Substitute

Regina Coeli Child Development Center•Robert, LA

About The Position

The Substitute assists classroom staff and cooperates in a supportive role to carry out developmentally appropriate activities. The position promotes children’s health, nutrition, and education while attending to their safety and welfare. Responsibilities may vary by site needs and locations. Substitutes remain on substitute lists for the program year, August 1 through July 31. All communications are potentially sensitive and subject to Head Start’s confidentiality policy.

Requirements

GED or high school diploma.
Demonstrated classroom ability, typically through one year of preschool classroom experience or equivalent.
Strong communication skills, especially listening and writing skills.
Knowledge of typical behaviors and expectations of three- and four-year-old children, typically gained through at least one year of relevant experience.
Current enrollment in the Child Care Division-Central Background Registry.
Ability to visually assess children’s health and behaviors and make frequent significant decisions to ensure their health and safety.
Ability to apply developmentally appropriate practices in classroom, playground, and bus settings.
Ability to kneel and bend frequently at the waist and neck, sit on the floor, and frequently get up and down from a seat to assist children on the bus and in the classroom.
Ability to occasionally lift up to 50 pounds in the classroom, assist children into bus seats, and carry or drag a child out of a bus to safety in an emergency.
Ability to occasionally climb to enter and exit a bus and sit throughout bus routes.

Nice To Haves

Post-high-school coursework in Early Childhood Education or Development.

Responsibilities

Assist with preparing indoor and outdoor environments for daily activities.
Use developmentally appropriate practices to facilitate activities with groups and individual children.
Observe children and assist teachers in identifying each child’s strengths and areas for growth.
Use lesson plans at the direction of classroom staff, reflecting mandated elements and parental and cultural influences while supporting children’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development.
Follow a consistent schedule that includes group experiences, choice time, music and movement, motor activities, skill development, meals, and transitions.
Encourage experimentation, exploration, problem solving, cooperation, socialization, and choice making; ask open-ended questions and listen respectfully to children’s answers.
Promote and reinforce parental involvement in the classroom.
Sanitize classroom equipment and handle laundry.
Assist with meal service as needed.
As a bus monitor, monitor and manage children’s behavior and secure children in age- and weight-appropriate restraints.
Communicate with families, including through mail, sign-off with authorized adults, and cell phones.
Assist with emergency evacuations.
Attend meetings, training, and appropriate professional development activities when required.
Perform other duties as assigned.