Classroom Engagement Aide

Summary

WACOG is the Head Start Grantee for Mohave, La Paz and Yuma Counties. Our programs focus on school readiness for all children and families. As a leader in quality early childhood programs in the area, WACOG is a champion of developmentally appropriate practices.


Under close supervision, partner with classroom staff to support developmentally sensitive care while helping engage typical and atypical children in classroom settings.

Duties

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties and responsibilities.

• Assume responsibility for the care, safety, and welfare of the children through active supervision; take responsibility for the daily operations in the classroom; abide by the Program Standard of Conduct.
• Apply age appropriate teaching techniques and positive behavior management skills while working with preschool age children. Provide children a safe, nurturing, stimulating, and enjoyable learning environment through positive behavior management techniques and constant ("Active") supervision during all activities including instructional, playground, combined staff and child meal times, hand washing, and teeth brushing.
• Become familiar with the classroom and individual child's needs, including known allergies, lesson plans, schedule, and routine; engage with the children immediately and consistently.
• Understand and adhere to WACOG and applicable external regulations, policies and procedures, and safety standards to include Head Start Program Performance Standards, Arizona Child Care Licensing, CACFP, and all Mandated Reporters requirements regarding suspected child abuse and/or neglect.
• Build rapports with all children in the classroom. This includes the ability to maintain eye contact, self-regulate, practice patience, establish routines, create consistency and provide a safe environment. The candidate will also attend to children in crisis, promote mindfulness, model deep breathing and de-escalate challenging situations.
• Maintain respectful partnerships with families, including communicating with parents professionally, that support family well-being, strong relationships between parents and their children, and ongoing learning and development for both parents and children.
• Become familiar with weekly lesson plans that align with Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework and WACOG's School Readiness Goals to ensure children's daily experiences provide multi-cultural and dual language opportunities that lead to improvements in cognitive, social/emotional, and physical growth.
• Provide ongoing observations to evaluate each child's growth and development while maintaining the confidentiality of child, family and program information.
• Attend parent/teacher conferences as needed.
• Actively participate to build and maintain a professional and collaborative instructional team that includes Teachers, Assistant Teachers, parents, and volunteers; mentor and lead other classroom staff.
• Clean and disinfect assigned areas on a regular basis and as needed.
• Develop professionally by taking educational training or workshops as required.
• Maintain reliable and predictable attendance; work outside of standard business hours as needed.
• Utilize tact and discretion to maintain confidentiality of information and a positive image of WACOG.
• Perform other duties as necessary to carry out the administrative/ programmatic goals and objectives of WAGOG and/or department.

Requirements

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
Per Head Start Program Performance Standards, currently:
Enrolled in an Associate degree in Child Development Associate (CDA) credential program, degree in child development, early childhood education or behavioral health to be completed within two years of hire, providing continuous enrollment, or combination of education and experience that meets the core competencies of the program position.


Per Arizona Licensing Requirements (R9-5-401), currently:
Minimum of current and continuous enrollment in high school or a high school equivalency class, to be completed within two years of hire.


WACOG REQUIREMENT- must provide proof of continuous enrollment/progress each Spring/Fall semester; Must be willing to complete additional training related to trauma


PREFERRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
Child Development Associate (CDA) credential or
Early Childhood Education Certificate or
Behavioral Health AA/BA/BS with a combination of one-year experience working with behavior issues.

Nice To Haves

KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS/ABILITIES (KSAs) The individual who holds this position must be able to perform the essential duties and responsibilities satisfactorily. The KSAs listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities needed for satisfactory performance.


- Ability to implement appropriate trauma-informed care practices
- Demonstrated ability to provide effective and nurturing teacher-child interactions, plan, and implement learning experiences that ensure effective curriculum implementation and use of assessment and promote children’s progress across the standards described in the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework: Ages Birth to Five and applicable state early learning and development standards, including for children with disabilities and dual language learners, as appropriate
- Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions
- Ability to plan and implement learning experiences that advance intellectual and physical development of children
- Skill in improving the readiness of children for school by developing literacy, phonemic, and print awareness
- Skill in improving children’s understanding, use of language, and use of increasingly complex/varied vocabulary
- Skill in improving children’s appreciation of books and their understanding of early math and early science
- Skill in improving children’s problem-solving abilities, and their approach to learning
- Ability to establish and maintain a safe and healthy learning environment
- Ability to support the social and emotional development of children
- Knowledge to encourage the involvement of the families of the children and support the development of relationships between children and their families
- Ability to interpret a wide variety of technical instructions
- Working knowledge of Head Start Program Performance Standards and Arizona State Licensing requirements
-Ability to communicate effectively in English, including verbal instruction, reading, and written communication
-Ability to establish and maintain professional, collaborative, and productive working relationships- Must possess an interest in children’s mental health and a desire to learn new skills.


EOE/ADA

Benefits

Medical
Dental
Vision
Arizona State Retirement System
Long Term Disability
Flexible Spending Account
Health Savings Account
Life Insurance
Tuition Reimbursement