Middle School English Language Arts Teacher

Galapagos Rockford Charter School; Rockford Township (IL); On-site; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical and dental benefits

Life insurance

Flex spending plans

Paid vacation time

Job summary

Galapagos Rockford Charter School is seeking a Middle School English Language Arts Teacher to inspire scholars in grades 5-8. The role focuses on rigorous standards-aligned instruction, data-driven planning, and engaging lessons that meet diverse needs.

You will design daily lessons, collaborate with colleagues, use formative assessments, and contribute to professional development. A Bachelor's degree is required and urban public or charter school experience is preferred.

Qualifications

• Drive to stay focused on scholar achievement and growth even when it is difficult.
• Grit to be solution-focused and persist until results are achieved.
• Growth mindset to view failures as opportunities to learn and improve.
• Evidence of self-motivation and willingness to be a team player.
• Bachelor's degree is required.

Responsibilities

• Maximize time on task by ensuring that all classroom lessons and activities are directly tied to standards.
• Participate in collaborative curriculum development, ongoing professional development, and feedback/coaching meetings.
• Design and implement targeted daily whole group and small group lesson plans, as well as assessments that measure progress towards academic standards.
• Use assessment data to refine curriculum and inform instructional practices.
• Be accountable for scholars' mastery of academic standards.
• Ensure a structured, orderly, and calm classroom environment through proven classroom management techniques.

Skills

Drive to achieve

Grit

Growth mindset

Self-motivation

Team player

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Middle School English Language Arts Teacher

3051 Rotary Rd. Rockford, IL 61109

Middle School English Language Arts Instructor (5-8)

Who are we looking for?

Galapagos is looking for driven educators who truly believe in the ability of all children to succeed at the highest levels. Our staff works incredibly hard to deliver rigorous, individualized, data-driven and explicit instruction to our scholars.

Our instructors spend a significant amount of time planning units, assessments, and lessons that align with the Common Core Standards and also meet the individual needs of each scholar in their class. We are looking for people who value growth, not perfection- but are always striving to be the absolute best.

Instructors are the key to our scholars' success. We believe that there is nothing more influential to scholar performance than the quality of the classroom instructor. We are looking for instructors who are committed to learning and growing personally and professionally, as well as continually revising and improving our curriculum, assessments, and instruction as part of the Galapagos team.

Instructor Responsibilities

• Maximize time on task by ensuring that all classroom lessons and activities are directly tied to standards
• Participate in collaborative curriculum development, frequent professional development, and feedback/coaching meetings
• Design and implement targeted daily whole group and small group lesson plans, as well as assessments that measure progress towards academic standards
• Use assessment data to refine curriculum and inform instructional practices
• Be accountable for scholars' mastery of academic standards
• Ensure a structured, orderly, and calm classroom environment through the use of Teach Like a Champion, Calm Classroom, and Responsive Classroom techniques

Instructor Qualifications

• Drive to stay focused on scholar achievement and growth even when it is difficult
• Grit to be solution-focused and keep going until the desired results are achieved
• Growth mindset to see failures and setbacks as challenges to learn from and overcome
• Evidence of self-motivation and willingness to be a team player
• Bachelor's degree is required
• Minimum of one year of teaching experience in an urban public school or charter school setting preferred, but not required.
• Belief in and alignment with Galapagos' core beliefs and educational philosophy is non-negotiable.

Compensation

Starting salary offers are based on relevant experience, potential for growth, and overall fit. Instructors are eligible for medical and dental benefits, life insurance, flex spending plans, and paid vacation time. Certified staff members also receive matching contributions to the teacher pension fund. All staff members are equipped with the tools needed to succeed, including intensive coaching and professional development, a laptop computer, e-mail, high-speed internet access, and all necessary supplies.

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Galapagos Rockford Charter School's Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.