Early Childhood Music Teaching Artist

About Play On Philly

Play On Philly (POP) is a non-profit that provides daily, after-school music instruction to over 250 K-12 students. We work in communities that historically have had little or no access to formal music education. We are seeking Teaching Artists for our music center locations in West Philadelphia.

Job Description

The Early Childhood Music Teaching Artist (TA) position works with the youngest POP musicians (age 3-6) throughout West Philadelphia to hone their pre-instrument music skills which will prepare them for playing an instrument in the years to come. This position works at several Play On Philly Music Center locations to ensure consistency of music literacy skill-building and group cohesion. TAs manage their classes to create a safe, welcoming, and rigorous environment. All POP TAs are responsible for encouraging students to adhere to the POP rules and guidelines for student citizenship.

As POP team members, TAs actively participate in professional development and continued education to cultivate and hone their teaching skills. TAs receive regular feedback and coaching on their job performance. Successful candidates are interested in cultivating their skills in group classroom teaching and are excited to grow as educators.

This role is supervised by an off-site Program Coordinator and works in partnership with the Program Director, Music Director and other POP TAs within the exploratory division. We are looking for lifelong learners and collaboratively natured individuals who enjoy and have experience working with school-aged children (K-12), are creative, and can problem-solve and multi-task.

A successful candidate:

• You are passionate about music education.
• You are calm under pressure.
• You have experience with teaching groups of five or more students at once.
• You are excited to serve a community through music.

• You are a professional musician.
• You have at least one year of formal music teaching experience with young people; experience in the Dalcroze/Eurythmics or Orff pedagogies is a plus.
• You can work occasional nights and weekends as required.

Work Commitment

Schedule will be determined based on Music Center needs and Teaching Artist availability.

This position runs from September 2021 – December 2021.

(There will be no work during the week of Thanksgiving as well as the last 2 weeks of December.)

Salary Range

Salary is contingent upon class schedule and scope of work.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

As a social justice organization, POP is committed to being a diverse and inclusive workplace. Discrimination against race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age, disability or genetic information is both illegal and against our organization’s values.

Our Community

POP is rooted in the community of Philadelphia. We welcome all applicants and invite our local community members to apply. We want to hear from you!

In lieu of a cover letter, please be prepared to answer the following questions: [250 word maximum per response]

• Why are you interested in POP?
• What do you like about working with children or young adults?
• Tell us about a teacher or role model who really influenced you.