PPTK Play Coach

Description

Diversity and Inclusion Affirmation Statement

The Grand Rapids Children’s Museum is affirming of all identities and embraces differences in race, nationality, language, age, culture, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, physical and cognitive ability, religion, marital status, and socio-economic status, and expects our staff members to embrace this affirmation. To best serve our community, bilingual and multilingual candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

MISSION AND VALUES

The Grand Rapids Children’s Museum is an environment for play, advocates for the value of play, and builds minds through play.

Play is essential for healthy development. Play has the power to transform. Play benefits all ages. Everyone has the right to play. Play benefits families.

Job Summary

The Play Coach will be responsible for providing a safe, positive, clean and fun experience for the duration of the PPTK program.  They will take an active role in curriculum deployment, and work hard to provide a positive, safe, pleasant, and playful experience every day for each student and staff member—they must understand the core philosophy of the GRCM mission and demonstrate learning through play. They must work cooperatively with all museum and school staff members; show concern for each other and treat each co-worker, volunteer, parent, student and visitor with respect and dignity; and support a positive morale within the organization(s). The Play Coach must act as ambassadors for the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum at all times. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

· Responsible for daily classroom support including: welcoming students and families to the school building/ classroom, serving meals to students and helping clean and setup before and after meal times, helping students brush teeth and wash hands, tidying up after play times, etc. 

· Participation in classroom activities such as a group circle time lead by the classroom teacher, outdoor free play and other unstructured free play times throughout the day 

· Responsible for collaborating with GRPS staff to evaluate students based on My Teaching Strategies metrics used to gauge Kindergarten readiness—will be provided before the start of the program. 

· Responsible for collaborating with other GRCM play coach(es) assigned to your site as well as with site coordinators to develop GRCM mission driven programming to be implemented based on the curricular goals of the program as outlined by GRPS classroom teachers and site coordinators. 

· Attend daily recap meetings with staff (much like a GRCM morning meeting or end of day meeting) to address concerns and coordinate programming/scheduling etc. for the duration of the program. 

· Work with children and teach them in developmentally appropriate ways. 

Additional Responsibilities

· Build and maintain positive working relationships with staff and community in a professional, contractual, and courteous manner.

· Additional training and ongoing related professional development will be required for this position.

· Perform all other duties as assigned.

Requirements

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

Education and/or Experience:

· Experience working with children in a school setting preferred. 

· Strong interest in early childhood education.

· Ability to speak Spanish useful but not required.

· Must be AED/CPR certified or take GRCM-provided course.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Required:

· Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build relationships and work effectively with diverse groups of people not limited to co-workers, volunteers, parents, and students.

· Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously.

· Commitment to the organization's mission and values, with a passion for engaging and empowering volunteers.

· Ability to work in a diverse school environment.

· Demonstrate respect for confidentiality requirements of information.

· Punctual and have strong attendance and reliability. 

· Have a positive attitude.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

· Walking, bending, kneeling required on a daily basis. 

· Will be working outdoors, so appropriate dress and sun protection will be required. 

Work Environment

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. 

· The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

· Challenging work demands including heavy workload/work quantity or quality demands, time demands, conflicting/multiple deadlines or tasks, infrequent rest breaks, long or unpredictable work hours, shiftwork.

· Challenging situations including dealing with employees and guest in an environment that is continuously changing.

· Our culture and mission are centered around “play” and the work environment is considered to be playful, rewarding, positive and fun.

Work Schedule

This position will require a very strict schedule for the duration of the program. Hours will be either 8:00am-1:00pm or 8am-3:30pm Monday-Thursday from June 16-July 24th, 2025. If currently employed on-site with the GRCM, employees may work at the museum outside of these hours. PPTK Play Coach shifts are not allowed to be swapped/traded with other GRCM employees for the duration of this program.

Compensation

This position starts at $16.50 per hour.