Private Special Education Teacher

We’re looking for a thoughtful, experienced Special Education Teacher to provide individualized, one-on-one instruction to students with a wide range of ages, disabilities, and learning needs across Davidson and Williamson Counties. This role is centered on helping each student make meaningful progress toward family-established goals while addressing specific academic and developmental areas of need.

The ideal educator brings strong special education expertise along with flexibility, patience, and an ability to connect naturally with students and families. You understand that effective instruction starts with knowing the individual student, and you value the opportunity to adapt your teaching around how each student learns best.

Student Profile

You may work with students across a broad range of ages and learning profiles, including students with ADHD, dyslexia and literacy needs, autism, anxiety, executive functioning challenges, multiple disabilities, assistive-technology needs, and other learning differences.

Because every placement is different, you’ll take time to understand each student’s strengths, challenges, learning style, and goals. Depending on the student, your work may include building academic skills, addressing learning gaps, providing enrichment, strengthening executive functioning, or reinforcing and extending goals identified through an existing IEP outside of school.

What You’ll Do

• Provide engaging, individualized one-on-one instruction based on each student’s learning profile, strengths, goals, and needs
• Design and adapt curriculum, lessons, learning materials, and instructional strategies to meet the student where they are
• Address academic skill gaps while providing appropriate enrichment and opportunities for continued growth
• Support areas such as literacy, executive functioning, attention, organization, and other needs identified by the family
• Reinforce and extend relevant IEP goals outside of the school environment without assuming responsibility for IEP development or management
• Use flexible, responsive teaching strategies that reflect each student’s unique learning style
• Communicate regularly with parents, sharing progress, observations, challenges, and instructional recommendations
• Travel to assigned job sites throughout Davidson and Williamson Counties and manage instruction professionally within each family setting

What Makes Someone Successful in This Role

• You are a certified special education teacher who understands that effective instruction begins with knowing the individual student
• You can adapt your teaching style, pace, materials, and strategies to a variety of ages, learning profiles, and needs
• You are patient and encouraging, and you know how to help students experience both academic progress and greater confidence
• You communicate clearly and proactively with parents and see families as important partners in a student’s education
• You are organized, dependable, and comfortable working independently across different student and family environments
• You bring flexibility, curiosity, professionalism, and sound judgment to individualized teaching

Requirements

• Active Tennessee Special Education teaching license required
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant teaching experience
• Experience with curriculum design and individualized learning plans
• Experience partnering with parents and families
• Eligible to work in the United States
• Local travel between assigned job sites is required
• Valid Tennessee driver’s license and reliable personal transportation for local travel between assigned job sites

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Education or a related field
• Experience with project-based, experiential, or interdisciplinary learning that connects academics to real-world applications
• Experience in private education, home-based education, or other highly personalized learning environments
• Experience teaching across multiple age groups or developmental stages
• Experience working closely with a private family in their home

Professional Standards

• Current background check required; Thrive facilitates this process
• Verifiable references from prior teaching or tutoring roles, including at least one direct supervisor or administrator
• Strong professionalism, discretion, and adaptability when working within a family’s home, including comfort maintaining strict confidentiality and signing an NDA as a condition of employment

Logistics & Compensation

• Location: Job sites throughout Davidson and Williamson Counties, Tennessee
• Schedule: Approximately 10–12 hours per week to start, with opportunities to accept additional student hours and placements
• Start Date: ASAP
• Travel Requirements: Local travel between assigned job sites is required
• Compensation: $60–$90/hour, based on experience and credentials
• Employment Type: W-2, part-time
• Certification: Special education certification required

Why This Role

This role offers the opportunity to do the kind of deeply individualized work that can be difficult to create within a traditional classroom. You’ll have the time and flexibility to understand how a student learns, shape instruction around their individual needs, and see the impact of your work over time.

For the right educator, it’s also an opportunity to build a flexible workload around meaningful special education work. You can begin with approximately 10–12 hours per week and take on additional students and hours as desired, while bringing your expertise directly to students and families who value personalized support.

About Thrive

Thrive Education Partners connects exceptional educators with families seeking highly personalized, values-driven education.

Our placements go beyond traditional tutoring or classroom teaching. We help create thoughtful learning environments where students can grow academically, build confidence, and experience the joy of meaningful, individualized education.