Goodman Center for Jewish Education
North Shore Congregation Israel, Glencoe, IL
North Shore Congregation Israel located in Glencoe, seeks a part-time coordinator for its highly regarded individualized Hebrew Instruction program that serves 40–50 3rd–6th-grade students with learning differences. Position is for 8-10 hours weekly during the school year.
Responsibilities include identifying students’ needs, supervising adult and teen tutors, overseeing the curriculum and materials, attending to the learning environment in person and online, teaching students, and connecting with parents.
The weekly schedule when school is in session includes Sunday mornings 9am-12:15pm and Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, 4:15-5:45pm. Six and a quarter hours focus on class time, the remaining time on planning and following up with teachers and parents. Limited flexible summer hours are also required.
This position requires a knowledge of Hebrew prayers and demonstrated experience working with children with learning differences in any setting.
Send resumes to Dr. Roberta Goodman, Education Director, [email protected].
Specific Duties
- Seeing and supporting the big picture for the Individualized Instruction Program
The Coordinator works with the Education Director in setting the direction for the Individualized Instruction Program. The Coordinator has the responsibility of implementing the program to meet students’ needs.
A curricular flow is in place moving from learning the Hebrew alef bet to focusing on prayers for those becoming b’nei mitzvah. After year one, the Coordinator will have the opportunity to make any needed adjustments in the curriculum to best meet the students’ needs.
Helping students feel valued, happy and motivated is key to making the Individualized Instruction program a place where students feel safe and successful. The program meets each student where they are and builds on the individual strengths of each student. The approach relies on short-term goals with lots of positive reinforcement through stickers, prizes, and opportunities to play games or help other students learn.
- Attending to the physical/online spaces
The physical space is set up to accommodate students’ learning needs. This includes specifically arranged and adaptive furniture, technology, multi-sensory tools, games, and more. Identifying new materials/resources and taking “general” materials and adapting them for use is part of creating a Hebrew/prayer rich environment.
Since some learning occurs online, making certain there are resources available to support teachers and students who engage in this manner.
- Identifying and Supporting Students’ Needs
Every child comes to Individualized Instruction with their own story and reasons for why the setting is a good fit. For some, the learning differences are cognitive/intellectual development and for others it is social/emotional reasons.
The Coordinator, working with the teachers and parents, will identify each student’s learning needs and set them on a course for achieving the school’s Hebrew educational goals to the degree and in the way they can. Some students will explore Jewish studies topics in addition to the Hebrew curriculum. The Coordinator checks on how each student is progressing with the help of the staff.
Gathering IEPs and 504s and following up with parents about a student’s learning needs is part of the position. An Inclusion Specialist writes a summary of recommendations for each child for whom this information is provided. The Individualized Instruction Coordinator will work closely with the Inclusion Specialist to identify and disseminate needed information.
- Supporting Adult and Teen Teachers
The Coordinator has a key role as an educational leader helping staff members feel valued and successful. The Coordinator engages, motivates, and encourages staff members to try new techniques and materials with students. The Coordinator builds a team, taps into each person’s strengths, and attends to each teacher’s needs.
The staff of the Individualized Instruction Center consists of adults, most of whom have experience if not formal training in working with children with learning differences, and teen aides who work directly with students or develop materials. The Coordinator assigns teachers or teens to work with each student both on a regular basis and as the situation requires. The Coordinator monitors the effectiveness of the teacher/student relationship and learning progress.
The Education Director is responsible for the hiring of staff. She consults with the Coordinator in selecting staff members.
Parents need to feel that the Individualized Instruction program is a good choice to support their child’s learning needs. The Coordinator explains to parents how the Individualized Instruction program works. The Coordinator answers parents’ questions or concerns as they arise. The Coordinator oversees the twice yearly feedback to parents with the help of the staff members.
- Having Basic Hebrew knowledge
The Hebrew curriculum focuses on learning to decode Hebrew words and gaining prayer participation fluency. The latter may be achieved through a combination of repetition, chanting/singing, and reading in transliteration and/or Hebrew letters.
The Coordinator needs a knowledge of Hebrew decoding and prayerbook Hebrew in a Reform setting. Knowledge of the tunes used in the congregation can be acquired rather than already mastered. Some students will explore Jewish Studies topics in addition to the Hebrew curriculum. The Coordinator needs to facilitate this learning as needed.
- Continuing to bring in tools to support students’ learning
The Individualized Instruction program, as is the larger school, is known for innovating and updating. We are constantly striving to identify techniques and resources particularly technological to further our students’ learning and motivation. Risk taking, professional learning, networking, awareness of resources are all desired characteristics of the Coordinator.