Grammar School Teacher (K-6)

Position Description

Qualifications:
1. Public profession of faith in Jesus Christ and a lifestyle that reflects maturity and intimacy with God.
2. Good standing in a Bible-believing, evangelical church.
3. It is preferred that applicants have a bachelors degree. If applicant does not have a bachelors degree they can still apply for this position but must have other experience that would justify why they would be qualified for this position.

Training:
Teachers that are accepted for this position will receive training from the school in order to prepare them for teaching the Classical Model.

Salary and Benefits:
1. Salary range: $28,000-$32,000 dependent upon experience and qualifications.
2. VCA will not be able to offer a benefits package to employees for the 2023-2024 school year. The Board of Directors would like all applicants to know we appreciate the sacrifice it would be to not receive benefits upon becoming a member of the VCA Family. We are working diligently to have competitive benefit packages for employees in future years.

Objective:
This is not intended to be a complete delineation of all the possible responsibilities of a Veritas Christian Academy grammar teacher. Rather, it is a general description of the basic tasks a grammar teacher will be normally required to perform and be evaluated upon. In addition, it is expected that the teacher will comply with all applicable school policies and guidelines.

 

BASIC TASKS OF A GRAMMAR SCHOOL TEACHER AT VERITAS CHRISTIAN ACADEMY
1. Spiritual Leadership – The teacher is expected to consistently exhibit love, joy, peace, and spiritual maturity before their students and the rest of the school. The teacher is expected to be a student and lover of the Bible, God’s only written Word. The teacher is to use the school’s curriculum guide and the Bible in constructing their daily lessons.

2. Classroom Management/Environment – The teacher is expected to maintain a neat, organized, clean, and stimulating classroom environment for his/her students. This implies that the students will take an active part in cleaning and maintaining their room’s appearance. The teacher should set up simple, manageable class routines to accomplish basic tasks, e.g. taking attendance, classwork collection, daily cleaning schedules, materials storage and distribution, etc.

3. Lesson Preparation and Presentation – The teacher should have a thorough knowledge of and interest in the subjects they are assigned to teach. These will normally include: Bible, reading, mathematics, science, grammar, composition, spelling, handwriting, history and/or geography. Also, in most grammar grades a working knowledge and interest in Latin, art, music, and physical education is necessary, though these are normally taught by other specially trained teachers. All subjects should be taught utilizing the objectives, materials, priorities, and methods prescribed in the ACCS and VCA Curriculum guides. The teacher is expected to encourage the students to see how all subjects are interrelated, as parts of God’s integrated universe. Clear language and appropriate vocabulary is also expected.

4. Classroom Decorum and Discipline – The teacher should be very familiar with and able to apply the spirit, as well as the letter, of the school rules. An orderly (not necessarily silent) working atmosphere is to be the norm. Students should be aware of the class and school rules and be encouraged to exercise self-discipline. When administrative discipline is necessary, the teacher is expected to accompany the student to the office and give the administrator an accurate accounting of the student’s offense. The teacher is expected to diffuse and deal with the vast majority of corrective discipline situations within his classroom.
a) Comprehension checks
b) Rephrasing of concepts by students
c) Inductive questioning (Questions designed to help the student move  toward the correct conclusions)
d) Recitations, chants, songs, acronyms, summaries, and reviews
e) Illustrations, applications, and demonstrations

5. Student Learning – The teacher should seek to stimulate and maintain the students’ interest in the material. Recognition and reasonable compensation for individual needs is also necessary. A variety of techniques (in addition to testing) should be used to measure the students’ progress (see the Lost Tools Chart in the faculty handbook). The grammar school curriculum guide is to be used as the basis for measuring the overall progress of the class and individual students.

6. Planning and Communications – The teacher’s weekly and quarterly plans should reflect creativity and a good use of class time. Copies of the weekly lesson plans are to be turned in to the administrator. The Curriculum Guide should be used to establish weekly, quarterly, and semester plans. The teacher is to regularly (at least twice each month) communicate with the parents in his class. Emphasis should be placed on getting to know the families well, as well as letting them know what is happening in the class. The parents should feel welcome to visit and assist in the classroom. Teachers will be required to hold two parent-teacher conferences, one at the end of the first quarter and one at the end of the third quarter, where they will provide a progress report for families demonstrating the student’s marks in all curricular areas.

7. Professionalism – The teacher is to consistently and joyfully demonstrate pride in Veritas Christian Academy by his work, punctuality, speech, attitude, dress, and attention to duties.

8. The Seven Laws of Teaching – as set forth in the work of John Gregory by the same title, must be regularly and thoroughly implemented into lesson plans, and should be evident in the classroom.