Description

Position Summary

Responsible for providing a safe, nurturing, and developmentally appropriate environment that promotes each child’s cognitive, social, emotional, health and physical development. Develop individualized educational goals for each child with the parent and assess each child’s outcomes to monitor evolving progress. Together the parent and the home visitor use various teaching strategies with an emphasis on language and literacy skills to meet the needs of each individual child. Maintaining a high quality environment with attention to safety and health prevention measures for infants, toddlers, and twos at all times. ISA-Home visitors also focus on the pre-natal, fetal, risk-factors, and case management This position is responsible for managing the full scope of human resource matters on a day-to-day basis. This will involve development of overall strategies, near-and long-term planning, training, compensation benefits, and recruitment.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

The work environment is that which is typical of a classroom and home setting. The noise level is usually moderate to loud. Working in a classroom setting requires the ability to maintain physical condition and stamina appropriate to the performance of assigned duties and responsibilities which may include stationary positioning for extended periods of time, interacting with children at the child’s eye level (which includes floor activities), etc. Frequently requires lifting boxes of supplies, cots, equipment, and occasional adjustments of furniture. Occasional use of upper extremities to press against equipment, furniture, etc., between 30-50 pounds with steady force in order to thrust forward, downward, or outward. Requires occasional use of upper extremities to exert force in order to draw, haul or tug objects between 30-50 pounds in a sustained motion. Raising objects between 30-50 pounds from a lower to a higher position or moving objects horizontally from position-to-position is occasionally required. 

Regularly required to use upper extremities including reaching with hands and arms to raise children from a lower to higher position. Regularly required to bend legs to rest on the knees, bend the body downward and forward by bending legs and spine (at the waist), move about on hands and knees or hands and feet. Frequently required to communicate information or instructions to children, parents, peers, management, etc. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus. Use of personal computing equipment, telephone, multi-functioning printer and calculator. Working evenings, weekends, and holidays as required in order to successfully perform the duties and responsibilities of the position. Normal to heavy travel required to attend activities such as meetings, classes, and workshops in and out of the service area. Must be able to travel by air as necessary to attend training, conference, and related activities.

Essential Functions

Job Function

1. Be familiar with and adhere to the Head Start Program Performance Standards, State of Texas Child Care Licensing requirements and NAEYC regulations.
2. Serves as an advocate with parents’ consent to link the family and child to resources and services needed. Reports suspected child development delays to parents and brokers for Early Childhood Intervention Services.
3. Provides developmentally age appropriate learning experiences (indoors and outdoors) involving children in social, language, cognitive, physical ad group activities promoting social, literacy, self-esteem and self-help for young children.
4. Meets with parent/child once a week for 1 ½ hours for weekly home visits (which totals 48 per calendar year) and maintains accurate documentation per visit.
5. Maintains a case load of up to 12 families 
6. Participates in group socializations twice a month (24 per program year) offering the child and parent the opportunity to have a classroom experience outside of the home.  
7. Participates in all staff meetings, case consultation, and briefings and reports accordingly.
8. Documents home visits electronically in the data base system used by AVANCE-Houston, Inc. for tracking purposes.  
9. Create weekly lesson plans goals and objectives and schedule next visit in partnership with the parent during your home visit.  
10. Participates and provides in-house and outside training sessions offered and required.
11. Prepares necessary staffing summaries and updates children’s goals as needed.
12. Recruitment of families within the program’s geographical area and promotion of program services within the community.
13. Ensures all policies and procedures are followed for infants, toddlers, and twos and pregnant women.  
14. Maintain an open, friendly, professional relationship with all staff and families, to include respect for culture, diversity and ethnicity.
15. Plan and implement developmentally appropriate activities that promote children’s learning in literacy, language, cognitive, social / emotional, physical / health development on a weekly basis and implement socialization schedule.
16. Implement “best practices” approaches and learning materials.
17. Establish positive, caring and nurturing relationships with children and families.
18. Use a variety of strategies to flexibly group children and parents for the purposes of instruction, promoting children’s development, supporting collaboration among children, and building a caring community of active enthusiastic learners.
19. Use different teaching strategies to ensure every child and their parent is successful in the socialization or home setting, by providing a balance of large group, small group, and teacher directed, child initiated, and parent directed activities promote exploration, inquiry, creativity, and independence.
20. Conduct daily child observations and quarterly developmental assessments to collect information on individual children’s learning and progress.
21. Plan individualized approaches with the parent to promote each child’s learning and development.
22. Communicate with parents regarding children’s progress on a regular basis, both informally and formally thru home visits, phone calls, socializations, parent meetings, etc.  
23. Encourage parents to be involved in the curriculum through weekly family activities (home work); volunteering and attending monthly parent meetings, where they will be able learn more about the curriculum and give staff feedback and suggestions on the program and socialization activities.
24. Conduct family-style meals, serves to promote good nutrition and food safety practices.
25. Attend IFSP meetings, which result in incorporating IFSP’s in the lesson plans.
26. Report suspected neglect, abuse, medical conditions / illnesses to immediate supervisor.
27. Report to work on time and work a flexible schedule when necessary, ensuring the needs of the children and families are met.
28. Encourage and maintain hygiene in children and families.
29. Ensure your work space is organized and socialization site, equipment and materials are clean for the children to use.
30. Works closely with medical department to ensure “medical home”, immunizations, other medical and nutritional needs providing assessments, advocacy, brokering for services and, if needed, backing up for transportation for infants and toddlers and their families.
31. Give directions to as needed to volunteers.
32. Ensure the supervision of children at all times.
33. Conduct 45-day screenings, quarterly GOLD on-going assessments, Nutrition assessments, parent surveys, etc. 
34. Performs other duties as assigned.
35. Attend and participate in staff meetings as scheduled and reports accordingly.
36. Able to travel for business related activities.
37. Perform any other tasks as assigned.

Requirements

Education

• Required: High School Diploma/GED, minimum of a national home visitor CDA credential or comparable credential, or equivalent coursework as part of an associate’s or bachelor’s degree
• Preferred: CDA Certification in Infants and Toddlers Home Based Setting Or Associates Degree in Child Development in Infants and Toddlers (Center-Based)

Experience

• Required: Six (6) months experience working in an Infant Toddler setting or other home based program experience.  
• Preferred: One (1) year working in an Early Head Start Home Based Setting