Pre-K Teacher

Camden Prep • Camden, NJ

22h

About The Position

Uncommon Pre-K Teachers foster a love of learning and create engaging, intentional, and playful classrooms that encourage curiosity, achievement, respect, and empathy. Working on a teaching team with a lead teacher and an apprentice teacher, the teacher establishes academic and social-emotional foundations for students and supports their development across multiple domains. The role involves co-teaching literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies; using purposeful play, centers, and small-group instruction; analyzing student work and assessments; adapting instruction; and building positive relationships with students and families. Teachers also participate in coaching and professional development and support daily school operations and student supervision. A bachelor’s degree is required before employment begins. Teacher certification is not a prerequisite for consideration in New Jersey, but candidates must meet New Jersey certification eligibility requirements and instructional staff must become certified in New Jersey within a reasonable period after starting.

Requirements

• Demonstrated commitment to supporting students’ social-emotional and academic development.
• Enthusiasm for working with families in students’ best interests.
• Self-directed learning approach, including seeking and implementing feedback to improve outcomes and achieve objectives.
• Demonstrated interest in impacting K-12 students in urban schools and communities.
• Academic expertise in Elementary Education, Humanities, English, Social Sciences, or a related field of study.
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university before the start of employment.
• Must meet New Jersey state certification eligibility requirements: a final undergraduate or graduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 for graduates on or after 9/1/16, or 2.75 for graduates before 9/1/16.
• Instructional staff are required to become certified in New Jersey within a reasonable period after beginning employment.

Nice To Haves

• One to two years of experience impacting K-12 students in urban schools and communities is preferred.
• Prior full-time teaching experience may affect starting compensation.

Responsibilities

• Co-teach and create an engaging, joyful classroom that encourages mastery and learning through exploration and purposeful play.
• Teach literacy, including reading comprehension, phonics, language development, vocabulary, and writing; mathematics; and core knowledge in science and social studies.
• Collaborate with the lead and apprentice teachers to facilitate free-choice centers and small-group instruction.
• Meet weekly with the Director to analyze student work samples and assessment trends and respond with appropriate instructional strategies.
• Differentiate instruction to support all learners.
• Implement Uncommon’s instructional model and collaborate with the instructional coach and Director to help students meet academic and performance goals.
• Use assessments and classroom quality observations to guide day-to-day instructional decisions.
• Provide nurturing early learning experiences and support students’ social-emotional, physical, cognitive, and academic development.
• Apply strategies that promote conceptual understanding and skill development, and model and support expressive and receptive language throughout the school day.
• Support administrative and operational tasks, including document creation, office support, and responding to student send-outs.
• Assist with behavior interventions, student supervision, and accurate record-keeping to maintain a safe, structured, positive learning environment.
• Provide classroom coverage as needed to ensure continuity of instruction and supervision.
• Build positive relationships with students and partner with families to support student learning and development.
• Participate in practice-based professional development, mentorship, and coaching.
• Support daily school operations, including morning arrival, lunch duty, assemblies, transitions, and after-school dismissal.
• Participate in weekly school-wide meetings and collaborate with teaching partners and grade-level teams to foster community, set academic goals, and strengthen instruction.

Benefits

• Generous paid time off, including sick time and paid holidays, plus approximately 10 weeks of paid spring, winter, and summer breaks.
• Extensive training and development.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance plans.
• Pre-tax flexible spending accounts, dependent care flexible spending accounts, and health savings accounts.
• Retirement benefits, subject to role eligibility.
• Paid leave of absence options, including parental, medical, and disability leave.
• Mental health and counseling support and wellness benefits.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level