attention of the administrator for inclusion in the school’s Student Study Team.
• Work cooperatively with a students Special Education team to ensure that children with special needs will have a successful educational experience.
• Prepare and support students fully for both formative and summative assessment activities, as well as any and all state-mandated assessment events.Use assessments of student progress to make adjustments as necessary.
• May work one-on-one with a student having difficulty or recommend an approved tutor.
• Report information, in a timely manner, regarding student’s attendance and learning, which includes submission of documentation concerning the need for SST or SPED Testing, monthly SIS reporting, and audit portfolios.
• Hold individual conferences with the families of each child a minimum of two times during the school year, once in the fall and once near the end of the school year, to share the annual written report of the child’s progress.
• Write year-end student reports for students 1st through 5th grades which will include an assessment of academic progress and the child’s social, emotional and physical growth.
• Foster a healthy, supportive relationship with all colleagues.
• Attend weekly faculty meetings, as well as all Staff and parent/class meetings and community events as scheduled on the school calendar
• Support community event planning when appropriate and participation from classes is required
• Contribute a “community spirit” and a willingness to participate when possible in support of the school community.
• Participate in a mentoring or co-mentoring program, and in self-evaluation. When applicable, supervise and participate in evaluation of co-teacher.
• Participate in teacher enrichment opportunities, continuing education, and workshops, particularly those that support Waldorf curriculum and education.
• Preparation and ongoing maintenance of an orderly, clean and beautiful classroom throughout the year.
• Support the efforts of special subject teachers.
• Uphold school policies and procedures concerning attendance, disciplinary action, student attire, classroom decorum, etc.
• Abide by Wild River policies and procedures, Personnel Policies for Certificated Personnel and the At-Will or Fixed-term contract.
• Employee shall perform additional duties as assigned by their supervisor that may not be enumerated in the above, but lie within their general contractual obligations and do not interfere with the employee's primary responsibilities.

Job Requirements and Qualifications:

Experience Required: 2+ years working with elementary age children in an educational setting. Waldorf experience, training or Certificate desirable.

Education Required: BA plus a California teaching credential, or a degree in Education.

Skills: Use correct english in both written and verbal form, use correct spelling, grammar and punctuation, remain calm and focused under pressure, work effectively unsupervised, keep errors to a minimum and efficiency to a maximum. Must have good communication skills with parents, students and staff. Willingness to work in outdoor settings.

Knowledge of rules, regulations, policies and laws applicable to educating homeschool students. Knowledge of therapy and behavior intervention strategies, child development, counseling and consultation methods, outdoor education and a variety of class management and educational strategies required.

Ability to sit for prolonged periods, work independently, understand and carry out oral and written instructions. Ability to interact with persons of different age groups and cultural backgrounds. Ability to manage stressful situations with employees and community groups. Significant physical abilities include reaching / handling / fingering for handwork / talking / listening, near visual acuity/visual accommodation.

Physical Demands:

• Frequent: Walking, sitting, lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling
• Occasional: Climbing, running, jumping
• Maximum Weights: Lift 50 lbs. Carry 25 lbs.

Licenses, Certifications, Bonding, and/or Testing Required: Hold a valid California Teaching Credential or its equivalent. Waldorf Certification preferred. Must have a valid Driver’s License and evidence of insurability, Criminal Justice Fingerprint Clearance, TB Clearance. A First Aid and CPR, WFR or First Responder Certificate are highly desirable.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $64,000.00 - $80,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Optional Individual IRA
• Health insurance: Medical, Dental and Vision
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift

Experience:

• Teaching experience: atleast 1 year

Please send the following to: hiring@wild-river.org

• Letter of intent addressing why you wish to be employed at Wild River
• Resume
• Short biography providing further insights about you and your teaching experience
• Three professional references

Thank you for your interested in working with Wild River!