Lead Two-Year-Old Teacher

SouthSide Early Childhood Center; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 38,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

SouthSide Early Childhood Center in St. Louis, Missouri is seeking a caring Lead Two-Year-Old Teacher to guide a developmentally appropriate classroom for toddlers.

You will plan hands-on activities, support daily routines, and partner with families while mentoring assistant staff to ensure a safe, engaging learning environment.

This full-time role emphasizes Conscious Discipline, DRDP, and ASQ tools to support children's growth and development.

Qualifications

• Strong communication, organizational, and leadership skills.
• Knowledge of early childhood development and developmentally appropriate practice.
• Bachelor's/Associate's degree or CDA in early childhood education (or actively enrolled).
• Experience with children ages zero to three is preferred.
• Ability to meet background check, fingerprinting, and health requirements.

Responsibilities

• Plan and implement developmentally appropriate experiences for two-year-olds using Creative Curriculum and Reggio models.
• Support daily routines (meals, toileting/diapering, rest, outdoor play, transitions).
• Use Conscious Discipline to support emotional development and peer interactions.
• Complete ASQ screenings biannually for each child.
• Utilize DRDP to observe, document growth, set goals, and adapt activities.
• Encourage independence in self-help skills.
• Teach toileting readiness, family-style dining, gentle hands, and self-regulation.
• Maintain a clean, safe, and organized classroom meeting licensing standards.
• Build warm relationships with families and communicate regularly about routines and milestones; conduct conferences and home visits.
• Provide guidance to Assistant Teachers and staff to ensure consistency and responsive care.
• Follow state licensing, Early Head Start, accreditation, health and safety guidelines.
• Participate in meetings, professional development, and required documentation.

Skills

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Leadership skills

Knowledge of early childhood develop

Developmentally appropriate practice

Education

Bachelor's degree

Associate's degree

CDA (Child Development Associate)

Active enrollment in qualifying program

Job description

SouthSide Early Childhood Center is seeking a caring, dependable, and enthusiastic Lead Two-Year-Old Teacher to join our early learning team. If you are passionate about early childhood education and enjoy creating a nurturing, engaging, and developmentally appropriate classroom environment, we would love to meet you!

Position Overview:

The Lead Two-Year-Old Teacher is responsible for planning, implementing, and managing a safe, stimulating, and developmentally appropriate classroom for young children. This role supports children's social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development while fostering strong partnerships with families and mentoring classroom support staff.

Responsibilities Include:

• Planning and implementing hands-on, developmentally appropriate experiences tailored to two-year-olds that support emerging language, motor development, curiosity, and early social skills utilizing the Creative Curriculum and Reggio models.
• Supporting consistent daily routines such as meals, toileting/diapering, rest time, outdoor play, and transitions to help young children feel secure and successful.
• Using the Conscious Discipline model to help the children identify emotions, build trust with caregivers, and navigate early peer interactions with guidance and empathy.
• Completing ASQ screenings for each child biannually.
• Utilizing the DRDP assessment tool to authentically observe and document children's growth and development, set individualized goals, and adapt activities to meet the unique needs of each child.
• Encouraging independence through developmentally appropriate self-help skills such as handwashing, attempting to put on shoes, cleaning up toys, and participating in classroom routines.
• Teaching and modeling early life skills including toileting readiness, family-style dining behaviors, gentle hands, and basic self-regulation skills.
• Maintaining a clean, safe, and organized classroom environment that supports active exploration and meets all state licensing and accreditation standards.
• Building warm, nurturing relationships with children and fostering strong partnerships with families, including communication, conferences, and home visits.
• Communicating regularly with families about children's daily routines, milestones, emerging skills, and classroom experiences.
• Providing guidance, direction, and support to Assistant Teachers and classroom staff to ensure consistency and responsive care.
• Following all state licensing, Early Head Start, accreditation, health, safety, and program guidelines consistently.
• Participating in meetings, professional development, and required documentation to support high-quality toddler programming
• Building positive relationships with children, families, and team members.

Qualifications:

• Must be available to work Monday- Friday, 7:30AM-4:00PM
• Bachelor's degree, associate's degree, or CDA in early childhood education or a related field (or actively enrolled in a qualifying program)
• Previous experience working with children ages zero to three
• Knowledge of early childhood development and developmentally appropriate practice
• Strong communication, organizational, and leadership skills
• Ability to lift up to 40 pounds and actively engage with children throughout the day
• Ability to meet background check, fingerprinting, and health requirements