Teaching Assistant and Midday Meals Supervisor

Qualifications

The Teaching Assistant should have:

• good basic education to GCSE level in literacy and numeracy, or the equivalent

In addition, the Teaching Assistant might have experience of:

• A relevant qualification in Childcare and/or Education

Experience

The Teaching Assistant should have:

• Experience with young children, perhaps as a parent or voluntary worker (e.g. as a Brownie or Cub leader)

In addition, the Teaching Assistant might have experience:

• of being a paid worker in play schemes, crèches, midday supervision, after-school clubs or similar

Knowledge and Understanding

The Teaching Assistant should have knowledge and understanding of:

• the needs of young children;
• child development and the ways in which children learn;
• the roles played by various adults in a child’s education;
• behaviour management strategies;

• equal opportunities
• safeguarding

Skills

The Teaching Assistant will be able to:

• help professional staff to achieve their objectives;
• assist children on an individual basis, in small group and whole class work;
• explain tasks simply and clearly and foster independence;
• supervise children, and adhere to defined

behaviour management policies;

• accept and respond to authority and supervision;
• work with guidance, but under limited supervision;
• liaise and communicate effectively with others;
• demonstrate good organisational skills;
• reflect on and develop professional practice;
• display work effectively, and make and maintain basic teaching resources.

In addition, the Teaching Assistant might also be able to:

• monitor, record and make basic assessments about individual progress
• suggest alternative ways of helping children if they are unable to understand;
• describe, in simple terms, the process of behaviour management with children;
• identify gaps in their own experience that they need help in filling;
• demonstrate the ability to learn and adapt from past experience.