SY26-27 Early Childhood Assistant Teacher

Early Childhood Assistant Teacher

Start Date: August 2026

Role Type: Full-Time, 10 month

Location: Washington, DC

FLSA Status: Exempt

WHO WE ARE

DC Prep is a high performing network of public charter schools serving over 2,100 preschool through 8th-grade students across six campuses in Wards 5, 7, and 8. We’re proud of the high bar we set for ourselves to achieve results–our students deserve our best! We recognize that how we support our students to be successful is just as important as the results we achieve, which pushes us to reflect on questions such as:

• How can we facilitate our students’ academic, social, and emotional development?
• How can we support our team members’ professional growth and personal ability to do this work long-term?
• How can we engage our students’ families as our own?

While this work is hard, it’s worth it – we believe in the transformative power of education, the can-do-itness of our students and staff, and the joy that comes from engaging in meaningful work with people we care about and trust!

Here’s how we drive results:

• Rigorous academic focus. Our Preppies receive the highest level of academic preparation through standards-based instruction, daily targeted interventions, and meaningful assessments.

• Social-emotional learning. We have always had a dual mission of academic and social-emotional skill development. Our research-based SEL curriculum is integrated into daily instruction, helping students leverage their personal values to strengthen their self-awareness, social awareness, and responsible decision-making skills and create a school-wide culture of empathy and reflection.

• Commitment to reflection and refinement. Our results tell us that we are moving in the right direction, but there’s further to go to ensure that every student receives a transformative education. As a team, we regularly reflect on our programmatic model to see what’s working and where we can get better.

Are you interested in learning more about the DC Prep Way? If so, check out our website to find out more about what we’re working towards and how we’re doing it.

WORKING AT DC PREP

DC Prep's faculty and staff are passionate, talented, and uncompromising with a mission to make sure all students succeed at a high level. Every aspect of our organization and program is designed – and continually refined – to ensure that goal. DC Prep students spend approximately 25% more time in school than other DC public school students. DC Prep’s supportive, stimulating, and professionally rewarding learning environment continuously develops and motivates high-performing educators. DC Prep's staff and school leadership promote meaningful relationships between faculty and students, enable excellent teaching, and foster professional collaboration. The end result: great outcomes for students.

EARLY CHILDHOOD ASSISTANT TEACHERS AT DC PREP

As an Assistant Teacher, you will work in partnership with the Early Childhood Lead Teacher or Kindergarten Lead Teacher to support the cultivation of a learning environment and classroom community that is productive, purposeful, safe and equitable for all students. You will contribute positively to the classroom community by supporting the delivery of rigorous instruction, communicating with families and reinforcing classroom expectations and vision as outlined in your partnership with the lead teacher. Additionally, you will seek growth opportunities by working to maximize your impact in the classroom through regular collaboration with the lead teacher, seeking new opportunities for classroom ownership and responsibility and being an active and eager participant in all professional development and coaching opportunities at DC Prep.

This Assistant Teacher position serves as an entryway into DC Prep’s lead teacher pipeline and is designed to help novice educators develop into strong early childhood educators. To support our pipeline, we offer ATs the necessary professional development and coaching to acquire the knowledge, skills, and experience to become effective educators in urban school environments. Successful Assistant Teachers will have the opportunity to assume a gradual increase in classroom responsibility that will prepare them to assume lead teaching opportunities at DC Prep.

Additionally, you’ll be responsible for:

• Supporting instructional planning and delivery by:

• Supporting and co-leading productive, purposeful, inclusive, safe and equitable routines, structures and transitions during various components of the school day
• Reviewing unit maps, lesson plans and materials ahead of time in order to be prepared to effectively support and implement the lessons designed by the Lead Teacher
• Implementing assigned small groups including monitoring progress to drive towards student growth and mastery in literacy and math
• Collaborating with and supporting the lead teacher to implement core tasks and activities that will engage students in targets for Early Childhood learning standards
• Collaborating with the lead teacher to teach with intentional structures that maximize student learning
• Assisting in the creation of core resources that whole class will use
• Reading all IEPs and 504 plans and preparing to support specialized instruction in accordance with plans
• Supporting delivery of assessments
• Prioritizing meeting regularly with lead teacher for “Team Teaching” check-ins to plan collaboratively
• Assisting in collection and grading of classwork and homework
• Assuming lead teacher responsibilities in the event of an absence

• Supporting a strong classroom community by:

• Collaborating with the lead teacher to ensure that the vision for classroom community and strong Tier I supports are in place in the classroom
• Leading various components of the school day while carrying out all aspects of the vision for classroom community
• Assisting in collecting data on student behaviors/academics as needed in support of developing or monitoring the success of an intervention plan
• Implementing student academic and behavior plans with fidelity

• Supporting strong communication by:

• Supporting lead teacher with communication of whole class news and upcoming information/deadlines with families
• Meeting regularly with lead teacher to agree upon and establish classroom norms and expectations

• Enga