Maker Program Teacher, for Grades 6-8 - Greenwich Country Day School

Greenwich Country Day School is an independent, co-educational day school with a current enrollment of over 1400 students in grades N-12, and a faculty and staff of over 350. The original Old Church Road campus is home to grades N-8. The High School, established in 2019, is located less than two miles away on Stanwich Road. Founded in 1926, Greenwich Country Day School is a family school where innovative teaching is encouraged as teachers model and foster a love of learning, challenge and inspire children toward academic excellence, and cultivate students’ interests and talents outside of the classroom. We value purposeful and personal learning in a joyful environment, with emphasis on the development of character, creativity, and a sense of personal value along with strong academic skills. GCDS is committed to graduating ethical, confident leaders who possess a strong sense of purpose.

GCDS is fortunate to have built a large endowment which helps to fund competitive salaries and benefits, a robust professional development program, and reimbursement for graduate school tuition. GCDS offers a substantial need-based financial aid program to support students from a range of socio-economic backgrounds.  

Greenwich Country Day School seeks a Maker Program Teacher, for Grades 6-8,  to start August 2024. The ideal candidate will be a tinkerer/woodworker/designer with coding experience. Successful applicants will possess content and pedagogical expertiseand a dedication to collaboration across curriculum.Interdisciplinary proficiency is highly desirable. 

In addition, each GCDS faculty member is expected to demonstrate ability in the following areas:

• Understands, champions, and implements GCDS Design Principles
• Fosters and stewards a culture of mutual respect, equitable practice, and joy in and out of the classroom
• Cultural competency skills to collaborate effectively across difference
• Sets high expectations for learning, academic achievement, and character development

• Exhibits strong working knowledge of student cognitive development and learning preferences
• Identifies and supports students’ social, emotional, and academic needs
• Provides timely feedback to students, and collaborates with faculty to offer specialized support in pursuit of each student’s learning goals
• Implements a wide array of pedagogical tools and strategies in appropriate and effective combinations  

• Facilitates and designs effective group/collaborative work and productive dialogue among students and teachers
• Communicates effectively with students/families about classwork, learning goals, and student progress

• Demonstrates content knowledge and expertise; and scaffolds curriculum to ensure progress towards mastery
• Ensures that reading and writing are aimed across the curriculum and learning design
• Collaborates and plans actively for learning with teachers and students
• Implements backward design to align all lessons, activities, and assessments
• Designs formal and informal assessments that measure student progress; employs a variety of formative and summative assessments to gauge student progress toward mastery

• Fosters student growth through structured opportunities for reflection, including Student-Led Conferences and Presentations of Learning
• Provides opportunities for student engagement through “Voice and Choice”
• Creates relevant and authentic learning experiences; is able to include and/or connect with outside experts and resources towards this aim
• Showcases student work within the community and prepares students to exhibit and communicate effectively

Responsibilities Include:

• Instructional responsibility in the content area
• Serving as faculty advisor to student robotics teams and other maker clubs
• Encouraging and facilitating participation in external competitions
• Oversight of the development and progress of each child
• Assessment of all students’ progress in both written and verbal reports
• Communication with parents
• Collaborative work with Media Lead, colleagues on grade level, departmental and interdisciplinary faculty teams, Middle School faculty and staff, and the broader school community
• Daily supervision of a lunch table
• Serve as an advisor for 6-12 students
• Contribution toward athletic and/or co-curricular programming, as assigned, in addition to classroom role (coaching 2 seasons)
• Expected to participate in the development of students outside their classrooms in typical middle school social situations like recess, the hallways, and community meetings

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree or demonstrated professional competency
• Minimum of 3-years successful classroom teaching experience with students in this age group
• Extensive background in using technology to help solve complex problems
• Engineering skills
• Experience with relative MakerSpace equipment; 3D printer, laser cutter, CNC router
• Experience with inquiry-based learning and/or project-based learning
• A passion for learning and the ability to motivate and inspire students
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Commitment to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive school community
• Willingness to take on multiple roles within the school
• Personal traits appropriate for nurturing the growth of children - must be energetic, creative, flexible, patient, and have an inexhaustible sense of humor

Preferred Qualifications:

• Advanced degree in the field
• Capacity to teach multiple disciplines/subject areas
• Work experience outside of education
• Mentoring or advising experience (with adolescents)
• Athletic coaching experience is valued and welcome
• Demonstrated experience in establishing collaborative relationships with external partners/organizations in the design and implementation of learning experiences

Interested candidates are invited to use the link provided to submit a cover letter and resume to Raquel Salcedo, Director of Recruiting & Talent

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