Early Literacy Specialist, Alpha - $120,000/year USD

Crossover; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 108,000 - 132,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation assistance

Job summary

Alpha School is seeking an on-site NYC Early Literacy Specialist to guide a Pre-K group and foster a love of learning while achieving accelerated outcomes. You will plan 30–60 minute, play-based sessions and monitor progress weekly.

Requirements include an Associate's or Bachelor's in Early Childhood Education or related certification, 2+ years with ages 3–5, and proven ability to document milestones. This full-time NYC role offers relocation assistance and comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development, OR recognized CDA/Montessori/Reggio certification
• At least 2 years of hands-on experience with children aged 3–5 in a structured group environment
• Documented track record of facilitating play-based learning that yields measurable outcomes
• Ability to record developmental milestones weekly using a systematic framework or assessment tool
• Strong relational and emotional attunement skills and co-regulation abilities
• Authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship
• Available to work full-time on-site in New York City, NY

Responsibilities

• Structure and lead play-based learning sessions of 30–60 minutes.
• Create a movement- and sensory-rich classroom environment for four-year-olds.
• Record live observations and refresh milestone trackers weekly.
• Use weekly data to tailor instructional responses to each child.
• Develop personalized activity modifications with clear developmental objectives.
• Support children through frustration with calm co-regulation.
• Share progress with families in a proactive, clear manner.

Skills

Play-based learning

Observation

Data-informed instruction

Relationship building

Education

Bachelor's degree in ECE/Child Development

CDA/Montessori/Reggio certification

Job description

• Based in New York City, NY (on-site position)
• $120,000 annual compensation, distributed weekly. Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage begins on your first day.
• Relocating to join us? We provide relocation assistance.

Do you see authentic learning as rooted in joy, physical engagement, and secure relationships?

Alpha School is reimagining education—students excel academically at an accelerated pace, freeing up time to cultivate essential life competencies. At the Pre-K level, this begins with something even more foundational: a sense of safety, natural inquisitiveness, and the persistence to explore.

Your objective: guide an on-site NYC Pre-K group that develops a genuine love for learning while achieving early-learning gains at approximately twice the rate of conventional preschool programs. You will structure purposeful, sensory-engaged play sequences aligned with developmental benchmarks, then track outcomes on a weekly basis and iterate rapidly for individual learners.

New York City offers: green spaces for experiential outdoor instruction, culturally rich neighborhoods anchored by engaged family networks, a world-class public transportation system, and proximity to leading early childhood education communities.

What You Will Be Doing

• Structure and lead play-based learning sessions lasting 30–60 minutes that cultivate joy, emotional security, and quantifiable developmental progress
• Build a classroom environment rich in movement and sensory input that sustains high engagement and supports learning across diverse modalities for four-year-olds
• Conduct live observation and documentation: Record same-day, evidence-based notes linked to developmental domains, then refresh each child's milestone tracker every week
• Leverage data to inform teaching: Review weekly documentation to pinpoint each child's immediate developmental opportunity and design targeted instructional responses
• Craft personalized, interest-driven activity modifications for individual children, embedding a single, explicit developmental objective, and reassess effectiveness within a two-week window
• Support children navigating frustration through composed co-regulation and emotional scaffolding instead of punitive or reactive behavior management
• Share student progress, daily routines, and emergent developmental considerations with families in a clear, proactive manner

What You Won’t Be Doing

• Approach Pre-K as custodial care instead of purposeful early learning
• Default to scripted worksheets or compliance-focused teaching methods
• Allocate the majority of your time supervising digital learning apps rather than facilitating live, tactile instruction
• Apply reactive behavior management strategies rather than employing calm co-regulation and emotional support

Early Literacy Specialist Key Responsibilities

Ensure NYC Pre-K students cultivate a love of school while achieving accelerated early-learning outcomes through structured, intentional play.

Basic Requirements

• Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development, OR recognized CDA/Montessori/Reggio certification
• At least 2 years of hands-on experience with children aged 3–5 in a structured group environment (classroom-based, not exclusively individual care)
• Documented track record of facilitating play-based learning that produces measurable developmental outcomes
• Verified capacity to record developmental milestones objectively and reliably on a weekly basis using a systematic framework or assessment tool
• Advanced relational and emotional attunement skills: Ability to establish trust rapidly, interpret emotional signals with precision, and apply personalized motivational strategies to foster engagement
• Co-regulation and frustration support: Assist children through emotional escalation using composed modeling and intentional emotional coaching
• Authorized to work in the United States without requiring sponsorship
• Available to work full-time on-site in New York City, NY

About AlphaJoin the team building school around student growth

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

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.

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

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.