Early Childhood Dance Teacher

Neighborhood Music School (NMS) seeks an experienced Dance Teacher with a passion for teaching children ages 3-5 to join the NMS Early Childhood Dance Program. This program for preschool-age students encourages young children to explore the joy of movement through ballet, modern, and tap dance classes. NMS seeks a teacher with expertise in these three styles of dance, as well as a strong working knowledge of developmentally-appropriate dance pedagogy, to join our faculty.

RESPONSIBILITIES(include, but are not limited to):

Educational:

• Attend ten hours of paid training in our approach to Early Childhood Dance pedagogy prior to commencing teaching;
• Teach multiple classes per week in ballet, modern, and tap dance styles to children ages 3-5;
• Create an in-class visiting day for the families of students at the end of each class term;
• Facilitate student learning through effective, progressive, and positive instruction;
• Pursue continuous professional development in all aspects of teaching;
• Support educational progress and promote student retention by taking an active role in student assessment and guiding students and their families to further appropriate study at NMS;
• Encourage students and their families to take full advantage of the range of programs and events at NMS, including lessons, ensembles, classes, performances, community events, workshops, and summer programs;
• Consult proactively with supervisor regarding any questions or problems which arise during the year.

Institutional and Administrative:

• Understanding of the NMS mission and values, and a love of the arts;

• Appreciation of the diversity of the New Haven region and the NMS community;
• Commitment to equity and inclusion, and a desire to be part of building an anti-bias anti-racism culture;
• Work collaboratively and collegially with all NMS employees;
• Maintain accurate student attendance records;
• Attend twice yearly all-school meetings;
• Attend Dance Department meetings, as scheduled.

QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS:

• Experience teaching ballet, modern, and tap dance classes to students ages 3-5;
• Experience teaching students with different levels of dance experience within the same class;
• Experience creating inclusive learning environments;
• Experience creating lesson plans and developing curricula;
• Experience working with a piano accompanist in class or a willingness to learn how to collaborate with an accompanist;
• Excellent verbal communication skills;
• Availability to teach on multiple weekday afternoons and on Saturday mornings. MUST HAVE SATURDAY TEACHING AVAILABILITY.

TO APPLY:

Send a cover letter, resume, and biography to Tracey Albert, Director of Dance & Wellness at NMS, at .

ABOUT NMS:

NMS is the largest non-profit community arts organization in Connecticut and one of the ten largest in the country. Founded in 1911 as part of the settlement house movement serving new immigrants to New Haven, we now serve more than 2,400 students from 80+ cities and towns annually. Students of all ages receive individual and group instruction in music, dance, drama, and film, and participate in over 100 weekly ensembles. In addition, we house an arts-integrated preschool and an independent, theatre-based middle school. We provide close to $500,000 in financial aid and tuition support to more than 500 students each year.

NMS faculty are outstanding teaching artists and educators who embrace a student-centered approach to instruction and who are committed to working in a non-profit community arts institution. Teaching artists engage their students to develop a joyful interest and skilled application in their area of study. NMS faculty model artistic excellence through their personal pursuit of artistic development through active performance and ongoing practice. Our faculty are passionate about contributing to the NMS mission: to deepen the human experience and build connections through the learning, practice, and presentation of the performing arts.

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: $35.00 - $50.00 per hour

Benefits:

• Employee discount
• Flexible schedule
• Paid training
• Professional development assistance

Compensation package:

• Hourly pay

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday
• Weekends only

Work setting:

• In-person

Work Location: In person