Onboarding plan
Teacher Assistant Onboarding Plan (30-60-90 Days)
A practical, printable plan to take a new teacher assistant from first day to full productivity.
Teacher Assistant onboarding at a glance
Week one covers orientation, safety and shadowing. Days 1–30 build vocabulary and supervised practice on core procedures; days 31–60 move to independent work with competency sign-offs; days 61–90 focus on full productivity, cross-training and a credential plan.
Before day one
- Confirm start date, schedule, pay and supervisor in writing
- Verify required credentials: ParaPro Assessment, State paraprofessional certification (as applicable)
- Prepare equipment and access: curriculum materials; learning apps; assistive technology; behavior charts
- Assign a buddy or preceptor
- Enroll the new hire in Teacher Assistant training so foundations are covered before or during week one
Week one: orient and protect
- Workplace tour, emergency procedures and incident reporting
- Follow school safety and supervision rules
- Know students’ medical and behavior plans
- Use safe lifting for students who need physical help
- Report safety concerns
- Shadow an experienced teacher assistant through a full shift
- Training modules 1–3: role foundations, a day on the job and essential vocabulary (15 terms)
Days 1–30: learn
Goal: perform core tasks safely under supervision.
- Supervised practice: lead a small reading group
- Supervised practice: support a student’s IEP accommodations
- Supervised practice: redirect off-task behavior
- Training modules 4–7: duties, step-by-step tasks, tools and safety
- 30-day check-in: confidence, questions and early wins
Days 31–60: contribute
Goal: handle a regular workload independently.
- Work with small groups and individual students: independently
- Reinforce lessons taught by the teacher: independently
- Support students with disabilities: independently
- Supervise students at lunch, recess and transitions: independently
- Competency sign-offs completed (see checklist below)
- Training final knowledge check and certificate of completion
- 60-day check-in
Days 61–90: own
Goal: full productivity and a growth plan.
- Meet productivity and quality targets for the role
- Begin cross-training on a secondary task
- Agree on a credential goal (for example, ParaPro Assessment)
- Discuss the career path: Teacher Assistant → Special Education Paraprofessional → Teacher (with degree)
- 90-day review
Competency checklist
| Skill or task | Trained | Observed | Signed off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead a Small Reading Group | |||
| Support a Student’s IEP Accommodations | |||
| Redirect Off-Task Behavior | |||
| Small-group instruction | |||
| Behavior support | |||
| Special education basics | |||
| Classroom management |
How to measure onboarding success
- Time to independent classroom work
- Observation and evaluation scores
- Licensing or compliance findings
- First-year retention
How Teacher Assistant training maps to this plan
- Introduction to the Teacher Assistant Role
- A Day on the Job
- Essential Teacher Assistant Vocabulary
- Core Duties and Responsibilities
- Common Tasks, Step by Step
- Tools, Equipment and Technology
- Safety, Compliance and Professional Standards
- Skills Employers Look For
- Launching Your Teacher Assistant Career
- Final Knowledge Check