Beginners Teacher; AY

Buckingham Browne and Nichols School | Cambridge, MA

Start Date:

August 26, 2026

BB&N is seeking a Beginner Homeroom Teacher who will serve as the primary educator for a class of young elementary students (typically 4-5 years old), creating a nurturing and academically rigorous learning environment rooted in an emergent, project-based curriculum that honors children as competent, creative thinkers. This position is responsible for designing and implementing a deeply integrated, research-based, child-centered approach to learning where curriculum emerges from children’s interests and authentic investigations into the world around them.

The teacher facilitates rich play experiences, carefully observes and documents student learning, and scaffolds academic skill development across all content areas in the context of meaningful project work. The Beginners Homeroom Teacher will work closely with families to create strong partnerships and will cultivate a classroom community inspired by BB&N’s core values of inquiry, integrity, belonging, and kindness–where all students feel valued, challenged, and empowered to reach their full potential.

Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Design and implement an emergent, integrated curriculum that responds to children’s interests, questions, and investigations, weaving together language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies within authentic project-based learning experiences.
• Observe, document, and assess individual student development across all domains through authentic assessment methods, maintaining detailed records that capture children’s thinking, learning processes, and growth over time.
• Facilitate and scaffold children’s play as the primary vehicle for learning, recognizing play as the context in which young children engage in their most motivated and powerful thinking.
• Build a democratic social learning community grounded in Responsive Classroom practices, fostering children’s understanding of rights, responsibilities, diversity, multiculturalism, and citizenship within the classroom and broader school community.
• Collaborate regularly and actively with specialists in art, music, library, physical education, Spanish, technology, creative movement, as well as the learning specialist and reading specialist to provide comprehensive, integrated support for student learning.

Any additional responsibilities determined by the LS Director.

Some additional responsibilities include, but are not limited to, attendance at weekly faculty meetings, ordering of materials, tools, instructional aids, budget management, admissions work, Back to School Night presentation, and any other duties that may be assigned by the Administration.
In addition, the Beginner teacher is expected to be committed to the following practices:

• Diversity, equity, and inclusion practices and the impact it has on the curriculum and the community.
• Social-emotional learning.
• Using the visual arts to expand on the thoughts and ideas of the students.
• Collaboration between adults in our community that evolves and advances practice.
• Documentation and assessment of learning in ways that make the learning visible.
• Understanding of inquiry-based interdisciplinary research projects and the development of authentic and meaningful experiences that result in exemplary work (a student’s best work) and lifelong learning.
• Organization and use of materials within different disciplines in skilled and inventive ways to deepen learning.
• Installation of organized and aesthetically pleasing learning environments.

The ideal candidate should have at least three years of lead classroom teaching experience in emergent, child-centered preschool/early childhood education. A Bachelor’s degree is required, and a Master’s degree in Elementary/Early Childhood Education is preferred. In addition, the ideal candidate will be familiar with Reggio Emilia-inspired educational philosophy, with significant knowledge of cognitive and social development…