Preschool Dance Teacher

Overview

A rapidly growing, established dance studio in Richmond, VA is seeking a preschool dance instructor who have a desire and passion for educating and instructing children age 18mos to 6 years to serve on their team for the 2024-2024 dance season.

Perfect opportunity for a candidate looking for part-time, fun, inspiration work during the week in a thriving team environment.

Crossroads Irish Dance offers an energetic environment with inspiring instruction that gives dancers the opportunity to have fun and develop a love of Irish dance, music, and culture. Our studio values community, professionalism, integrity, empath, creativity, excellence, trust, and fun.

The Crossroads Education Team is the driving force behind the learning, development, and leadership of our dancers. Our teachers are empowered to determine the artistic and creative direction for their classes and provide a strong foundation for our dancers.

We are committed to acclimating our new teachers into our studio and culture so they feel welcome.

OUR PRESCHOOL DANCE PROGRAM

• Our Jump’N Jig program is a preschool, introductory program focusing on creativity, gross motor skill development, self-confidence, imaginative play, and fun.
• It is very important to us, first and foremost, that candidates are familiar with working with this age group, are energetic, and have a passion for helping us create the best preschool program in our studio.
• We are seeking a candidate with at least 1 year of training in a creative dance, music or arts environment or other recreational activity working with children.
• NO formal training in Irish dance is needed.
• Any training and development with basic Irish dance techniques and skills will be provided upon hire by certified staff.

SCHEDULE

• This position would begin in August 26, 2024 with onboarding and training provided prior to this date.
• Contracts may be renewed each year for the new dance season.
• Classes for this age group are Monday-Friday between 4:40-5:45pm and Saturdays 9:00am-12:00pm.
• We will also occasionally run themed camps, so opportunities for more hours and growth.
• We strive to offer a work/life balance with our teachers as most of our staff go to school and work outside of the studio.
• Many of our teachers hold dual roles in the studio to be involved and increase their training.
• So candidates will have opportunities for advancement to move into other roles in the studio if possible in addition to teaching if they desire.

PAY RATE

• This is a part time position with a starting hourly rate of $15, which is commensurate based on experience.
• Teachers are paid an hourly wage based on years of experience and training.
• We also provide additional compensation to teachers for attending events, any administrative tasks and bonus stipends.
• Discount and other perks also included.

TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Our Preschool teachers must be able to work in an environment that can be loud and filled with the squeals and laughter of young children.
• Our Educators are team players who can work collaboratively with the leadership team of the studio, communicate effectively, and manage stressful situations with kindness, empathy, and love.
• We are looking for a clever, creative, tech-savvy, smart-working, driven and detail-oriented star to join our team.
• You’ll already be excellent and passionate about delivering outstanding education and service as well as being excited to work on administrative tasks.
• You’ll have outstanding attention to detail and a strong drive to provide an out of this world experience each and every class.

THE DAY TO DAY- What You’ll Be Doing Exactly

Teaching

• Establishes and nurtures a fun, creative, safe, and welcoming environment.
• Make an effort to form a relationship with every student
• Follows and supports all processes and procedures for the studio.
• Creates a classroom environment that is fun and conducive to learning and appropriate to the developmental level of the students.
• Implements a variety of instructional techniques and sources that meet the needs and capabilities of the student (s).
• Guides the learning process towards the achievement of curriculum goals and within the context of these goals, establishes clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects with the ability to communicate these objectives effectively to students.
• Develop and apply artistry, creativity and musicality through ideas and listening skills.
• Offering recommendations and evaluations to students/parents throughout the season to encourage their love of dance, expose them to new styles, build their confidence and support the studio’s re-enrollment rate.
• Establishes high expectations for success and classroom behavior.
• Choreographs routines and selects music/costumes for shows/events that are age/level appropriate.
• Brings new ideas to improve services, systems and processes and encourages/ supports the growth of the studio.
• You must be at least an 8 out of 10 when it comes to loving and understanding technology.
  Customer Experienc
• Takes the extra mile to engage customers.
• Develops and fosters student and parent relationships through professional, courteous, and efficient service.
• Maintains open lines of communication with students, parents and faculty.
• Responses to inquiries within 24hrs with professionalism and excellence.

