Merakey Jobs

Juniata County Early Childhood Services invites applicants for a part-time Floating Educator. 

This position supports the education work in both center-based and home-based services by implementing and supervising classroom and home visit activities. This position works with typically developing children and children with disabilities. Because this position is one part of a large system of services provided to children and families, it also serves to ensure that the regular education staff in classroom and home visiting programs remain informed as to the needs of children and families that are a part of or become apparent during center based or home-based services provided by the floating educator. Additionally, the floating educator shares responsibility for parent involvement in the program as well as providing & modeling school readiness information and skills to parents. The position of floating educator works in tandem with the rest of the parts of the system as an integrated team to support the goals of the program. The position may be assigned to various classrooms/home visits as deemed necessary for program operations.

Fundamental Duties/Essential Functions Duties of the position are described in major functional areas listed below. Additional duties may be assigned.

Program Development 1. Attends all required training and workshops. 2. Remains up to date on information that pertains to the needs of the children in the program including Head Start Program Performance Standards, Head Start Act, OCDEL regulations and any other applicable regulations and practices. 3. Works as a team member with the other education staff, parents to develop curriculum that is meaningful and meets the school readiness needs of the individual as well as program needs. 4. Responsible for the implementation of daily lesson plans/home visit plans, which includes updates to family/child information and planning for upcoming home visiting events. 5. Follows individual plans for each child to include identified needs and prescriptions for objectives and activities to meet established goals (outcomes). 6. Schedules home visits and parent-teacher conferences with families as required and on an as-needed basis and documents these events. 7. Maintains strict confidentiality with respect to enrolled children, families and staff in accordance with established policies and procedures. 8. Prepares a safe, healthy learning environment for children that are developmentally appropriate and experientially based. 9. Performs other duties as assigned.

Preschool Program Implementation 1. Supervises all classroom/home visit activities, field trips, outdoor activities. 2. Plans and provides a developmentally and linguistically appropriate curriculum and experiences in a manner appropriate to the ages, languages and cultures of children served. 3. Directs any special needs or problems to the appropriate manager/specialist or supervisor. 4. Plans and implements learning experiences that advance the intellectual and physical competence of children including improving the readiness of children for school by developing their literacy and phonemic, print and numeracy awareness, their understanding of the use of language, their understanding and use of increasingly complex and varied vocabulary, their appreciation of books and their problem solving abilities. 5. Implements education/home visit lesson plans and daily programs for children in accordance with each child's need, based on a method of observing and recording children's interests and current levels of functioning. Additionally, lesson/home visit plans and daily program activities should be aligned with the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes and Framework and PA Early Learning Standards. 6. Supports social and emotional development and provides positive guidance and discipline. 7. Maintains a commitment to professionalism and continues own professional development so that decisio s are based on knowledge of early childhood theories and practices. 8. Supervises and eats nutritionally prepared meals with the children to model good nutrition and proper social skills. Encourage children to serve themselves whenever possible and to serve food in a family style manner. 9. Provides a stable classroom/home visit routine and environment. 10. Ensures a well-run, purposeful program responsive to participant needs. 11. Screens, observes and documents children as required. 12. Understands regulations associated with prevention of occupational disease and injury, including the exercise of universal precautions and the prevention of contamination. 13. Performs other duties as assigned.

Recordkeeping 1. Submits daily attendance/weekly home visit records to the main office. 2. While in the classroom or on home visits, gathers and maintains individual, family and classroom data for documentation, on-going assessment, evaluation and recording keeping for successful individual and program planning. 3. Understands, generates and documents in-kind and other allowable costs applied toward the non-federal share requirement. 4. Performs other duties as assigned.

Parent and Community Engagement 1. Establishes positive and productive relationships with families focusing on a relationship of trust and rapport with the parents of the children. 2. Participates in the orientation of parents to Head Start/Early Head Start, as needed, throughout the year. 3. Schedules and arranges meetings and documents parent-teacher conferences and home visits as required. 4. Involves parents in the educational activities of the program: a. Emphasize their role as the principal influence on the child's education and development b. Assist parents to increase their knowledge, understanding, skills and experience in basic child development. 5. Identifies and arranges for parents to participate as volunteers in the classroom and work as substitutes as well as other volunteer activities. 6. Collects monthly in-kind records from parents participating and submits to office assistant. 7. Positively promotes Head Start/Early Head Start/PAT in the community. 8. Performs other duties as assigned.

Knowledge and Abilities 1. Extensive knowledge and skills in the field of early childhood development. 2. Understand and support the Head Start Program Performance Standards, the Head Start Act, OCDEL Early Learning Standards, and the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes and Framework. 3. Knowledge of various service resources in the community. 4. Some knowledge of the basics of supervision. 5. Knowledge of the state and federal regulations pertaining to child abuse and neglect and childcare licensing requirements. 6. Knowledge of local resources, language and customs helpful. 7. Ability to be perceptive of the needs of children and to work well with staff, children and parents/families. 8. Ability to organize and direct classroom and home visit activities. 9. Ability to maintain confidentiality. 10. Ability to maintain accurate records which reflect the needs and progress of children as well as documents events on home visits. 11. Ability to demonstrate knowledge, skills and a positive attitude in the field of early childhood education.

Education and Experience 1. Bachelor's degree in early childhood education or related field preferred. Related field includes 6 courses in early childhood field plus six months of experience working with preschool children is preferred. 2. Bilingual preferred (Englis