Preschool Lead Teacher, Alpha - $120,000/year USD

• Based in New York City, NY (on-site position)
• Weekly pay at $120,000 annually. Full health, dental, and vision coverage begins day one.
• Relocating to join us? We provide relocation assistance.
  
  

Can real learning begin with joy, movement, and trust?

Alpha School is reimagining education so children excel academically faster and dedicate more time to developing essential life skills. In Pre-K, this begins with something even more foundational: emotional security, curiosity, and the resilience to keep trying.

Your role: guide an on-site NYC Pre-K group that develops a love for school while achieving accelerated early-learning outcomes—approximately double the progress seen in traditional preschool settings. You'll craft purposeful, sensory-rich play experiences that target developmental milestones, document progress each week, and adapt quickly to meet each child's needs.

NYC offers: Parks ideal for outdoor exploration, vibrant neighborhoods with engaged family communities, exceptional public transportation, and connections to leading early childhood education networks.

Foster joy. Drive growth. Apply today.

What You Will Be Doing

• Plan and lead play-based learning sessions lasting 30–60 minutes that foster joy, emotional security, and quantifiable developmental progress
• Build a classroom environment rich in movement and sensory opportunities that sustains high engagement and supports four-year-olds learning through diverse modalities
• Observe and record in the moment: Collect same-day, objective observations linked to developmental domains, then refresh each child's milestone tracking weekly
• Let data inform your teaching: Review weekly documentation to pinpoint each child's next developmental step and design targeted instructional responses
• Craft individualized activity modifications driven by each child's interests and motivations, integrate one specific developmental objective, and reassess results within two weeks
• Support children navigating frustration through steady co-regulation and emotional guidance instead of reactive behavior management
• Share student progress, daily routines, and developing concerns with families in a clear and proactive manner
  
  

What You Won’t Be Doing

• View PreK as custodial care instead of purposeful early education
• Default to scripted worksheets or compliance-focused instruction as your primary teaching method
• Spend most of your time supervising academic apps rather than facilitating live, interactive learning
• Substitute reactive behavior management for calm co-regulation and emotional guidance
  
  

Preschool Lead Teacher Key Responsibilities

Ensure NYC Pre-K children develop a love of learning while showing accelerated early-learning growth through purposeful play.

Basic Requirements

• Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development, OR CDA/Montessori/Reggio certification
• At least 2 years of experience with 3–5-year-olds in a structured group environment (classroom setting, not exclusively individual care)
• Proven track record facilitating play-based learning that produces visible developmental progress
• Established ability to document developmental milestones objectively and reliably each week using a structured framework or assessment tool
• Strong capacity for relationship-building and emotional sensitivity: Build trust efficiently, interpret emotional signals accurately, and apply personalized motivators to foster engagement
• Co-regulation and emotional scaffolding: Support children through emotional challenges using calm presence and structured coaching techniques
• Authorized to work in the U.S. without requiring sponsorship
• Available to work full-time on-site in New York City, NY
  
  

About Alpha

Want to join a learning rebellion that’s transforming the traditional classroom?

Alpha School is on a mission to reshape education with a bold approach that harnesses AI to accelerate learning and unleash student potential.

They don’t play by the old rules.

Alpha is creating a new paradigm where students master core academics in just two hours a day, freeing up time for hands-on, passion-driven learning that truly prepares them for the real world.

Alpha School is rewriting the rules of education.

Sounds too good to be true? It’s not.

There is so much to cover for this exciting role, and space here is limited. Hit the Apply button if you found this interesting and want to learn more. We look forward to meeting you!

Working with us

This is a full-time (40 hours per week), long-term position. The position is immediately available and requires entering into an independent contractor agreement with Crossover as a Contractor of Record. The compensation level for this role is $60 USD/hour, which equates to $120,000 USD/year assuming 40 hours per week and 50 weeks per year. The payment period is weekly. Consult www.crossover.com/help-and-faqs for more details on this topic.

Crossover Job Code: LJ-5746-US-Paterson-PreschoolLeadT