Organization & Administration

• Maintain your own Crossroads email account and provide responses within 24 hours.
• Manages and completes all work tasks through software/systems including, but not limited to, Google Drive, Asana, Slack, Studio Success and Dance Studio Pro as well as, files and documents related to job duties both physically and digitally. (Training is provided on these systems).
• Provides feedback on methods and techniques to improve processes and enhance our vision

Experience with the following software a plus:

• G-Suite
• Dance Studio Pro
• GoHighLevel
• Google Suite (Drive, Gmail, Calendar etc)
• Asana
• Slack
• Band
• Canva

IDEAL CANDIDATE PROFILE

• Dance Training: Has training and education in preschool dance and is knowledgeable of techniques, vocabulary and skills as related to Irish dance. Certification is a bonus, but not required. Tuition assistance with receiving certifications is provided by the studio.
• Self-Motivated and Excellent Direction-Taker: You know how to prioritize the most important tasks (at times with minimal guidance), and how to think on your feet. At the same time, you pride yourself in your ability to take direction and deliver the desired result.
• Excellent Communication Skills: You understand the nuances of email communication, and can handle even the most challenging situations with professionalism and warmth. You’re also committed to keeping your supervisor “in the know” about your progress. (No one has to ever chase you down!)
• Excellent Grammar and Punctuation: You pride yourself on catching every typo!
• Deadline-Obsessed and Detail-Oriented: You love doing tasks on time, and checking them off your checklist! In fact, you are one of those people who don’t understand how some people can be so disorganized and tardy. Responding to emails with a sense of urgency and care is a source of pride.
• Personal Responsibility: If you make a mistake, you take 100% responsibility and fast action to remedy the situation. Able to communicate with Manager and/or co-workers when needing assistance with a task to meet a deadline or due to being overwhelmed or stuck.
• Customer Empathy: Imagining yourself in a customer’s shoes, you respond with empathy and have an ability to not take grumpy or terse emails personally. You see yourself as a bridge between company needs and customer needs. You know when it’s appropriate to be friendly and accommodating and when to be firm.

SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

Candidates must be able to:

• Build relationships among the students, families, and staff.
• Willing to work with other staff as a team.
• Have strong communication and organizational skills.
• Have a strong understanding of HOW to teach skills- not just how to do the skills.
• Know how to make our dancers shine and feel confident.

Candidates must:

• Have at least 1 year of dance training/education working with preschool age children. We do offer mentorship and training if teachers want to advance.
• Possess a strong desire and commitment to engage, encourage and motivate students to reach their goals.
• Possess a desire to learn and grow with the studio.
• Be punctual and reliable.
• Assess student progress, maintain student discipline, and comfortable working with parents to discuss progress and problem areas.
• Demonstrate the ability to be patient, dependable, enthusiastic, attentive to detail, resourceful, organized, and detail-oriented problem solver, and work with a team as well as, independently.
• Have the ability to always present a professional disposition inside and outside the studio
• Be able to follow well-defined processes and procedures and guidelines including multiple deadlines.
• Have reliable transportation to get to all necessary destinations.

STUDIO PERKS

• Flexible scheduling
• Direct Deposit-Payroll
• Family/life balance
• Family community
• Major holidays off
• On the Spot Bonus opportunities
• Delights and surprises by CEO throughout the season
• Substitute Pay (Time and half)
• Additional pay/compensation for duties outside the classroom to include, but not limited to, events, competitions, admin work and more.
• Opportunities to hold additional positions within the studio on other teams
• Paid professional development and teacher certification opportunities
• Additional compensation with private lessons, community events, and more

Think you or someone you know might be the right fit?

Please send an email to amy@crossroadsirish.com to let us know why you think Crossroads would be the perfect place for you. Attach a current resume to your email and send with the subject line Preschool Teacher