Teaching Assistant

The challenging and varied role of a Teaching Assistant is ideal for anyone hoping to make a positive impact on the lives of children and young adults.

As a Teaching Assistant, you'll offer practical help and emotional support to children experiencing short or long-term difficulties. The focus of your role is to provide support to students, empowering them to address various challenges, reducing problems and risks and helping to make sure that children are safe. You might help children with a range of social and personal issues or specialise in a particular area such as Autism, Global development delay or Downs Syndrome.

Responsibilities

• Follow instructions from Teachers in order to support effectively in the classroom
• Adhere to professional practice standards and legislation, including confidentiality, safeguarding, equality, diversity and inclusion policies
• Ensure you're up-to-date on your knowledge of local service provision for appropriate signposting and referrals
• Support students on 1:1, adapting your approach on a case by case basis in order to engage students effectively
• Help children with learning and development
• Coach, mentor and motivate children to understand the benefits of relevant activities
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date administration and caseload records, including reports of all interactions

Skills

You'll need to show:

• Good communication and listening skills
• The ability to build and maintain rapport with children
• Calmness under pressure and when dealing with challenging or confrontational behaviour
• Flexibility and adaptability
• A good understanding of the challenges faced by the children you help
• Organisation and problem-solving skills
• Resilience and the ability to cope with emotionally-draining and traumatic situations
• Commitment to making a positive difference to the lives of the students
• A positive, non-judgemental, empathetic and sensitive approach

Work Experience

You'll need relevant work experience with children, young people and their families to work as a Teaching Assistant. You may also have experience from working in one of the following:

• Children's homes
• Family community centres
• Mental health services
• Nurseries and schools
• Youth projects.
• Personal experience

If you are interested, please call Jess on 01245 690935 or email on jess.cummins@teachingpersonnel.com