Lead 4th Grade Humanities Teacher 2022-2023

ABOUT US

The Primary School is creating a new school model that brings together all of the adults in a child’s life, including parents, educators, and medical and mental health providers, starting from a very early age. We recognize the entrenched racism that exists within our public systems and the unjust impact this has had on families of color. Our aim is that children and families most impacted by systemic poverty and racism receive the multidisciplinary support they deserve to be well, learn, and thrive.

Long-term, we hope to create a game-changing school model that can be replicated across the country. As we continue to learn and grow, we plan to share what we’ve learned and pursue policy and systems change on a local, state, and national level. We are proud to receive funding from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a major national philanthropy.

Our approach has three defining characteristics:

• We start early. We start working with children as young as 8 months and provide full-time school starting at age three to reach them at a critical stage in development.
• We partner with parents. We believe that when parents thrive, children thrive, so we support the wellness and growth of parents alongside the growth of their children.
• We integrate services. Our unique model unites health care and education, building a multi-disciplinary team and holistic system of care around a child’s full needs.

In 2016, we opened our flagship school in East Palo Alto, California, with our first class of four year olds. We have grown to serve over 300 children and their families through a birth to three program, parent wellness program, full-day preschool, and elementary school, which will grow through eighth grade. In 2021, we opened our second site in the East Bay of Northern California.

ABOUT OUR EAST PALO ALTO SITE

We are continuing to grow our East Palo Alto site and are excited to launch 5th grade for our 2022-2023 school year. In our school we currently serve ~300 students across two preschool grades (3 and 4 year olds), kindergarten, and first grade to fourth grade. Beyond school, core components of our model include partnering closely with parents throughout their child’s development and supporting parent wellness; coordinating early screening and developmental support; and working with existing health care providers in the community to coordinate care for children.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Lead Upper Elementary Humanities Teacher reports to the Principal and is responsible for planning and delivering rigorous, relevant instruction in humanities. Our upper elementary teachers are subject experts who specialize in Humanities or STEM. Content specialization allows teachers to develop much deeper expertise in their subject matter and tailor it to students needs. Upper Elementary Lead Teachers are tone setters for the school and are responsible for high quality instruction, culture building within and across classrooms, and strengthening home-school connections through deep engagement with families. Lead Teachers also serve as our models for how to deeply integrate academics, socio-emotional learning, and health into our classrooms on a daily basis.

Responsibilities

• Annual, weekly, and daily instructional planning in humanities tailored to the needs of each child
• Instructional delivery in large group, small group, and individualized formats
• Regular assessment and analysis of quantitative and qualitative student data with the goal of tailoring responsive instruction and support
• Collaboration with their grade partner teacher to align on grade wide procedures, best practices, parent communication, and jointly problem solve to best support students.
• Collaboration with other content teachers to practice skills, develop lessons and units and jointly problem solve.
• Annual, weekly, and daily SOUL advisory planning tailored to the needs of each child
• Active participation in pioneering and implementation of the TPS model, particularly the new upper grades, through research, curriculum development, engagement with school and organizational leadership, and focused professional development
• Partner with special education teachers, behavioral support staff and related service providers to provide personalized supports for students with special needs
• Regular meetings with and outreach to families, including daily documentation and notes
• Proactive collaboration and frequent engagement with The Primary School Parent Coaches and staff, and external health practitioners and partners
• Participation in reflection and coaching, both 1:1 with an Instructional Coach and in group context with colleagues
• Partnering with families and facilitate ongoing opportunities for family engagement

The critical features of this role are described above but are not all encompassing; as our school grows and evolves your responsibilities may shift accordingly.

QUALIFICATIONS

• You have a Bachelor's degree
• You have a minimum of 3 years of experience as a classroom teacher (ideally within two grades of your desired position) and hold deep and diverse instructional competence
• Your work demonstrates a practice of creating transformative classroom culture for all kids. You are committed to social justice and take proactive steps to build an equitable classroom practice
• You enthusiastically utilize data to understand what a student needs and to personalize instruction accordingly
• You have a parent- and family-centered mindset
• You recognize the multidimensional needs of children and families, because in your own way, you’ve been trying to weave education, health, and family support services together for your students
• You get that starting a new school and organization is no easy task and are not scared - in fact, you’re energized - by the idea of putting in the hours and deep commitment needed to bring The Primary School to life
• You are unafraid of diversity and engage confidently across differences.
• You are kind, humble, and collaborative

A Plus If

• Expertise and background in teaching humanities
• You have an understanding of early childhood education and child development
• You speak fluent Spanish or Tagalog
• You have ties to the East Palo Alto Community

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions. While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk, hear, and communicate with both adults and children. The employee frequently is required to use hands or fingers, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls. The employee is frequently required to stand, walk, sit, and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is moderate to high.

COMPENSATION

Compensation is commensurate with qualifications and experience, plus excellent health benefits, 401k retirement plan, flexible spending account (FSA), dependent care FSA, and generous paid time off, including a competitive paid parental leave benefit. Annual salary range begins at $71,000.

HOW TO APPLY

TPS values diversity; people of all backgrounds are encouraged to apply. In particular, we deeply value staff who share the identities and lived experiences of the historically underrepresented students and families we serve. TPS is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its employment decisions.

Please complete the following application and submit your most recent resume. These short-answer questions are designed to replace a cover letter, so take your time with them and copy in your answers from a separate document. If you feel that the questions do not accurately capture what you have to offer The Primary School, you are also welcome to attach a cover letter. Applications are being reviewed on a rolling basis so we encourage you to submit yours soon. We look forward to reading your application!