Cycle 2 Teacher (Grades 3-5)

Riverview Charter School

About The Position

Riverview Charter School (RCS) seeks reflective, collaborative, and content-strong educators to serve as Cycle 2 Teachers (Grades 3–5). Cycle 2 teachers guide students through a critical stage of academic and social development as they deepen their understanding of culture, identity, independence, and responsibility through a three-year interdisciplinary study of American history and the developing scientific world. Aligned to Riverview’s mission and philosophy of learning by doing, Cycle 2 teachers design rigorous, experiential learning opportunities that challenge students academically while nurturing their growth as thoughtful, engaged members of a diverse learning community. Expectations for this role reflect the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) Five Core Propositions and support both generalist and content-specialist teaching models. In Cycle 2, students explore human culture and environments through American history, science, and integrated literacy and mathematics. Culture is understood as the broader social context of a child’s experience—family, state, region, ethnicity, and emerging social identity. Students examine history as a narrative in which they are active participants, learning to view events through tri-cultural perspectives—Native American, European American, and African American. As students develop greater independence, they explore themes of freedom, conflict, cooperation, and interdependence across human and natural systems, building connections between historical, scientific, geographic, and technological development. Grade 3: Teachers serve as self-contained instructors, teaching all core subjects. Grades 4–5: Teachers serve as content specialists: One teacher teaches Mathematics and Science One teacher teaches English Language Arts and Social Studies Teachers deliver instruction using a balance of whole-group and intentional small-group instruction, with a strong emphasis on differentiation, enrichment, and academic challenge.

Requirements

Valid South Carolina Elementary Education teaching certification.
Commitment to completing and maintaining required endorsements and professional learning.

Nice To Haves

Gifted and Talented Endorsement (required or must be completed by the end of the teacher’s second year teaching within Cycle 2).
Experience or credentials in Mathematics and/or Science (particularly for Grades 4–5 content specialists).
LETRS training or willingness to participate in LETRS (particularly for teachers of ELA).
Experience working with students from diverse racial, cultural, socio-economic, and religious backgrounds.

Responsibilities

Commitment to Students and Their Learning
Create inclusive, responsive classroom environments that honor student identity, culture, and voice.
Support increasing student independence, responsibility, and academic ownership.
Differentiate instruction to meet the needs of diverse learners, including advanced and gifted students.
Apply best practices in gifted and talented education to extend and deepen learning for high-performing students.
Knowledge of Content and Pedagogy
Design and implement rigorous, standards-aligned instruction using the Understanding by Design (UbD)framework.
Ensure vertical alignment across Grades 3–5 with a clear focus on mastery of grade-level expectations.
Integrate reading, writing, research, inquiry, and problem-solving across content areas.
Connect instruction to real-world contexts through experiential and service learning.
Management and Monitoring of Student Learning
Use a variety of assessments, including SC READY, i-Ready, MAP, classroom assessments, and performance tasks.
Prepare students for increased testing stamina, academic independence, and accountability expectations.
Analyze assessment data to inform instruction, flexible grouping, intervention, and enrichment.
Participate actively in data meetings and progress-monitoring discussions.
Support students in curating portfolios that reflect Cycle 2 themes of culture and identity.
Reflective Practice and Professional Growth
Engage in reflective practice to improve instruction and student outcomes.
Participate in professional development aligned to content specialization, gifted education, literacy, and school priorities.
Pursue or complete required endorsements and training, including gifted and talented education and LETRS, as applicable.
Collaboration and Learning Community Membership
Collaborate with grade-level and content-area colleagues to ensure coherence and alignment.
Work closely with special education staff, interventionists, ESOL, counselors, and administration to support all learners.
Serve as mentors within the K–8 Buddy Program, modeling leadership and responsibility.
Maintain consistent communication with families through weekly newsletters, conferences, and school events.
Participate fully in schoolwide meetings, committees, service learning projects, and community engagement activities.