2nd Grade Teacher, Alpha - $120,000/year USD

Crossover; San Mateo (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Alpha reimagines the school day around faster learning, stronger mentorship, and more time for students to build real-world skills.

This full-time, on-site role coaches 2nd grade students in K-3 cohorts, delivering life-skills workshops and one-on-one coaching. You will use learning analytics to help each child reach ambitious weekly goals and grow in confidence and resilience.

Qualifications

• Willing to work on-site at Alpha campuses across multiple cities.
• Bachelor's degree in any subject.
• At least 3 years of experience working directly with children ages 4-9 through teaching, coaching, tutoring, camps, youth programs, or similar environments.
• Experience leading group activities for young children with proven engagement strategies.
• Track record of motivating young children to achieve challenging goals with concrete examples.

Responsibilities

• Lead life-skills workshops for K-3 students (communication, focus, feedback) using active participation.
• Coach students one-on-one and in small groups to meet ambitious weekly goals using strong relationships.
• Assess life-skill mastery through Alpha's framework until real understanding is shown.
• Adapt coaching style to cohort needs, using movement, songs, and storytelling where appropriate.
• Build relationships that encourage students to stretch beyond initial expectations.

Skills

Coaching children

Group activities

Motivating kids

AI-powered learning

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Coachbot analytics

Job description

\"This is not a school that is replacing teachers. This is not a threat to teachers in any way, shape, or form. This is reimagining what a teacher can be.\"

— Sam DePalo, Lead Guide, Alpha Fort Worth Texas

Alpha is hiring.

The lesson is already built. The AI already knows what to teach. Your job is to make a child believe they can do something they didn't think was possible.

At Alpha, students complete their academic work in just two hours a day using adaptive learning technology. That frees Guides to focus on the work that changes lives: building confidence, resilience, communication, and the motivation to tackle hard things. You won't spend your day delivering lessons from the front of a classroom. You'll spend it coaching students through challenges, celebrating wins, and showing them what high standards feel like when they're paired with genuine belief.

You'll lead one K-3 cohort band—either Kindergarten-1st grade or 2nd-3rd grade. Half your day is spent running energetic, one-hour workshops on life skills like public speaking, focus, and feedback. The other half is spent coaching students individually and in small groups, using learning analytics to keep every child moving toward ambitious weekly goals. Every interaction matters. Students should leave your workshops more capable than they arrived and leave your coaching sessions believing they can achieve more than they thought possible.

This role isn't for someone looking to deliver curriculum or manage a classroom. It's for someone who loves motivating young children, thrives on measurable outcomes, and believes the right coach can change a child's trajectory. If you've inspired kids as a teacher, coach, camp counselor, youth leader, or performer, you'll find a very different kind of classroom waiting for you here.

This is a full-time, on-site role at one of Alpha's campuses. We recruit nationally, so job boards may display this opportunity in nearby cities that do not have a campus.

Current openings are available in Palo Alto, Los Angeles (South Bay), Malibu, Orange County (Lake Forest), San Francisco, and Santa Monica, CA; Greenwich, CT; Miami and Palm Beach, FL; Chicago, IL; New York City, NY; and Seattle (Kirkland), WA.

There is so much to cover for this exciting role, and space here is limited.

What You Will Be Doing

• Lead engaging life-skills workshops that help K-3 students master communication, focus, feedback, and other durable skills through active participation rather than lectures.
• Coach students one-on-one and in small groups, using Coachbot analytics, proven motivation systems, and strong relationships to keep every child on track for ambitious weekly learning goals.
• Assess life-skill mastery through Alpha's Test2Pass framework, coaching students until they demonstrate real understanding—not just participation.
• Adapt your coaching style to the developmental needs of your cohort, whether that means songs, movement, and storytelling for younger learners or higher independence and accountability for older students.
• Build the kind of relationships where students feel supported enough to stretch beyond what they thought they could achieve.

What You Won’t Be Doing

• Here is what this role does not look like: standing at a whiteboard teaching academic lessons. Students learn academics through adaptive software.
• Writing curriculum from scratch. You'll improve and personalize proven playbooks instead of inventing lessons.
• Watching students work silently on computers. Your role is active coaching, motivation, and connection.
• Lowering expectations when students struggle. Success comes from helping students rise to the goal, not moving the goal closer.
• Managing homework, grading papers, or handling routine parent communication.

2nd Grade Teacher Key Responsibilities

Create a cohort of K-3 students who love coming to school, consistently achieve ambitious learning goals, and master the life skills that prepare them to thrive long after elementary school.

Basic Requirements

• Willing to work on-site at one of Alpha's campuses. Current openings are available in Palo Alto, Los Angeles (South Bay), Malibu, Orange County (Lake Forest), San Francisco, and Santa Monica, CA; Greenwich, CT; Miami and Palm Beach, FL; Chicago, IL; New York City, NY; and Seattle (Kirkland), WA. Relocation assistance is available.
• Bachelor's degree in any subject.
• At least 3 years of experience working directly with children ages 4-9 through teaching, coaching, tutoring, camps, youth programs, or similar environments.
• Experience leading group activities for young children, with a concrete example of the structure or routine you used and how you kept the group engaged.
• A track record of motivating young children to achieve challenging goals, with specific examples of your impact.
• A concrete example of changing your approach based on feedback and the result.
• Comfort using AI-powered learning while focusing your own energy on coaching, motivation, and life-skill development.
• The ability to balance warmth with unwavering expectations.
• Legal authorization to work in the United States without visa sponsorship.

Nice-to-have Requirements

• Experience in youth sports, children's theater, camp leadership, Montessori, progressive education, or high-engagement after-school programs.
• Personal experience achieving ambitious goals in academics, athletics, or your career.
• Outstanding storytelling or performance skills that naturally capture the attention of young children.
• Evidence of helping reluctant or shy children become confident, engaged participants.

About Alpha

Alpha reimagines the school day around faster learning, stronger mentorship, and more time for students to build real-world skills.

Join the team building school around student growth

Alpha offers six-figure roles for people ready to help build a radically better school experience.

Roles with real student impact:

Alpha hires teachers (guides), operators, admissions experts, school & curriculum leaders, and remote team members.

Education work that pays like it matters:

Alpha offers six-figure roles for people ready to help build a radically better school experience.

A culture built for builders:

Alpha is fast-moving, ambitious, and student focused. It’s for people who want to improve the system, not maintain it.

Alpha is where you can do the most meaningful work of your career.

Working with us

This is a full-time, W2 employee position with immediate access to benefits (https://support.crossover.com/article/7581-w2-benefits-u-s-paychex-paid-only). All roles are year-long positions. The compensation level for this role is $120,000 USD/year. The payment period is weekly. Consult www.crossover.com/help-and-faqs for more details on this topic.

Crossover Job Code: LJ-5634-US-SanMateo-2ndGradeTeache.006