Phonics and Science of Reading Teacher Trainer

Phonics and Science of Reading Teacher Trainer

Mrs Wordsmith | US-based | Travel to schools required

Be the first. Change how America teaches reading.

Our first US pilot goes live in Scarsdale, NY this September. Following a positive outcome, we'll be building out the US market with an army of trainers — and you'll be the first. This is your chance to make a big difference to how teachers teach reading: faster, more successfully, and for every child.

About Mrs Wordsmith

Mrs Wordsmith is an education company on a mission to leave no child behind in learning to read. Our Systematic Phonics Program brings decades of UK Science of Reading practice to US schools — and it works: students blend and read their first sentences within three months.

The heart of our product is teacher training. Schools don't just buy a curriculum — they buy the capability to teach it, delivered by a Mrs Wordsmith trainer. That trainer is you.

The Role

You'll be trained and certified by our Head of Education, Jo Jackson — a literacy specialist with 20+ years in systematic phonics, including 13 years as a Senior Consultant Trainer on Read Write Inc., the UK's most widely adopted phonics program, where she co-created training content alongside its founder, Ruth Miskin.

Jo built her career in exactly the role you're stepping into: mastering a method, carrying it into schools, and transforming how teachers teach reading. Now you'll do the same in the US — first getting trained yourself in September, then opening doors at schools and training their teachers: delivering the training that gets students reading in 90 days.

What You'll Deliver in Schools

Everything you train teachers to do is light, structured, and fast:

• Two training days per school. One upbeat, interactive phonics training day to get teachers ready to teach — then a single Readers training day three months later, completing their professional development. That's it. Two days, versus LETRS's 160 hours.
• A 20-minute daily lesson model. Whole-class phonics instruction teaching one sound a day, four days a week, with one day for review.
• Five-minute top-up lessons. You'll train paraprofessionals as well as classroom teachers, so children who need extra support get daily personalized reinforcement without overwhelming the class teacher.
• Light-touch assessment. Weekly one-to-one informal checks (a few minutes per child) plus a formal assessment every 6–8 weeks — spot the gaps, to stop the gaps.
• Decodable readers from month three. Building fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, expression, and stamina.

What You'll Do

• Get trained, deeply. Complete intensive certification with Jo until you can deliver both training days to standard — and love doing it.
• Open doors. Identify and pursue schools and districts — principals, literacy directors, Special Education Directors, and curriculum leads. The program's strongest economic case speaks directly to SpEd budgets: our training costs $300 per teacher, one time, versus $30,000 per pupil per year in special education provision or $10,000–25,000 in high-frequency tutoring. You'll know how to make that case.
• Win pilots. Present the program, run demos, navigate school decision-making, and convert interest into signed agreements.
• Train teachers. Deliver energetic, practical, genuinely fun training days that leave teachers ready to teach on Monday morning.
• Support implementation. Check in with the schools you've trained, review assessment data with teachers on the 6–8 week cadence, troubleshoot, and turn early wins — starting with the evidence from our Scarsdale pilot — into case studies and referrals.
• Grow with us. As the US market develops, help us recruit, train, and certify the trainers who come after you.

What You'll Bring

Must-haves:

• 5+ years of US elementary classroom teaching, reading intervention, or literacy coaching experience
• Deep, practical knowledge of systematic phonics and the Science of Reading (LETRS, Orton-Gillingham, Wilson, Fundations, or equivalent training a strong plus)
• Experience delivering professional development or training to adults — and the presence to hold a room of skeptical teachers
• Genuine appetite for outreach: energized, not drained, by prospecting, pitching, and asking for the pilot
• Self-direction: you'll be our first US trainer, building your own pipeline and calendar
• Willingness to travel regularly to schools; based within practical reach of the Northeast a plus (our first pilot is in Scarsdale, NY)
• US work authorization

Nice-to-haves:

• Experience selling into schools or districts (edtech, curriculum, PD services)
• Familiarity with special education frameworks (IDEA, IEPs, RTI/MTSS) and Title I funding
• An existing network among district literacy or special education leaders
• Experience supporting English Language Learners

Why This Role

• Be first. Not joining a training team — founding one.
• Sell something honest. Two days of training, $100–$350 per teacher, kids reading in 90 days. The results are visible fast, and the comparison with the incumbents ($1,000–$1,500 for LETRS, up to $5,000 for Orton-Gillingham) does the talking.
• Learn from the best. Direct certification and mentorship from a program designer who trained over 100 schools and co-wrote training content with the pioneers of UK systematic phonics.
• A career path with a precedent. Jo went from classroom teacher to national consultant trainer to Head of Education. This role is the first rung of that ladder in the US.

How to Apply

Send your resume and a short note (or 2-minute video) telling us: (1) your phonics story — how you came to the Science of Reading, and (2) a time you convinced a school, district, or organization to adopt something new.

Mrs Wordsmith is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.