About the Department and Role

JobTrain’s Child Development Center serves the children of our clients as well as those of other parents in the community.  Our teachers use an emergent play-based approach to nurture and stimulate children's development.

We are seeking a lead preschool teacher for current team of preschool teachers. This team of professionals is responsible for overseeing the classroom environment and teaching children including, but not limited to, instruction, evaluation, and parent conferences regarding the development and progression of each child.  We serve up to 24 diverse children and use a Play-based Learning Curriculum in an active, team-oriented classroom setting.

Our onsite work schedule is: Monday - Friday 6:45am - 5:00pm (8-hour shifts scheduled within these hours)

Lead Teacher Role Overview

The Lead Teacher serves as a positive role model for staff, parents, and children. S/he is responsible for demonstrating respectful communication, effective problem-solving, and sound priority-setting skills while maintaining a consistently positive and professional attitude. The Lead Teacher provides supervision, guidance, and training to Teachers, Teacher Aides, Interns, and Parent Volunteers daily and/or as needed.
S/he must possess strong written communication skills and maintain accurate and up-to-date documentation for each child. The Teacher is responsible for the overall care and development of children, which includes teaching, implementing a culturally relevant curriculum, and creating a developmentally appropriate classroom environment.

Essential Duties

Curriculum

• Develop and implement a high-quality play-based curriculum that foster children’s cognitive, language and literacy, social-emotional, and physical development in accordance with the California State Preschool Program (CSPP) and California Preschool Curriculum Framework.
• Planning & Organization: Ability to plan and organize age-appropriate curriculum and learning experiences.

• Collaborate with the Teachers to ensure a balance of child-directed and adult-directed activities each day, incorporating both individual and small-group experiences that support development in literacy, language, numeracy, problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, concept formation and CLASS standards.

• Use a variety of strategies to promote and support children’s learning, including informal and formal observations, on-going assessments, and documentation of progress. Maintain accurate and individualized records of children’s developmental progress using the Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP), including detailed observations, work samples, and photos.
• Conduct developmental screenings and child assessments, prepare and submitting required reports within established deadlines.
• Prepare individualized Summary or Your Child’s Development specifying each child’s strengths and developmental goals and the mutual education plan with the parents.

• Provide materials and equipment that offer a variety of engaging, developmentally appropriate, and age-appropriate learning experiences.
• Ensure that the classroom environment meets all safety standards established by the program and complies with state and federal regulations.
• Maintain a well-organized, clean, and pleasant classroom where both children and adults feel comfortable and secure (e.g., children’s toys and staff materials are properly labeled).
• Conduct transitions in a consistent, timely, predictable, and calm manner according to each child’s individual needs.
• Create an environment and implement curriculum that supports and encourages acceptance and respect for diversity, including gender, culture, language, ethnicity, and family composition.

• Plan and implement outdoor learning experiences that enhance children’s physical, cognitive, and social development.
• Actively interact with and closely supervise children during all outdoor activities to ensure safety and engagement.
• Demonstrate the ability to bend, lift, and carry a child (up to 50 lbs.) when needed and effectively manage groups of children in outdoor environments.

• Provide developmentally appropriate activities and guidance that help each child build self-awareness, confidence, and a positive self-image.
• Create experiences that foster independence, trust, and a sense of accomplishment to support competence, self-esteem, and a lifelong love of learning.
• Encourage children to express, understand, and manage their emotions in a safe, nurturing environment.
• Support the development of self-control by setting clear, consistent, and realistic expectations and boundaries.
• Foster positive peer relationships by offering opportunities for cooperation, communication, and mutual respect while celebrating cultural and ethnic diversity.
• Maintain a positive and predictable daily routine with simple, consistent, and developmentally appropriate rules understood and respected by all adults and children.
• Model empathy, respect, and professionalism in all interactions with children, families, and colleagues.

• Conduct a minimum of two Parent-Teacher Conferences annually to discuss each child’s developmental progress, set goals, and plan strategies for continued growth both at home and school.
• Remain available and approachable for parents on both formal and informal occasions, fostering open communication, trust, shared responsibility for children’s development and established mutual expectation regarding learning experiences and goals for their children in the classroom.
• Plan and implement family engagement, trainings, events and/or activities on a consistent basis.

• Provide supervision, guidance, and training to the Teachers, Teacher Aides, Interns, and Parent Volunteers on a daily and as-needed basis to ensure a cohesive and effective teaching team.
• Conduct weekly team meetings to promote communication, collaboration, and consistency within the classroom team.
• Engage in ongoing staff development and professional training opportunities to enhance knowledge, skills, and program quality.
• Perform other related duties as assigned to support the overall operation and goals of the program.

• Education Requirements: Child Development Teacher Permit or 16 units + required ECE units. Including Supervise Field Experience course. 
• Job Knowledge: Familiarity with Federal, State, and local childcare regulations; Title V requirements; DRDP 2015; and CLASS preferred.
• Records: Maintain accurate and up-to-date records for attendance, meal counts, parent participation, and other special events.
• Interpersonal & Communication Skills: Demonstrated passion for connecting with and caring for children; strong verbal and written communication skills; ability to collaborate effectively with colleagues and families. Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred but not required.
• Dependability: Consistent attendance and punctuality; ability to follow established procedures and complete tasks on time.
• Flexibility & Initiative: Professional adaptability to meet changing classroom and program needs; proactive problem-solving and support.
• Physical Requirements: Ability to lift up to 50 lbs. in an emergency and engage in activities at the child’s level (e.g., kneeling, sitting, standing, walking).
• Technical Skills: Basic proficiency with Microsoft Office 365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and willingness to learn other technology used in the program.

Additional Information

We want applicants who are interested in JobTrain’s mission, and we encourage you to attach a cover letter to explain why you are interested in JobTrain and how your experience matches with our needs.

At JobTrain, we take the interview process very seriously. If you are selected to move through the process you should expect a couple of telephone screen calls and one or two Zoom / on-site interviews as part of the interview process.

JobTrain is an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. Additionally, JobTrain does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, ethnic background, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, physical or mental disability or national origin.

Also, please note:

• Our focus is on local candidates, we do not offer relocation benefits.
• Successful candidates must have legal residency and work eligibility in the United States (per INS Form I-9 instructions).
• JobTrain will require the successful candidate to undergo a background check.