Employment at Prairie Song is open to everyone, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, national origin, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Opportunities for Employment
Openings for 2025-2026 School Year
We are seeking creative, enthusiastic, nurturing, compassionate, encouraging guides to join our team this fall in supporting the educational development of our students at our Montessori-based school! Scroll down to see more details on our current openings.
Why teach at Prairie Song?
Teach the way students learn
The more experience you have with students, the more you know that many elements of traditional education don’t line up with the way students really learn. We’ve cut all of that out, and you get to implement all of the strategies and activities you know would work if you just had the time and freedom to do them! Extended blocks for subjects, opportunities for student choice and risk taking…we have it, and we’re always flexible!
Avoid burnout with breaks
Teaching is intense. The planning, the constant adjustments and decision making, the emotional investment you have in your students…it all weighs on you. You can’t carry that load without rest, so we’ve added additional WEEKS of rest into our school calendar. Two weeks during each semester, and four weeks between winter and spring semesters. Rest, refresh, reset. You’ll feel good knowing you’re at your best!
Get support from others
Teaching can be isolating and lonely, and it can also involve a lot of drama. You won’t find any of that at Prairie Song. We co-teach and collaborate across levels as a regular part of our practice. You’re never in it alone. It’s never a competition. We get to know one another’s strengths, and we utilize them. We know our weaknesses, and we support each other. We like each other, and we truly work together all year long!
Get paid to plan weekly work
For too long teaching has relied on unpaid work planning and grading. We’re working to change that. We can’t pay for all of our lead guides’ planning time yet, but we do pay half of the amount of time you’re leading instruction as plan time. Leading physics for two hours a week? You’ll get paid for one additional hour of off-site planning, at the same rate. And when there’s an opportunity for you to squeeze some planning in while you’re on site, we encourage you to take that, too!
No dress code
We don’t rely on a dress code to create an aura of authority so that students will do what we tell them. We cultivate respect for one another regardless of dress. Feel your best when you’re wearing a suit? Go for it! Want to come to school in your sweatpants? Feel free! We want you to be comfortable and feel great, so wear what works for you. The only thing we absolutely don’t allow are clothes with words/images that are unkind or degrading to another human.
No grades or
tests
Most teachers’ number one barrier to innovation in instruction is that they would have to figure out how to grade the outcome. Students’ biggest barrier to academic risk taking is the fear of getting bad grades. We’ve eliminated it. Never grade an assignment again. Provide feedback, yes. But much of our instruction is designed to be self-correcting or project based, so you won’t ever have piles of grading to do. You can do ALL the fun stuff, and they’ll be learning and growing!
And one more benefit: guides don’t pay tuition for their students.
Because you should always be able to afford to send your student to the school you put so much effort into making a safe, successful, productive learning environment.
Interested in joining our team?
Successful candidates will demonstrate a commitment and ability to support our educational philosophy. Applicants should be committed to student-centered instruction, a collaborative teaching model, and inclusiveness in all areas of the curriculum. Applicants should be capable of modeling courteous and respectful behavior and contributing to the warm, supportive atmosphere that is the hallmark of our educational environment. They will also be willing to support neurodiverse students and students with mental health challenges. Applicants who wish to work full time may be experts in a certain content area, but should be well-rounded with a variety of other interests, and willing to act as an assistant guide when they are not leading learning activities in their area of expertise.
You might be interested in teaching the full day all three on-site days, or you might be interested in coming in for a single subject two or three times a week. Perhaps you can work the mornings, but not the afternoons, or vice versa. You also might be interested in serving as a substitute guide. Whatever your interest and schedule, we’d love to hear from you!
If you’re interested in teaching at Prairie Song, please submit:
1) a cover letter of interest introducing yourself and describing your interest in working with us
2) a résumé
3) the completed application for employment (found below).
All documents should be submitted via email to the address indicated on the application.
Thank you for your interest in working with Prairie Song students, and your time and effort in compiling your application materials!
Prior to applying to join our Prairie Song family, please take a few minutes to read through our values to make sure they align with yours.
2025-2026 Openings
General Assistant Guide: This assistant guide would work with a variety of levels as needed, assisting lead guides by managing the general classroom environment and completing specific tasks or working with specific students as needed. The most important requirements for this position are a love of working with students of all ages, and enthusiasm for learning. We would prefer that this person also have a content area of expertise in science, English language, or math, and be willing to learn our curriculum so they could implement lessons in one of those areas. When able to do so, they would be paid as a lead guide for hours worked in implementation of lessons. However, we will seriously consider candidates who do not have this content expertise as our priority is finding a candidate who meets our first two requirements. Hours are 9:15 a.m. – 2:45 p.m., and days available to work are Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Pay is $15/hr,
Lead Guide for High School Elective: This lead guide will teach a high school elective to 10th-12th grade students during one block per week. This block is on Thursdays from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The candidate should have some expertise on a topic that lends itself to a full semester’s study, and a general plan for teaching it. Pay is $36/week.
Upper Elementary Assistant Guide: The Upper Elementary assistant guide has the same responsibilities as the Lower El assistant guide. We would prefer that this person also have a content area of expertise in science, English language, or math, and be willing to learn our curriculum so they could implement lessons in one of those areas. When able to do so, they would be paid as a lead guide for hours worked in implementation of lessons. Assistant guide pay is $15/hr, and no work is required outside of school.
Co-Lead Guide for High School Chemistry: This lead guide will co-teach high school chemistry, which is taught to sophomores and juniors who have already completed a conceptual physics course. High school students have two chemistry blocks per week; one focused on conceptual understanding through discussion and paper-based learning activities, and one that is laboratory work. This co-lead might be on site for one or both of these blocks. Formal collegiate work in chemistry is required for this position. Pay is $16/hr.
Other Assistant/Lead Guide: Do you have the skills to guide students in a content or elective area? Would you like to work with Prairie Song students but can’t commit to as much time as the above positions require? Please feel free to submit an application and let us know what you can do! We often adapt our guide positions to fit their availability and skills.
Application for Employment
Complete our online application here! Please note that it needs to be completed in one sitting, as it will not save your responses.
Prairie Song Academy 