Preschool Assistant Teacher

What You'll Do

Position Summary

Leila Day is seeking a full-time Preschool Assistant Teacher to join our teaching team and work alongside Co/Lead Teachers with children ages 3–4. The Assistant Teacher plays an essential role in creating a warm, engaging, and inclusive classroom community where children feel known, supported, and empowered to explore through play.

Working collaboratively with the teaching team, the Assistant Teacher helps implement an emergent, child-centered curriculum grounded in children's interests, caring relationships, and hands-on experiences. The role includes supporting children's play and learning, participating in daily routines and classroom responsibilities, and contributing to a learning environment that extends naturally between indoor and outdoor spaces.

We are looking for a thoughtful, energetic, and collaborative educator who enjoys being actively engaged with young children and is excited to learn and grow within a progressive, nature-centered school community.

Key Responsibilities

• Foster a warm, welcoming, inclusive, and developmentally appropriate classroom environment where children feel safe, known, and encouraged to explore and learn through play.
• Work collaboratively with Co/Lead Teachers to plan, implement, observe, and document an emergent, child-centered curriculum responsive to children's interests, developmental needs, and the opportunities offered by the natural world.
• Engage actively with children throughout the day, facilitating play, extending children's thinking and exploration, and building caring, respectful relationships with individual children and the group.
• Support children's social-emotional development and growing independence by modeling empathy, patience, respect, and positive communication, and helping children navigate conflicts, challenges, and everyday classroom experiences.
• Support and affirm each child's cultural background, language, identity, interests, and individual learning style while contributing to an equitable and inclusive classroom community.
• Support daily classroom routines and procedures in collaboration with Co/Lead Teachers, including transitions, group activities, meals, rest, toileting, and outdoor time, while responding thoughtfully to children's varying needs.
• Help maintain a safe, orderly, and engaging learning environment by preparing materials, setting up and cleaning up activities, organizing classroom spaces, and caring for classroom resources.
• Participate fully in indoor and outdoor learning experiences, helping children engage safely and confidently with nature, materials, and their surroundings in all weather.

Requirements

Required Qualifications

• Associate degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Minimum 1 year of experience working with children in a childcare or school setting.
• Experience working with children ages 3–9.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills and an ability to work collaboratively as part of a teaching team.
• Warm, patient, dependable, and responsive approach to working with young children.
• Genuine interest in play-based, emergent, and child-centered education.
• Ability and willingness to participate in outdoor learning experiences in a variety of weather conditions.
• Interest in creating inclusive, culturally responsive learning environments.

Physical, Health & Safety Requirements

• Ability to meet applicable Connecticut licensing requirements and Leila Day health and safety requirements, including required health documentation and training such as CPR, First Aid, and Administration of Medication, as applicable to the position.
• Ability to participate fully in the physical activities of the classroom, including lifting, moving, or assisting children, as well as walking, squatting, climbing, and sitting on the floor.
• Ability and willingness to spend up to approximately three hours outdoors each day in a variety of weather conditions.
• Ability to respond appropriately and promptly to children's health and safety needs and to emergency or unexpected situations.

Nice to Have

Preferred Qualifications

• Degree or coursework in early childhood education, education, child development, or a related field.
• Early Childhood Education (ECE) credits.
• Experience with play-based, emergent, or child-centered curriculum.
• Experience working with mixed-age groups.
• Experience supporting multicultural and inclusive learning environments.
• Experience or skills in outdoor education, gardening, environmental education, science, or naturalist education.
• Experience working in a progressive, arts-rich, or nature-centered educational setting.

Benefits

• Health Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Sick Leave
• Benefits & Professional Growth
• Holiday and vacation pay
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) retirement plan with employer matching contributions available after two years of service
• Ongoing professional development and learning opportunities
• Opportunities to learn and grow alongside experienced educators

About Leila Day Nurseries